Spirituality
Easter offers hope, and we need it more than ever
As Lent began, the war in Ukraine broke out and pushed the pandemic from the headlines. But all along there was climate change and the call to simplify. The actions of care for creation give hope and strength to Effie Caldarola.
Good Friday shows how suffering unleashes love in the world
We can try to avoid suffering or seek an intellectual answer to the mystery, but Father Christopher Moriconi shows how God responded to it by his own suffering and teaches us how to make the connection between sacrifice and love.
‘Do this in memory of me’ includes serving others, cardinal says
Washing his disciples' feet and then commanding them to do the same for others, Jesus instituted "service, elevating it to a fundamental law, or, better, to a lifestyle and model of all relationships in the church," said the preacher of the papal household.
When we suffer with Jesus, we ‘do this in memory’ of him
Jesus offers himself completely for our sake in his passion and death commemorated on Palm Sunday, and he calls everyone to follow his model of love, writes Msgr. Joseph Prior.
A new look at the passion, through old art
An exquisite 14th-century artwork depicting Jesus' passion, death and liberation of souls invites us to walk with him on his paschal journey this Holy Week.
Readings of the Holy Mass – Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion
Read, listen to or watch videos of the Mass readings with these resources from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, using the New American Bible, Revised Edition.
Peter’s denial, and the mercy of Christ
One element of the passion narratives of Palm Sunday and Good Friday that gets little attention is St. Peter's threefold denial of Jesus. It teaches of failure, forgiveness and fidelity.
A Lenten exercise: Crack the case of ‘Mrs. Zebedee’
Effie Caldarola invites you to place yourself in two Gospels and discover the unnamed mother of the sons of Zebedee, and learn from her journey of conversion with Jesus.
How to live an ordinary life in extraordinary way
The path to renewal that Christians mark in Lent is really meant for all year long, where ordinary gifts such as a smile, patience, precious time or kind word can become "a spiritual force."
Meditate on ‘Ubi Caritas’ this Lent
The Taize song reminds us that whenever we act in love, we enter into a life of communion with Christ, writes Cassandra Palmer, who counts some of the ways love is all around us.