A reflection for the Fifth Sunday of Lent The question is often raised, “If God is good, why is there evil in the world?” Sometimes this dilemma is even used as a proof that God does not exist – if God is all-good and all-powerful, shouldn’t He be able to prevent all evil from happening? ...read more

Last week we looked at the RCIA program: the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults. We saw that this process is pretty standard throughout the universal Church. We also saw that (in previous posts, part 1 and part 2) how the program of receiving people (mainly adults) into the Church is ramped up during Lent. ...read more

A reflection for the Fourth Sunday of Lent It can be difficult to imagine what life would be like if we were born blind. How would we function? How would we perceive the world? But is physical blindness the only form of blindness? Is it the worst form of blindness? The Fourth Sunday of Lent ...read more

A reflection for the Third Sunday of Lent We all have some part of us that we wish was different. Something in ourselves that we wish was otherwise. Often this part of us can be a source of shame, of fear, of regret, of embarrassment. It is something we wish would just go away, that ...read more

Deacon Pedro and Richard Valenti spent a little time sharing with Richard's children about Pope Francis and his anniversary. This poem came out of that conversation. ...read more

(CNS photo above: Pope Francis updates the Roman Curia on his reform agenda during their Christmas audience in the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican Dec. 22, 2016) Catch an all new Perspectives on Church Reform under Francis Friday, March 17th at 7pmET & 11pmET No matter where you’re from or how you interpret the first four ...read more

So far we’ve looked a little bit about why Lent has a baptismal character and we’ve looked at a particular component of the Catechumenate, the Rite of Election. Before we go on, let me explain a bit more why it’s important to keep Baptism at the centre of our Lent. It’s not j ust that ...read more

This article was originally published in The Irish Catholic. It’s hard to deny that online debate about Amoris Laetitia has been marked far more by heat than light. Indeed, disagreement about the Pope’s exhortation on love and the family has reached such a point that at least one commentator has claimed the Church is now entering ...read more

A reflection for the Second Sunday of Lent What keeps us going through difficult times? What inspires our hope when the situation is bleak? What makes us persevere when it would be easier to give up? In the Gospel reading for the Second Sunday of Lent, we see Jesus ascend Mount Tabor with His three ...read more

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