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    St. Thérèse of Lisieux (The Little Flower of Jesus) has such great insight into the human spirit. She benefits all of us by her willingness (obedience) to let us into her thoughts and actions in her autobiography. I'm not sure if you know this, but she had a deep longing to be an Apostle, a priest, a martyr, a missionary and a preacher. She also wanted to be a Doctor of the Church. (Pope John Paul II declared her a Doctor in 1997.) There she was, in her little cell in the cloistered Carmelite monastery in France and she felt a huge pull to just go out and be all of these things. Her dreams were ultimately fulfilled following her death at the monastery at the age of 24. She is known throughout the world and preaches to us through her life.  She was canonized a saint on May 17, 1925.  While St. Thérèse wasn't able to fulfill her earthly longings during her short life, God had a much bigger plan for her. She concluded, after reflecting on St. Paul's...

"The Milky Way pictured from the International Space Station in a long-duration photograph" (NASA (November 25, 2024)) Today's Artemis II launch is a big deal, even if it's not particularly "newsworthy". As usual, my news feed has been packed with the usual direly dreadful distressful disasters: and that's another topic. I'm actually writing this Tuesday evening, but what I have to say matters: even if the launch is rescheduled. More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (A few thoughts about the April 1 Artemis II launch, Apollo missions, and wondering what is over the next hill.)

  Pray with the Pope — April: For priests in crisis Today, 31 March 2026, Tuesday of Holy Week,  the Vatican posted the video above  with the Pope's intention for all Catholics to pray for during the month of April. We are asked to  Pray with the Pope  for his specific intention for each month. This was formerly known as the  Apostleship of Prayer .   APRIL: For priests in crisis In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Lord Jesus, Good Shepherd and companion on the journey, today we place in your hands all priests, especially those going through moments of crisis, when loneliness weighs heavily, when doubt clouds their hearts, and when exhaustion seems stronger than hope. You who know their struggles and wounds, renew in them the certainty of your unconditional love. Let them feel they are not mere functionaries or lonely heroes, but beloved sons, humble and cher...

  I've always wondered how, after spending all that time with Jesus, Judas missed Jesus' message of forgiveness.  After learning of the consequence of his betrayal, rather than turning to Jesus in his great remorse, Judas took his own life into his hands.  While the events of the betrayal and the arrest of Jesus needed to play out, Jesus didn't condemn Judas. Judas condemned himself for his sin. During this Holy Week, it is a good time for us to think about how often we condemn ourselves and just assume that God won't forgive our sins. As we watch the events play out and clearly see that Jesus died for us, we still stubbornly refuse to believe THAT sin can be forgiven, so, like Judas, we think all is lost and turn away from Jesus. This is not the work of God. God doesn't want us to stay away from him. He wants us to believe in his saving action. He wants us to experience his grace that will be poured out on us as both forgiveness and love. Take some time this week t...

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Rockford, Illinois: Central Park Gardens Amusement Park's roller coaster. (ca. 1930) Quite a bit has changed since my childhood. Even more has changed since my father's. Human nature, on the other hand — how and why folks do what they do — details shift, but the basics don't. Like kids taking crazy risks, and adults acting with dubious wisdom.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . (Maybe the amusement park ride operator had a heart of gold. But the free rides ended for my father when his mother found out.)

                                                       I've been thinking about prayer and how we feel when we don't get what we want. "What's the point?" we ask, if our prayers don't elicit a response, or specifically, the response we are asking for. We might even conclude that if we don't have the ability to manipulate change, or God, when we pray, then why bother? We may even just give up on the idea of prayer altogether, feeling like we're just putting our petitions out into the universe where no one is listening.  A couple of things to remember, when we get frustrated by prayer . . . For one thing, prayer helps us come into union with God, in his communion of persons--Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Also, our prayers should be pure.  Let's not pray to win the lottery. Let's ask God for something we really need or for the needs of ot...

  . Sermon for Palm Sunday by Father Jonathan E Moore    LINK HERE   Please consider contributing an article to The Christian Lounge 

Entry into Jerusalem (scene 1) Duccio di Buoninsegna [ Web Gallery of Art ] Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road  (Matthew 21:8; Gospel for Procession of Palms). The Commemoration of the Lord’s Entrance into Jerusalem Gospel for Procession of Palms   Matthew 21:1-11  ( English Standard Version Anglicised: England & Wales,  India, Scotland)    When Jesus and his disciples drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, ‘Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, “The Lord needs them”, and he will send them at once.’ This took place to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet, saying, ‘Say to the daughter of Sion, “Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounte...

  Whenever I read about the Annunciation (when the angel appeared to Mary), or the Visitation (when Mary visited Elizabeth), I use those occasions to pray for people in my own life that do not know Jesus, or who have not remained close to him. I pray that God announces himself to them, or visits them, so that they will come to know him personally. Included in all of these prayers is that the Holy Spirit will be poured out on them, prompting them to turn to God. An additional prayer I utter is that they will not be able to refuse God.  I am a firm believer that God wants to draw all of his children to him and sometimes it just takes an instant for those who have lost their way to return to him by a prompting or an increase through spiritual understanding. Mary had been prepared her entire life to say Yes! when it was announced to her that she would conceive Jesus. We celebrate that announcement today. Sometimes fear can get in the way of us taking a chance on God, ...

The Raising of Lazarus Caravaggio [ Web Gallery of Art ] Readings   (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, Ireland, New Zealand) Readings   (English Standard Version, Catholic Edition: England & Wales, Scotland, India)    Readings   (New American Bible: Philippines, USA) Gospel   John 11:1-45   (English Standard Version, Anglicised) There was a man named Lazarus who lived in the village of Bethany with the two sisters, Mary and Martha, and he was ill. It was the same Mary, the sister of the sick man Lazarus, who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair. The sisters sent this message to Jesus, ‘Lord, the man you love is ill.’  On receiving the message, Jesus said, ‘This sickness will end not in death but in God’s glory, and through it the Son of God will be glorified.’  Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, yet when he heard that Lazarus was ill he stayed where he was for two more days before saying to the ...