Sister Philomena told us, “You love Jesus as much as you love the person you love the least.” “Holy Cow!” I thought after hearing that pronouncement. The first person that came to mind was Aunt Pearl, my 90 year old aunt. She smelled like steamed cabbage, belched all the time …

Dear Father: I’m a “southerner” as far as the Archdiocese of Cincinnati is concerned and at a recent visit to a northern area parish I observed an unfamiliar custom. The faithful receiving communion often knelt before the priest and received on the tongue. What does the church say about this …

One of the more troubling concerns among journalism management professionals when the millennium arrived involved whether the next generation of reporters and editors would materialize. Through the 80s and into the 90s, most talented journalism students followed the advertising/public relations and marketing track, where there was more opportunity and better …

We enjoy watching Kitchen Nightmares, a reality program that shows TV Chef Gordon Ramsey swooping out of the sky — or an expensive SUV — to save the place from tanking. The show consists of a segment where Ramsey samples the cuisine, which is always awful, and a segment where …

The most glorious of the seasons of the liturgical and secular calendar embraces Easter. It is glorious, first, because Jesus saved us with His death and resurrection and, secularly, because the world seems to come back to life in the spring. The most heart-warming for most of us is the …

Dear Father: How is a priest to handle a request for a Mass to be said for an intention from a lay person? I understand a donation is not necessary but usually accepted. Is it covered in the Catechism? Dear Reader: The Code of Canon Law answers your question, especially …

I’m not dying. I don’t know what it is like to hear a doctor tell you that you have a finite number of tomorrows, and he has an estimate for just how many. The phrase, “There’s nothing we can do” has not been uttered to me or a member of …

Have you ever had a nickname? I have a son who is known by most of his friends as Donut. There are folks who couldn’t tell you his given name. Nicknames are expressions of endearment. Princess, Sparky, and Red tell us about unique qualities and relationships. In a way, when …

For the past two years I’ve had the opportunity and privilege to go on a mission trip to Vanceburg, Kentucky through the Glenmary Home Missioners. With the Ohio River on one side and the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains on the other, it is a place of striking natural beauty. …