We made it. We got through January 24th, the worst day of the year. A group in Great Britain came up with this date a few years ago and designated it as the worst of any of the 365 in...

Fr. Edward Dowling, SJ,  a friend of Bill Wilson, the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, was convinced that the Spiritual Exercises influenced the 12 Steps of AA (which guide many other 12-step programs).  Bill Wilson said he had never heard...

During December 2010, I visited Loyola Press to talk with the marketing and sales team about why, when and how to use social media. As part of my preparation, I hunkered down to take a more rigorous look at...

Nicholas Carr asks what the internet is doing to our brains.  His answer: rewiring it for easy distraction.  He observes that the way we read online--with constant distractions--is actually changing the way our neural pathways work, with the resulting...

A couple of updates on Jesuits in Washington DC. The Ignatian Pro-Life Network is calling for participation in the annual Mass for Life & Rally on January 24 in Washington. Details on the Network's Facebook page. The Network is...

I've just published a new book. It's called A Simple, Life-Changing Prayer, and it's about the Ignatian Examen, which has changed a lot of things for me in the last couple of years. I've read everything about the Examen that...

Note: I jotted this down in real time last Friday evening and didn't get around to posting it.  Another week has passed with a new set of stresses and demands. May I be graced with the energy to get...

The weather is cold, snowy and miserable here in the Midwest -- a good time to think about the homeless among us. Get acquainted with the Ignatian Spirituality Project, a mission that brings the graces of...

The feast of Epiphany today brings the Christmas season to an end. To mark the day, here's a litany called "The Work of Christmas" composed by Howard Thurman, an African-American theologian, educator, and civil rights leader. When the song of the...

If you don't know Viktor Frankl's work, read his book Man's Search for Meaning--one of the most important books of the 20th century.  Below is a short video of a presentation he gave at a 1972 conference in Toronto,...