From Season to Season

Peter approached Jesus and asked him, "Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive? As many as seven times?" Jesus answered, "I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.” —Matthew 18:21-22 A Benedictine monk whom I greatly admire and who has also become a good friend through the years once said to me, “The kindest thing you can do for some people is to give them something to be angry about.” Although we laughed at his insight at the time, over the years I’ve realized there is truth in his words. Sometimes, some people just want something to be angry about. Sometimes we are just looking for a fight. Other times—and I’m guilty of this—we look for an excuse to justify the chip we already have on our shoulder. And, the fact of the matter is, we generally don’t have far to look to find something to be angry about. Anger is a reality in life. However, as we know, anger is like any other emotion and can ultimately be used for good or fo...

In classes and days of recollection I offer during Lent, I often remind participants that the purpose of Lent is twofold: it is the time of final preparation of the uninitiated (i.e. catechumens) for baptism and the time for Christians to recall their own baptism and they prepare to renew their baptismal promises on Easter Sunday. Unfortunately, this second aspect of Lent often gets lost. Yes, we all renewed our baptismal promises at Easter and were symbolically sprinkled with holy water, but, for most of us, that moment seems to be over as soon as it has begun and we don’t really appreciate the significance of the act… which is surprising since we’ve spent 40 days preparing to say “I do!” with a renewed mind, heart, and spirit. We renew our baptismal promises each year because conversion and growing in faith are lifelong processes. In saying that, I simply mean that each moment of every day (not just the days of Lent) offers us infinite possibilities for experiencing grace, for cho...

On Sunday, April 12, Pope Francis will celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday by offering a Mass in remembrance of the 1.5 million Armenians murdered in the Ottoman Empire between 1915 and 1918, in what has become known as the " Armenian Genocide ." Among those killed in what has been called the "first genocide of the 20th century," was a bishop of the Armenian Catholic Church : Blessed Ignatius Maloyan. Born in 1869 in Mardin, Turkey, Shokr Allah Maloyan was baptized into the Armenian Catholic Church as an infant. A good student and gifted linguist, he was sent by the local bishop to a nearby convent to begin studies for the priesthood. Ordained in 1896, he took the name Ignatius in honor of Saint Ignatius of Antioch. In November of that year, he was sent to Alexandria, Egypt, to serve as an aid to the Armenian Patriarch. Distinguishing himself for his learning and rhetorical skills, he became a popular speaker and was actively involved in dialogues with the Coptic Chu...