In this month dedicated to the sacred heart of Jesus, as I file away a meditation for a most ancient novena for the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, I prepare for June 27, the last Friday of the month’s devotion, which falls on the solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.
For three successive years, my wife and I along with some friends have participated in the physical and spiritual journey of a 22-mile Walk to Mary in eastern Wisconsin — one of many Marian crownings held this month for honoring the Blessed Mother.
Like most practicing Catholics, I’m a member of a parish near my home. Yet I’m also blessed to have another “home” parish due to my diaconate assignment that is a bit farther away. Most days I consider the situation a gift, giving me an opportunity to experience parish life activities from different venues and perspectives.
During my agribusiness career, leadership at self-improvement seminars or CEOs at planning meetings would often say something along the lines of “hope is not a strategy.”
Christmas and Easter traditionally are the holiest times of the year. Or at least they should be in family life. And it’s a safe bet to say that with authentic Christian families, they are treated as the most sacred of celebratory times, rooted with rich, memorable traditions.
Be grateful. That was the penance of a recent confession given me by the priest, my confessor. Surely, I should be able to deliver on that penance immediately. All of us can be grateful for the extraordinary and ordinary things we value — faith, family, friends and health to name a few.
If you didn’t get a chance to attend the National Eucharistic Congress (NEC) in Indianapolis this past July with the 50,000 or so others, it is not too late to enjoy its fruits.
When I visited Israel in 2012, what really activated my senses — and moved my soul — was when the guide challenged us on the tour group to get our Bibles out and note the scriptural passages that describe the sites affiliated with a particular mystery of the rosary. The texts I found (and marked in my Bible on that pilgrimage) brought out the joy, sorrow, light and glory with which our Blessed Mother leads us to know and love Jesus more fully.
My own vocation of marriage is positively reinforced every time I witness the goodness, beauty and truth of the sacrament of holy matrimony. This year I have been blessed to attend, witness and assist as deacon at a good number of weddings — three included close relatives, which made the ceremonies extra special.
For the last few years, in cooperation with my primary care physician and specialists in the medical field, I have been dealing with monitoring an incidental find — an asymptomatic ascending aortic aneurysm.
Strengthened by Christ’s real presence