Some years ago, St. Pope John Paul II named St. Francis of Assisi the patron of ecology, which inspired the Franciscans to add “Care for Creation” to our commissions of peace and justice. It is also a great reminder that our gardens’ St. Francis statues are a sign of this …

Have you ever spent time thinking about your wedding ring? The deep meaning behind that circular band is so profound that, on the day we receive it, we are changed forever. We become one with the person from whom we received it, and through our marriage, we become witnesses of …

St. Bernard

Death is a central motif in Christianity. In Catholic moral and spiritual reflection, death has a more dominant place than it does in most other forms of Christian theology. Indeed, some forms of American evangelicalism minimize – or even practically ignore – Christ’s crucifixion, rushing straight to His resurrection. This …

“Play” in the spiritual life makes me think of people dressed as clowns at Mass, or hand motions for grade school songs being imposed upon high schoolers, or the sort of unbearably sanguine exuberance that clashes with a sometimes sorrowful reality. I can think of all sorts of shallow and …

Wanna Know…How the Catholic Church declares someone a saint?

Matilda, Queen of Germany and wife of King Henry I was the daughter of Count Dietrich of Westphalia and Reinhild of Denmark. She was born about 895 and was raised by her grandmother, the Abbess of Eufurt convent. Matilda married Henry the Fowler, son of Duke Otto of Saxony, in the year …

ARCHDIOCESAN PRISON MINISTRY There was a time in Kathy Bendall’s life when she questioned not only her faith, but her very worth. She credits Catholic prison ministry with helping to restore both. Raised Catholic, Bendall’s faith was challenged as a child amid family issues of alcoholism and constant arguments. “I …

St. Theophanes was born in Samothrace, Greece around the year 759. He was orphaned while still a young child, but was left a large inheritance. At age twelve, Theophanes’ guardian coerced him to marry, however he and his wife vowed themselves to celibacy. They lived together for several years but …

Youth and parishioners are coming together at Our Lady of Lavang Vietnamese Community to both encourage each other and support the greater Cincinnati community. It began last fall when Father Vincent Pham Minh Châu, the parish priest, suggested reviving the church’s youth program. Twenty years earlier there had been a …