We Catholics love our priests so much. Without them we could not practice our beautiful Catholic faith. We receive the Eucharist at their hands. They extend the mercy of the Lord to us. They give us spiritual counsel. They represent Jesus to us. They are there for us in the most intense times of our… [Read More]
Cardinal Sarah: Defender of the Faith
Within the ranks of the Church leadership, Robert Cardinal Sarah stands out as a rare example of outspoken zeal for the faith accompanying his conspicuous love of God. Born and raised in Guinea, he first became a priest and then archbishop of Conakry (covering all of Guinea). He was made Cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI… [Read More]
The Church is true but we are a very sick family right now
I entered the Church officially at the age of 22, in 1990. It took me a long time. I attended daily mass for two years even though almost everything about the Catholic Church freaked me out. I had authority issues. I had spiritual issues. I had sexual abuse issues. I had issues with men. I… [Read More]
Crowd Funding Hail Marys
After a week of losing sleep over the suffering of little children taken from their parents at the border, many days of speaking out and also of sending what money I could to organizations trying to help these separated families, I texted to one of my sisters in Carmel, still feeling very sad. I asked… [Read More]
Dear Austin, let us pray…
It is a morning to pray. We woke up to the news today that the suspect behind the recent package bombs had been caught, and indeed had taken his own life in the process. Let us pray this morning together for peace in our city, for peace in our families, for peace in our own… [Read More]
Making the Root of Holy Wisdom Our Own
“…and he shall find her sitting by his gate.” You know those moments when you’ve been thinking about or reading about something, and then it happens to come up at Sunday mass? When the readings or the homily are about exactly what’s been on your mind/heart? I love when that happens! That happened to me… [Read More]
Thoughts on the “thoughts and prayers”
Some people are upset about the “thoughts and prayers” response to mass shootings. I understand. I am tired of hearing that myself. It seems such a fill in the blank response; even glib and inappropriate when we all feel sickened by this cycle of seemingly endless gun violence followed by the same responses and counter… [Read More]
Is God Punishing Us with Fires and Shootings? Part II
This article is a continuation of “Is God Punishing Us with Hurricanes and Earthquakes?” More specifically exploring the fourth possible option mentioned in the first article if God is indeed punishing us with evil? The answer is yes and no. YES, when we die, and NO, while we are living here on earth. NO PHYSICAL… [Read More]
The Most Important Prayer in a Cataclysmic Event
During a life-threatening cataclysmic event like a major hurricane, earthquake, tornado, fire, tsunami, or other disasters, our most important goal is to save our lives but most especially our souls if we are facing imminent death. To save our souls there are four ways to forgive mortal sins, but three of them will most likely… [Read More]
Is God Punishing Us with Hurricanes and Earthquakes?
We are having unprecedented hurricanes and earthquakes plus many deaths from the “destructive forces of nature.” (CCC 309) The big questions in the back of everyone’s mind is are we at the point in the bible where it says, “There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on earth nations… [Read More]
Congrats Bishop-Elect Bill!
Fr. Bill Wack, CSC, Pastor of St. Ignatius, Martyr, has been named as the sixth bishop of Pensacola-Tallahassee.
A Sign of Our Times: The Temptation of Survivial
The temptation of survival begins with fear in our hearts deceiving us that there are not enough jobs, resources, and food even though statistically we throw away half of our food every year. The spirits of fear and greed trick us into believing we are no longer safe, and we must protect and preserve all… [Read More]
Taboos and Resolutions (A Response to Archbishop Chaput’s Tocqueville Lecture)
They say you shouldn’t talk about sex, politics, or religion in public. As an evangelization-minded Catholic, I live a little differently, but I do tend to stay away from politics. I just don’t like it. These days, however, there’s no getting away from politics, even when we’d rather talk about some of those other uncomfortable… [Read More]
Can We Be Catholic and American? (A Response to Archbishop Chaput’s Bishop’s Symposium Talk)
Author’s note: As commenter DanC kindly pointed out, I had my Chaput speeches mixed up. The post below has been corrected from its originally published version to refer to the correct context and original text. I apologize for any confusion I caused. I spent a while learning how to teach adolescents in addition to my… [Read More]
Embrace the world: How to love in troubled times
Today is the feast day of St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, or Edith Stein. She was born into a Jewish family, but became a decided atheist in her youth. She grew into a brilliant intellectual, writer, and philosopher. Her search for truth lead her into the Catholic Church, and into religious life as a… [Read More]
God is here.
