This column is part of a series on holy orders and the first on the priesthood. It follows eight columns by Father Van Sloun on the ordination and ministry of deacons in the Church.
On March 23, 1999, Chris Chelios — a Chicago native and star defenseman of the Chicago Blackhawks — was traded to the Detroit Red Wings at the age of 37.
The Gospel reading appointed for the Third Sunday of Easter in Cycle B contains the third and fourth narratives about the risen Jesus on Easter Sunday in a series of five recounted in Luke 24: an appearance to Jesus’ disciples gathered in Jerusalem (36-43) and a remembrance of his final instructions to them (44-49).
In the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, once a man is admitted to the diaconate formation program, it is a long and spiritually rich five-year journey to ordination.
Darkness, as we all know, can be quite powerful; amid suffering, it can be hard to see a way out. But as Holy Week shows us, love and hope are far more powerful than the forces of evil.
Q) I know that I make excuses. My family members point that out to me, and my friends (my very close friends) have told me that my excuse-making makes it difficult to trust me. But most times they don’t feel like excuses to me. They seem like the real reasons I’m late or don’t do what I had said I would do. How can I tell the difference between excuses and real reasons?
One of St. Joseph's most devoted followers, St. Peter Julian Eymard, recommends we use the March 19 feast of St. Joseph as an opportunity to seal a devotion to him, saying: "I consecrate myself to you, good St. Joseph, as my spiritual father; I choose you to rule my soul and to teach me the interior life, the life hidden away with Jesus, Mary and yourself."
Deacons wear two special vestments unique to the order of deacons: The deacon stole and the dalmatic. They are worn when the deacon serves in a liturgical role such as at Mass or for the celebration of the sacraments of baptism or matrimony.
When Frodo Baggins learns that the ring he has inherited is the One Ring of Power, which needs to be destroyed to rid the world of a great evil, he naturally has questions.
Q) Lent is right around the corner, and I never seem to know what to do for the season. I’ve tried giving things up, but it always seems a bit hollow. What should I do?
Lent is a time of reparation -- a season of sorrow for sins committed and expressions of a sincere desire to reform our lives. But what does it mean to be sorry? What are the components of real remorse?
