There’s a 93-year old, 100-foot-tall Norway Spruce in St. Peter’s Square these days. It’s the Vatican’s Christmas tree for this year. The spruce, along with 50 other trees, have been donated by the Diocese of Bolzano-Bressanone. Speaking to a delegation from the diocese, the Pope says the tree is a significant symbol of the light ...read more

Salt + Light Television presents a series of blogs reflecting on Advent and Christmas by Auxiliary Bishop of Toronto, Bishop William McGrattan, and Salt + Light CEO Fr. Thomas Rosica, CSB.  The series will look at Mary, Joseph, the Word Made Flesh, and the Magi, and will be spread over the next two weeks.  We ...read more

Rita Sawaya's - Advent 2010 on Maui - Hawai'i. ...read more

I remember as a kid watching Christmas music videos on December 25th.  Among those videos was one tune that I couldn’t believe was considered a Christmas song.  To me the singing was bizarre: a kind of slurred, harsh barking; contrasted by a more melodious female voice.  The content of the song, hardly struck me as ...read more

I remember when my wife was pregnant the first time: the excitement of this new life growing inside of her,  the first time we heard the heartbeat. We spoke to the baby, we sang to him, played music… Unfortunately for many women (and men) this is not the case. Some women feel scared to be pregnant. ...read more

So far we’ve looked at sin and at the reasons why the Sacrament requires that we confess to a priest. I know some of you still struggle with that. Perhaps going through the ritual will help a bit. Remember that every Sacrament has a ritual – but the Sacrament is not just the ritual. In ...read more

Last time we looked at sin: mortal sin and venial sin and the reason why we continue sinning even after Baptism. We all have a tendency to sin called concupiscence and so that’s why we need Grace to help us bring those disordered appetites into proper order. And I don’t think most people have a ...read more

So far we’ve had a brief look at Sacraments (Parts 1, 2, & 3) in general and more specifically at Baptism. Let’s continue with the Sacrament of Reconciliation. This is the Sacrament that we all called “Confession.” It is sometimes referred to as the Sacrament of “Penance,” as well. Remember that all Sacraments make Christ ...read more

Christian communities that follow the Julian calendar observe Christmas on January 7th, 13 days after the Gregorian-calendar Christmas. So, to our Christian brothers and sisters who celebrate today – including Ukrainians, Russians, Serbians, Macedonians, Bulgarians, Romanians, Belarusians and others – we wish you a very Merry Christmas! I had a chance to chat with Fr. ...read more

Although the Canadian Church moved the official celebration of the Epiphany to the first Sunday of January, the Universal Church still celebrates the feast on January 6th. In Rome today, Pope Benedict XVI marked the solemnity with Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica and gave a homily reflecting on the significance of the Magi, or the ...read more