I'm all for finding God in the silence. For me this means taking lots of naps, especially during the winter with its protracted darkness and chill. Never mind that I also nap during the summer to escape sunlight that has...

This past Sunday was the feast of the Holy Family, and it calls to our imagination that "longest sermon" of Jesus first 30 years, as Cardinal Seán O'Malley called it. I remember, as a teenager, wondering what Jesus was like...

Merry Christmas! We continue our seasonal retreat by reflecting on Christmas. Please share your retreat experience with others here in the comments. Christmas Time, First Week: Jesus Is Light in the Darkness.Petition: Ask for the grace to receive Jesus, the...

Where is Christ being born today?  It certainly isn't where we expect, if history is any guide.  Where, today, is that stable at the obscure roadside inn in the little backwoods burgh? Perhaps it is in Malawi, where Ambition's imagination...

My wife disturbed my Advent bliss a couple of days ago when she showed me a poem. I had been sailing along smoothly, humming “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” lighting the Advent wreath, and reading Isaiah's prophecies. Then Susan...

The most basic spiritual practice is learning silence.  Practicing silence is an act of faith precisely because one cannot know for certain that anything is to be gained from it.  It might be a waste of that most precious...

Here are some links of interest for supporters of Ignatian ministries. The Jesuit Volunteer Corps has opened applications for the 2011-2012 volunteer term. Loyola Press has started a series of articles to help Catholics understand the upcoming changes in the Roman...

Fr. Jim Martin, SJ, notes something unusual in a Renaissance depiction of the Annunciation: Mary is surprised, but the angel Gabriel seems to be surprised too. That's the beginning of a fine Advent meditation. (If you can't see...

We've arrived at the final week of Advent. If you are following along with our Advent retreat, here is a brief reflection to begin this week. Please share your retreat experience with others here in the comments as we...

Advent is the season when we remind ourselves of what we are waiting for, keeping at bay the voices which tell us that our waiting is fruitless. In one of the texts from the Office of Readings for Advent, St....