I arrived late. The crowd was pressed in tightly. Layers and layers of winter clothing seemed to double the size of each person. Despite the throng, all attention was focused on a parade of icons making its way down the central aisle of the church. Cell phones were held high from nearly every hand trying… Read More The Virgin for our Time and Generation

Today is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which commemorates the appearance of Mary to a peasant named Juan Diego in 1531 near Mexico City. It’s an important day for Catholics on this continent, as Pope John Paul II declared Our Lady of Guadalupe the “Patroness of the Americas” in 1999. I particularly love… Read More Three of Mary’s Life & Justice Lessons on the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

Five years ago, on the Solemnity of Christ the King, we celebrated the baptism of our first child.  When we presented him in the church, we were asked, “What do you ask of God’s Church?”  Our answer was, “Baptism.”  Now, five year later, I’d like to ask something more of the Church and of the… Read More For a Church Radiating Love

Today is the 44th anniversary of Thomas Merton’s death.  Merton remains a popular figure among Millennial Catholics.  In the video below, Fr. James Martin discusses his life and his enduring appeal.

Once there was a new mother who sorted her child’s new toys.  Musical instruments went in one basket and cars went into another.  The child grew, and the number of toys grew as well, until all the vehicles no longer fit in one basket.  At that point, the mother separated the vehicles into two baskets,… Read More The Parable of the Vehicles

Over the years I have had any number of nicknames, but I’ve never particularly cared for any of them.  In high school, the name Keebler had its genesis when someone noticed that my ears do not curl over, and I thus bore a resemblance to certain elves.  In college many referred to me by a… Read More Coming to the Table

“When people say (as they do, it seems, with increasing frequency) that they are more interested in ‘spirituality’ than in ‘religion,’ they usually seem to mean that they prefer the balm of private fantasy, the aromatherapy of uplifting individual sentiment, to the hard work of thought and action, the common struggle to make sense of… Read More The Challenge of ‘Spiritual, but Not Religious’