Spirituality
Distractions are part of daily prayer
By Michelle Francl-Donnay Search me, God, and know my heart, probe me and know my mind. And see if a vexing way be in me, and lead me on the eternal way. – Ps. 139:23-24 One evening long ago, in the days before I had even one teen in the house, I was sitting on […]
Praying for snow days
By Michelle Francl-DonnayThere is no need to worry; but if there is anything you need, pray for it, asking God for it with prayer and thanksgiving. – Phil. 4:6If prayers left a smoke trail, my house these past couple of weeks would look like we have a fire blazing 24/7. As soon as the weather […]
Doing God’s work can make us messy
By Michelle Francl-Donnay I went down to the potter’s house and there he was, working at the wheel. Can I not do to you, house of Israel, as this potter has done? says the Lord. Indeed, like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, house of Israel. – Jer. […]
‘Have the courage to be alone’
By Michelle Francl-Donnay Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord? Who shall stand in his holy place? – Ps. 24:3 A few weeks ago I was multi-tasking away in the kitchen: sorting through school forms, responding to student email, organizing the week’s dinners, drilling Latin vocabulary, all while a pot of chicken stock simmered […]
Silence, like God, is all around us
By Michelle Francl-Donnay Our God comes, he does not keep silence, before him is a devouring fire, round about him is a mighty tempest. – Ps. 50:3 On my travels last fall I spoke to a group of university students about contemplative practices. As we were talking about ways to set aside space and time […]
In God’s hands chaos is creation
By Michelle Francl-Donnay In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. – Gn. 1:1-2 I sometimes wish I lived in a universe that flowed smoothly, without […]
The strength to cling, and to let go
By Michelle Francl-Donnay It is Christ among you, your hope of glory. – Col. 1:27b Joey has developmental challenges, I teach quantum physics. But we share a passion for medieval polyphonic music. In return for the gift of a CD by one of my favorite groups, I received an exquisite thank you card bearing Joey’s […]
Hand in hand with Mary
Father Ronald Check One of the most beautiful additions to the Church or the home at this time of year is the manger scene. At my first assignment as a priest one thing that always inspired me was the devotion with which people would approach the manger. I remember being so moved to see people […]
Understanding Biblical timelines
Father John DietzenCatholic News Service Q. During Advent, our parish Bible study group is discussing the Annunciation, Nativity and other seasonal topics. The conversation turned to how much we really know about when things happened in the Bible. […] How do these huge time periods relate, for example, to the stories about Adam and Eve? […]
Grace, courage sufficient for life’s trials
By Father Ronald Check God loves us infinitely. He knows our strengths and our gifts. He knows our weaknesses and our failures. He knows what makes us happy and what brings us sadness. He knows what lifts up our spirits and He knows what humbles us. He knows everything that there is to know and […]