Who, or what, has transformed your life?
Let’s explore what and who transformed St. Vincent de Paul.
Year: 2023
Have You Tried Praying the News?
Have you heard the expression “Pray with the bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other”
Let’s explore in this Vincentian Mindwalk.
Revisiting – Are You an Original or a Photocopy?
On October 10, 2020 Carlos became the first millennial to be named “Blessed”, the last step before being proclaimed a Saint. He would be the millennials’ first saint.
Nobody Wants To Do the Dishes!
But someone has to do the dishes!
“Everybody wants a revolution, but nobody wants to do the dishes.”
This Mindwalk is a reflection on a saying attributed to a contemporary change agent – Shane Claiborne
What Did Jesus Did Not Have?
Everyone has an idea of what the Catholic Church needs to appeal to people today!
Maybe we should look back to the ”Good News” Jesus brought and how he embodied God’s word.
Did Jesus leave us a theology text or code of canon law or pastoral plan?
Remember Where You Were on 9/11?
I will never forget the morning of 9/11/2001. Then I wondered “The world will never be the same.”
Today I wonder if we can ever move beyond our deeply angry and polarized world.
Some See More Than Others … Do You?
“The only thing worse than being blind is having sight but no vision”. Powerful words coming from a woman who lost her sight and hearing before her second birthday.
Let’s exp[ore Jesus’ vision.
Are Interruptions the story of your life?
Does it feel like interruptions are the story of your life?Have you ever thought of interruptions as being the story of Jesus life? Let’s explore Jesus’ interruptions and what they can teach us.
What Does Labor Day Mean For You?
What does “Labor Day” mean for you?
Might there be a deep meaning of what “labor” means for Christians?
How Did America Get So Mean?
Why have Americans become so sad? … a second, related question is: Why have Americans become so mean?
“Mindwalk Mode” alert! – Two excellent questions!
What Catechism Did Jesus Use?
Today I find myself asking what kind of catechetical approach Jesus used. I have no indication he used any such catechism. In this Vincentian Mindwalk, I explore the various catechisms used over millennia.
Is There an “Immaculate COMPLEXION?”
Have you noticed? In art, Mary never seems to age! Her face seems to be outside time and the messiness of life. How could her complexion remain so immaculate?
“The more things change…”
“The more things change, the more they stay the same.”
I once again came across of document from the US Bishops almost exactly 30 years ago.
In this Vincentian Mindwalk, I invite you to make your own judgment about how much has changed and not changed since then.
Why is Mary Fittingly Called Queen of Heaven?
I wonder how many would immediately answer the question saying because she is the Mother of Jesus.
It is certainly true she bore him in her womb. But might there be a deeper reason with many profound implications for you and I?
She is Queen of Heaven because of a much wider understanding of her role in God’s plan for us. It was more than just being a physical mother.
Practical Prophets
I suspect there are few visitors to this site who have not watched someone they love about to make a big mistake.
We “know” they are on the wrong path!
Welcome to the world of the Prophets!
Name Two Women Who Changed Jesus’ Mind?
In his adult life, Jesus had regular interactions and conversations with the scribes, Pharisees, and teachers of the law — highly educated men with a vast knowledge of the Jewish faith.
But, there is not a single account in Scripture where a man manages to change Jesus’s mind.
The two people who changed Jesus’s mind were, in fact, both women.
Know Anybody Who Walks On Water
Walking on water is a phrase we often associate with an arrogant, overly confident person. You know the kind. They can be quite annoying.
However, it didn’t always mean that.
What Are You Afraid Of?
I suspect every one of us can admit to having been afraid.
Mary may have been the Mother of God, but I doubt she did not know fear.
he feast of the Assumption holds great hope for us.
With her Assumption into heaven, she finally understood how everything made sense.
Suppose God Checked Your References!
“Nobody gets to heaven without a letter of reference from the poor!”
Father Ron Rolheiser wrote these words 20 years ago. I just caught up to them a few days ago. I scrapped what I was going to write so I could share what touched me.
Making Connections In My Life
Only later in life did I come to understand that how what I dreaded earlier taught me to make connections.
What Two Days Changed Our World?
It is written that God took 7 days to create the world … at least as we think we know it.
We are just realizing anew that this world is not even a speck of all that God created.
Remember Any Sermons 30 Years Later?
I can remember two talks that stopped me in my tracks … and still nourish me today. Each, in its own way, broadened my vision of what it means to be a follower of Christ, the Evangelizer of the Poor.
Do We “Live” the Words “All are Welcome?”
We sing ““All are welcome! All are welcome! …Let us build a house where love can dwell and all can safely live”.
Do we live the words?
Have You Ever Gone Out On a Limb?
In this Vincentian Mindwalk I am going to predict some things about what will happen when an ailing 86-year-old Pope Francis braves the sweltering heat wave in Lisbon to spend some time with young people at World Youth Day.
Do You Remember Your Grandparents?
Is there any connection between the celebration of World Youth Day and the World Day for Grandparents and Elderly?
From “Sage on the Stage” To “Mentor in the Center”
I had never heard the phrases “Sage on the Stage” or “Mentor in the Center.” A mentor is one who helps people connect the dots in their lives.
Has Pope Francis “Made a Mess?”
Almost ten years ago to the day, Pope Francis told young people his hopes for World Youth Day. The sound bite people remember… “make a mess”.
Today many from both the left and the right are saying he himself has made a mess.
When Did Christians Become Soldiers?
For three centuries early Christians could not conceive of themselves as soldiers. What happened?
Yes! I Actually Attended a Session of Vatican II
Freshly ordained in May, 1965, I was privileged to attend one of the final sessions of the Second Vatican Council. In this Mindwalk I share my journey into the church of Vatican II and Pope Francis.
How Have You Changed?
The question “How have you changed” is more complicated than you might realize!
Before you answer, listen to this story.
Rom 16, 13 reads: "Greet Rufus, chosen in the Lord; and greet his mother—a mother to me also." If this…
Have a blessed Holy Week!
I have never thought about the people that were named in the Gospels. I would agree that they may be…
Generally, I love the laconic nature of Mark's Gospel. The Passion narrative is very compelling in its starkness, with one…
Father John, Blessings to you as you step cautiously down that new path. Grace and Peace be with you!