Last week, we spoke about how Lent doesn’t just have a penitential character, but also a baptismal character. I hope that if you didn’t already know the date of your baptism, you went to find out. We should all know the date of our baptism. Part of the reason that Lent has a baptismal character ...read more

Sebastian Gomes discusses where you can find Jesus this Lent. His answer may surprise you. A new season of Subject Matters premieres Sunday, March 19, 2017! ...read more

Pope Francis celebrated Holy Mass for Ash Wednesday at the Basilica of Santa Sabina on the Aventine hill in Rome. In his homily, the Holy Father said Lent is a path that “leads to the triumph of mercy over all that would crush us or reduce us to something unworthy of our dignity as God’s ...read more

A reflection for the First Sunday of Lent It seems almost scandalous to think that Jesus experienced temptation. We think of temptation as something shameful, something that only happens to us and not to others, something that distances us from God. But in the Gospel for the First Sunday of Lent we see Jesus tempted ...read more

When you think of Lent, what do you think of? Do you think of feasting or fasting? Do you think of partying or penance? How many of you, when you think of Lent, think of Baptism? Surely the Catechumens, those preparing for Baptism at Easter, who do their final preparations during Lent are thinking of ...read more

It can be difficult to get through winter in the city, especially when it seems all color has been sucked out of the landscape. Grey skies, iced-over trees, wet and muddy sidewalks, black coats, black boots, black, black, black, grey, grey, grey… these are not what dreams are made of. And, on the rare occasion when ...read more

It is indeed that time of year again. For those of you who partied-hard over the past two days, (Pancake Tuesday, Fat Tuesday, Mardi-Gras etc…) to prepare for the next 40 days, and are now just wondering what to give up for lent, you’ve come to the right place. Here is a great article that’ll help you think about ...read more

Read Pope Francis’ message for Lent 2017 below: The Word is a gift. Other persons are a gift. Dear Brothers and Sisters, Lent is a new beginning, a path leading to the certain goal of Easter, Christ’s victory over death. This season urgently calls us to conversion. Christians are asked to return to God “with ...read more

“I echo the desire of many in expressing my hope that the objectives outlined by the Paris Agreement do not remain simply as good words, but rather that they are transformed into courageous decisions!“ Pope Francis, Message for World Food Day, Oct. 14, 2016 Small family farmers are at the heart of ecological justice.  That’s the message Development ...read more

The summer is coming to a close and the Vatican is getting back into its typical routine.   Pope Francis, unlike his predecessors, never takes much of a break during the summer, despite frequent prompts coming from his inner circles: those concerned his busy schedule will negatively affect his overall health…and theirs.  But, as Austen Ivereigh ...read more