In these times of violence and hatred around the world, following St. Thérèse of Lisieux's confidence is crucial to the world regaining balance, said the bishop of Lisieux as the month of October, the busiest one in the French northern Normandy town of the saint known as the "Little Flower," comes to a close.
Soul Seeing: We are invited to see the invisible in the visible, to notice and celebrate every miracle of life, whether a tiny twig, a small flower, or a burly human, because everything is bursting with divine life.
Joan Chittister: We are all interconnected. When some of us stand up to the bully, we may all be persecuted in the name of God's righteousness. But to do so willingly is the heart of the eighth beatitude.
Perspective: As we recognize International Women's Day, it is more important than ever that we recognize the essential contributions we make, in society as a whole, and especially for the church's mission around the world.
Soul Seeing: Pope Francis' letters are like the soothing hand of a friend who has reached out to heal my wounds and lead me out of a long and barren wasteland.
Christine Schenk: What could better witness the power of an unpredictable God than to raise up a long-awaited Messiah from the least powerful of humans — a child born of an unwed mother? What better witness than a son with no apparent biological father, and therefore no claim to patriarchal privilege?
Joan Chittister: We must allow ourselves to face, to mourn, what is happening to our lives, to our country, to our church. And the Beatitudes are clear: What we ourselves do will be what will "comfort" our mourning.
Joan Chittister: Without poverty of spirit, simplicity of desire, or contentment with enoughness, there can be no awareness of the riches that come with simply being alive, of being loved and loving earth and all in return.
Joan Chittister: In a world of warring tribes and ever larger bombs and the displacement of thousands, how could "blessed are the meek" possibly have real meaning for us in this day and age? I'll tell you.
