“In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leapt in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are ...read more

This post was submitted by Warren Schmidt, CSB. As October draws to a close, I offer a few reflections on the association of the month of October with Mary. The historical roots of October as a month of Mary are unclear. Some attribute the association between October and Mary to the devotion to Our Lady ...read more

Pope Benedict XVI is known to have a special place in his heart for young people. Following his meeting with government officials, he delivered an address to young people gathered on the square in front of the Maronite Patriarchate at Bkerke. Published below is a copy of his official text. Your Beatitude, Brother Bishops, Dear ...read more

Listed below is an official greeting from Canada’s Prime Minister, Stephen Harper. In the Canadian Church, we celebrate the feast day of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary today. As Christians around the world celebrate Assumption Day, I am delighted to extend my heartfelt greetings to all Canadians observing this blessed occasion. The feast day ...read more

Just as the faithful of Vancouver have a pilgrimage to celebrate the feast of Assumption, Catholics in Edmonton have their own shrine to visit on this feast. The Skaro shrine, located 80 km northeast of Edmonton, was built at the turn of the 20th century by residents of the Polish settlement there. In 1904 residents ...read more

Published below is today’s homily, as delivered by Cardinal Robert Sarah at Mass. In his homily, Cardinal Sarah reflected on the feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary – an important feast that the Universal Church celebrates today. It was through the body of a young, Jewish girl, living in a tiny village called Nazareth, ...read more

Below you will find the official text for Archbishop Luis Antonio Tagle’s catechesis, as delivered on Day 7 of the International Eucharistic Congress. The 50th International Eucharistic Congress has been providing us with a wealth of reflection on The Eucharist: Communion with Christ and with one another. Having explored communion in baptism, in marriage and ...read more

I have to be honest, I’ve never really had a great devotion to Mary. I didn’t grow up with one, although, as I’ve written before, my parish at home was “Our Lady of Guadalupe.” As a teenager I heard and read a lot about Medjugorje, and while I understood what the Church teaches about apparitions, ...read more

We Canadians like our summer long weekends.  Once May arrives, we indulge in a monthly long weekend until October! (With the exception of June outside of Quebec.) In an attempt to satiate our long weekend desires, five provinces have a long weekend in February.  Three of those provinces — Alberta, Ontario and Saskatchewan — celebrate ...read more

Before I begin to untangle myself out of this noodle soup I’ve cooked, can I draw your attention to a comment (see comments at the bottom of the blog post) that came from Jason Gennaro — Jason makes an excellent comment that every definition about Marriage has to include God in it. So true. In ...read more