This beautiful painting of the Annunciation of Our Lord is provocative. It presents a very real depiction of Mary, the mother of God. A young girl wakes and thinks about the day ahead of her: chores, family activities and the weather.…
There is something wonderful that happens at this time of year. Not Easter… although it is coming soon and it is beyond wonderful. I am actually referring to tax time. Wonderful, you might ask? Well, yes, in a kind of…
Last Saturday, Toronto Star printed the results of a pandemic poll of Ontarians under the headline “We’ve about had it with all this, survey finds.” This title had me nearly dismiss the entire thing as one more instance of statisticians…
Today we remember St. Joseph, in the year that Pope Francis has named as the Year of St. Joseph. Today, also, we begin a Year of the Family! When the Church honours a saint or honours families, it is one…
St. Patrick is one of those characters embraced by a secular world that has little interest and less knowledge about who he is and what he represents. There is much more to this spiritual hero whose death we celebrate on…
I like the Gospel readings for this 4th Sunday of Lent. They challenge me to overcome my own prejudices, assumptions and blind spots. Both of the Gospels – I am including the one for the 2nd Scrutiny of Christian initiation…
One year ago today, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a COVID-19 pandemic. It has been a roller coaster ride since then, and it’s not quite over. There are many signs of hope, from the roll-out of various vaccines and…
This Sunday is a good time to take stock of how Lent is going for me. We’re at around the halfway point. Even if I haven’t stayed completely on track so far, there’s still some road ahead of me to…
What is Amazing Friendships Between Animals and Saints all about? Greg Kennedy, SJ: If I had to use two words to describe the content and purpose of the book, they would be “ecological conversion,” a term first used by St.…
Perhaps you remember old Aesop’s fable about the boy and the nettle. If not, here goes: one day a lad comes running home with eyes full of tears and a hand full of invisible pins and needles. “Mommy,” he sobs,…