Spirituality
Been away from confession? God’s mercy still calls
Many adults shy away from the sacrament of reconciliation out of fear and shame. Yet the healing offered by this grace-filled encounter with God's mercy is profound.
Regular trips to the confessional wash away the build-up of sin
Just as you routinely see a dentist to keep your teeth healthy, frequent reception of the sacrament of reconciliation cleanses your soul, restoring it through God's mercy.
Prayers for the deceased can help speed the trip to heaven
While death can mean a direct flight to paradise, most souls likely spend some "make up" time in purgatory and need our prayers, writes Father Kenneth Doyle. In response to another reader, Father Doyle advises grandparents on how to share their faith with uncatechized grandchildren.
Readings of the Holy Mass – Third Sunday of Ordinary Time
Read or listen to the readings before Mass with these resources from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, using the New American Bible, Revised Edition.
On the sacraments: Confirmation
A new catechetical series of stories on the Catholic sacraments by our partner Catholic News Service continues with a focus on confirmation, which strengthens the grace received at baptism.
Anointing with holy oil: Consecration and promise, from Moses to Jesus
The use of sacred oil, or chrism, in the sacrament of confirmation recalls a rich spiritual tradition with deep roots in both the Old and New Testaments.
Confirmed in college
At a large, secular university, a confirmation class dropout sensed the emptiness in worldly pleasures -- and the Holy Spirit's call to come home to the church.
Confirmation strengthens our identity as children of God
Baptism and confirmation are closely linked, but not interchangeable. While both impart grace, confirmation strengthens the believer as an active participant of the church's apostolic mission.
A deluge of divine grace
Water, as both life giver and destroyer, appears often in the Scriptures and a little too much in our lives lately, reflects Gina Christian. The Lord is very much in the midst of the floods of our lives.
In God’s plan of salvation, we each have a unique role and a common response
Christ calls all of us to discipleship in a number of ways, writes Msgr. Joseph Prior. While we each play a different part in God's plan, we all begin by humbly listening to the Lord, then answering with open hearts.