Recently — when it was still July — a friend sent me a text from the supermarket with a photo of a Halloween candy display in the aisle. I expected that the Halloween blitz would be coming soon. Yet, “back-to-school” sales are still in full swing and, in my mind, August is still summer.
When I was 11 years old, wrestling with my brother's recent death, the new parish priest came bounding into our religion class one afternoon. He announced that he would take our questions (submitted anonymously) to answer in his next homily.
Q. As a longtime practicing Catholic, I would like to know whether the church has a position on whether those who are now in heaven can observe, and are aware of, how we are living our lives here on earth. Also, can we pray to our deceased loved ones for help and guidance in the same way that we pray to the saints? (San Francisco)
When Elizabeth II was crowned queen of England in 1953, it was the first time such a ceremony was fully televised. It was a grand event as usual, but this time the scope was much larger. People not only in the United Kingdom but all over the world could watch the event. Elizabeth effectively had been reigning since the death of her father more than a year earlier, but the coronation ceremony and celebrations were delayed to allow for an appropriate length of time for mourning. That day, June 2, 1953, was a chance for the nation to celebrate its new monarch in proper fashion.
Q. Please clarify something that I don't understand when I am praying. In the Gloria at Sunday Mass, we say, "We praise you, we bless you, we adore you, we glorify you." In Psalm 63, we pray, "I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands, calling on your name." And in Psalm 103, we say, "Bless the Lord, my soul; all my being, bless his holy name!" My question is this: What does it mean for us to "bless the Lord"? How can we do that? (Indiana)
Sacramentals are powerful signs of God’s grace in our lives. A popular one we all can embrace is the brown scapular.
When was the last time that you were really, really hungry? Weak, delirious and ready to pass out from hunger?
Nearly buried last month in the hubbub surrounding the U.S. bishops’ debate over who is and isn’t worthy to receive Communion was a colloquy between two bishops concerning something that may prove of far greater importance in the long run.
Well, you all keep me on my toes.
Mary’s Magnificat
In a rare turn of events, our regularly scheduled readings for this Sunday (typically from John’s Gospel) take a momentary back seat as we celebrate the solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. To wit: Mary, because of the awesome grace at work in her life and her role as Mother of God, was preserved from any corruption at the end of her life and taken up to heaven, body and soul.