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Monday, August 10, 2026

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Faith Alive

Faith Alive

‘It is good for us to be here’: A reflection on the transfiguration of Jesus

Each year the Catholic Church celebrates the feast of the Transfiguration on Aug. 6. The story of the transfiguration of Jesus appears in all three synoptic Gospels (cf. Mk 9:2-10; Mt 17:1-8; Lk 9:28-36). Almost all biblical scholars and spiritual writers agree that this intriguing story is important. They also agree that it almost defies interpretation.
Faith Alive

What is the point of a pilgrimage?

What is the point of a pilgrimage? Where did this idea come from for Catholics? There is considerable evidence throughout Scripture, which supplies theological significance to the concept. Even today we see many embracing this activity with passion and the commitment of time and resources.
Faith Alive

Celebrating Corpus Christi

The fact that the Church celebrates the solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ makes good sense, given the Eucharist's centrality in the life of the Church, neatly described by the Catechism of the Catholic Church as the "sum and summary of our faith" (No. 1327). And there's the Second Vatican Council's famous reiteration of this reality in the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, calling the Eucharist the "source and summit of the Christian life" (Lumen Gentium, No. 11).
Faith Alive

6 times Mary appeared to encourage, admonish or inspire the faithful

Even though God has already "said everything" through Jesus Christ, as the Church teaches, some Christians throughout the centuries have attested that they have seen or heard Jesus, the angels or the saints, especially the Blessed Mother.
Faith Alive

St. Augustine, Florida: The real ‘Fountain Of Youth’

How many hours, how much money and effort pour into the illusive preservation of our fleeting youth? Legend has it that the conquistador, Ponce de Léon, sought the Fountain of Youth along the Atlantic coast of Florida, making landfall in the northern part of the state in 1513.
Faith Alive

What exactly is an encyclical?

An encyclical is a pastoral letter addressed by the pope to the whole Church. Encyclical letters generally address matters of faith or morals, encourage a particular commemoration or pious devotion, or deal with matters of Church discipline which are to be universally observed.
Faith Alive

12 saints who were also mothers

"The secret of happiness is to live moment by moment and to thank God for what he sends us each day." This wise insight seems like something a good mother would say -- and in this case, one did. It's a gem from St. Gianna Molla, a Catholic wife, physician and mother who died in 1962 after selflessly prioritizing her unborn baby's health over her own during a difficult pregnancy.
Faith Alive

The gift of self flows from love

In the writings of Pope St. John Paul II, we find a principle he often calls the Law of the Gift. He formulated it in various ways in different writings, but one might state it as follows: "God gave us our whole being so that we might give our whole being back to God."
Faith Alive

Christ showed God’s incomprehensible love by dying on the cross

According to the Gospel of John, in his final moment on the cross, Jesus declared: "It is finished" (Jn 19:30). The words might also be translated: "It is fulfilled"; or "It is accomplished"; or "It is completed."
Faith Alive

How unlocking the meaning of ‘I thirst’ empowers love

"I thirst" is the shortest phrase of the Lord's last words (Jn 19:28). Short though it may be, it contains unsearchable depths. The Lord was telling of his physical thirst on a first and properly literal level. The physical thirst of the Lord was no trivial detail in the Passion story but was foretold in the Old Testament. Psalm 22 tells us his "tongue cleaves to" his palate (Ps 22:16). Psalm 69 is even more explicit: "I am weary with crying out; my throat is parched" (Ps 69:4).
Faith Alive

What is the Christlike way to suffer?

The Gospel of Matthew tells us: "(About) three o'clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, 'Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?' which means, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?'" (Mt 27:46). This saying of the Lord raises the question of how the Lord inwardly related to the Father amid suffering. By implication, it raises the question of how you and I should relate to God amid our sufferings too. What is the Christlike way to suffer?
Faith Alive

‘Behold your mother’ with love and confidence

When God gives us sanctifying grace in baptism, what he gives us is a share in his own divine life. The spirit of God is poured into our hearts (cf. Rom 5:5). The Spirit, in turn, forms our hearts into a likeness of the eternal Son (cf. 2 Cor 3:18).
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