Image from the Met Museum, New York. Public Domain.
Cast Deep Inside
“I’m beyond tired, I’m exhausted. I’ve worked for hours, and I see no progress or any fruit of my labor. I’m worried about doing good enough for those who depend…
Illustration by Frank Kacmarcik, OblSB, Saint John's Abbey, Collegeville, Minnesota. Used with permission.
Against Hypocrisy
There is nothing wrong with being a scribe or a Pharisee, someone whose life is centered on the study of the law of God. We meet several noteworthy ones in…
Illustration by Br. Martin Erspamer, OSB, a monk of Saint Meinrad Archabbey, Indiana. Used with permission.
Through the Eye of a Needle
A decade ago, I spent a summer clapping and dancing with an energetic group of girls known as the “Butterfly Group”— the most challenging residents of Shanti Dan Home for…
Illustration by Frank Kacmarcik, OblSB, Saint John's Abbey, Collegeville, Minnesota. Used with permission.
The One Who Shares All Our Burdens
Matthew, evangelist and former tax collector, gives us two stories about Jesus the taxpayer. Last fall we heard the incident when Jesus was asked, “Is it lawful to pay the…
Illustration by Br. Martin Erspamer, OSB, a monk of Saint Meinrad Archabbey, Indiana. Used with permission.
Dogged Faith
Since my diagnosis with cancer, I have been reading the healing narratives in the Gospels. I felt a nudge to dwell with these stories of curing and cleansing, to understand…
Ben Salmon photo from Wikimedia Commons
Buried Treasure
Many American Catholics will probably recognize the name of Franz Jägerstätter (1907–1943), an Austrian Catholic who went willingly to his death rather than fight for Hitler’s Nazi regime. I imagine…
Illustration by Frank Kacmarcik, OblSB, Saint John's Abbey, Collegeville, Minnesota. Used with permission.
Treasure in Earthen Vessels
What is the chalice or cup of today’s Gospel—the cup that we, too, must drink? This earthen vessel symbolizes Jesus drinking our human life to the full and pouring it…
Image from the Met Museum, New York. Public Domain.
The Lord Will Not Abandon Us
Poor Assyria. They believe themselves to be the intelligence that directs the axe, when they are just the axe. Poor Judah. They believe themselves to be God’s favorite, when they…
Illustration by Br. Martin Erspamer, OSB, a monk of Saint Meinrad Archabbey, Indiana. Used with permission.
Four sentences. Fifty-six words.
Matthew’s account of the hemorrhaging woman is a brief interruption in the Jairus story. What are we to make of it? Let’s review this important interlude line by line: Suffering…
Image from Getty Images
When Things Fall Apart
The Lord God speaks—who will not prophesy? How does God’s Word translate to our time, when it feels as though everything is falling apart? Coastal cities with moderate climate and…
