VIEWS

With Christmas just days away, we turn our hearts toward the humble stable in Bethlehem where the Savior of the world was born. In the midst of the clamor of the world and the unrelenting violence around us, this conscious decision to focus on Jesus Christ, Ruler of the Universe, girds us with the truth: the Child born in the silence and stillness of the night was sent to redeem us and heal our broken world.

“You’ve got to wake them up!” These are the words spoken to me by priests from the Middle East, men who have held fast to faith in Jesus Christ in spite of great danger and suffering. They warn us of a murderous ideology bent on stamping out Christianity and dominating the world. “By the time America wakes up,” one priest told me, “it will be too late.”

In early July, I represented the Diocese of Phoenix and Catholic Charities Community Services at the “Convocation of Catholic Leaders: The Joy of the Gospel in America” in Orlando, Florida. A gathering of leaders like this is rare: the last time such a convocation occurred was 100 years ago during World War I!

“Lord, give me strength.” This has been my mantra of late, every morning when I start to hear the first whines and cries from my 17-month-old around 5:20 a.m.

The Christian life and its spiritual practices are undertaken not for one’s own sake alone. They extend outward and lead toward others, whose lives may be complicated, painful.

NEW YORK (CNS) — Not that the intended core audience of children is likely to notice, but many of the adults who take them will find that there’s something oddly mechanical and even maladroit about “Sonic the Hedgehog” (Paramount).

How can we integrate a reflective, spiritual life with all the media we consume and create?

As a seminarian I used to try to envision what my life might look like when I became a priest.

On April 3, the Arizona Legislature adjourned sine die at 3:37 a.m. after spending 81 days in session. The session was extremely fast-paced and...

It’s that time of the year when everything from serious sermons to sappy jewelry commercials and everything in between turn their attentions to taking care of others. And that’s a good thing, although we should probably be thinking about that all year.