God is here. In the middle of the traumatic events of the last several days, in the midst of the anger and grief we are experiencing as a country right now, the Spirit of God moves among us in blossoming uprisings of love, unity, and understanding that surprise and open hearts. You may not have heard… [Read More]
When Christmas Brings Out Your Inner Grinch
I went to a major retailer to pick up a couple last minute gifts, when I noticed that a big sign on their front door. It read, “OPEN 24 HOURS UNTIL CHRISTMAS EVE!” Ugh. I hated that sign – to me it represents everything that’s wrong about commercialized holidays. Yes, gift giving can be a… [Read More]
The Door to Mercy – Knowing We Are Loved
For the opening of the Year of Mercy, I was late to mass. Late to mass! Imagine, this great event, once in a Jubilee, and I had even planned ahead to get out of work early – and still I was late to mass, and very late. Walking up to the mass-in-progress, I slid into… [Read More]
Mind Blown: Top Quotes from Pope Francis’ Visit to America
Unless you’re living under a rock that doesn’t get Wifi, you’ve heard about Pope Francis’ visit to the United States of America. His visit was historic. It was inspiring. It was filled with surprises and joy and humility. Everything he said could be turned into a semester-long study on theology or ecology or human rights. If… [Read More]
Something Greater Than Ourselves
In a little less than 2 weeks, on October 11, Bishop Joe Vasquez will celebrate Mass at the Marian Shrine of Our Lady of Schoenstatt, in honor of the Feast of Our Lady of Schoenstatt, and to give thanks for the first year anniversary of the Shrine. What might inspire us to go? What might… [Read More]
Central Texas Storms: How to Get Help and How to Give Help
For many in central Texas, this Memorial Day did not go as planned. Many of us looking forward to spending time with friends and family, instead found ourselves texting and calling friends and family to see if they were unharmed. Severe weather – complete with deadly flash flooding and tornado activity – hit Travis and… [Read More]
Austin’s First Auxiliary: The Ordination of Bishop Danny Garcia
This post was originally posted at JacksonGalloway’s Blog and shared with permission. Tuesday, March 3rd was an historic day for Central Texas. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Austin saw the ordination of its very first Auxiliary bishop, Most Reverend Daniel Elias Garcia at St. William Catholic Church in Round Rock. The current Vicar General, previously pastor of St…. [Read More]
Bishop Rundown for the Diocese of Austin [Infographic]
We are living in exciting times in the Diocese of Austin. The Austin metro area is experiencing unprecedented growth and constantly ranking at the top of list to show just how great things really are going in the area. Our diocese is booming, and it’s only excepted to keep going for the foreseeable future. Episcopal Ordination… [Read More]
Congrats Bishop-Elect Danny Garcia!
Fr. Danny Garcia, the vicar general of the Diocese of Austin and the former longtime pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Parish in north Austin has been named by Pope Francis as the first auxiliary bishop of Austin! UPDATE: More about Bishop-Elect Garcia can be found in the Diocesan announcement. Bishop-Elect Garcia will be ordained… [Read More]
The Church’s Teaching on Marriage Hasn’t Changed (A Response to #Synod14 and the Humanum Colloquium)
I think it’s safe to say that the synod was a media fiasco. The last time Catholics looked quite that bad was during the U.S. clerical sex abuse scandal, but that was twelve years ago, and the Church has come so far since then (thanks be to God). We might never recover our damaged reputation… [Read More]
New Media and the Family: Pope Francis speaking on Covenant Culture
Just moments after the Pope’s audience with the Schoenstatt Movement in Rome, his words were reverberating in twitter and in blogs. Which words? The Pope’s strong words about the state of marriage today. These clear and straightforward words were picked up quickly and passed on. The world of the media heard them. “Marriage has never… [Read More]
The Church and Mental Illness
A little over three weeks have passed since the tragic death of Robin Williams. Although most of us did not know Mr. Williams personally, many of us have felt moved by his work. As an actor and comedian, he made us laugh, made us feel; sometimes he made us think. In passing, his decision to… [Read More]
New Sacred Art Installed at St. Vincent de Paul
Sometimes we Catholics take the beauty of our churches for granted. In our tradition, we believe that the house of God deserves our best and our first. Often we’re criticized for this because it is thought by some that the money invested in the beauty of a sacred space could be spent on helping causes for… [Read More]
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Mass + Reception
Saint Mary Cathedral invites to you to celebrate with us on Wednesday, July 16th at 6 pm for a special mass honoring Our Lady of Mount Carmel and the Brown Scapular. Enrollment and Investiture of the Brown Scapular during the mass and free scapulars to the first 200 persons. Pot-luck reception in the Bishop’s Hall… [Read More]
Eucharist: God will bless Texas on the feast of Corpus Christi June 22
Download the PDF Flyer – 2014_CorpusChristi Everyone is invited to join St. Mary Cathedral for the annual Corpus Christi Eucharistic Procession on June 22, the feast of Corpus Christi. This year’s procession will not only go to the steps of the State Capitol as in years past, but it will actually go inside the Rotunda of… [Read More]
Memorial Day the St. Michael Way
Hello dear readers. It has been awhile since my last post, but that’s because I just got married (AUGH!!!) and have subsequently been dealing with this: My house has become a whirlwind of leftover wedding decor, moving boxes, gifts, empty gift boxes, and other random wedding paraphernalia that I will wade through once I… [Read More]
Free Tony Melendez Concert May 18
Do you love music? Sunday May 18, 2013, there will be a free concert at Santa Cruz Catholic Church in Buda, TX. Tony Melendez is a world-renowned musician that brings the love of Jesus through his music ministry. He was born in Nicaragua, but has lived in Texas most of his life. Come support a… [Read More]
How Hormonal Birth Control Screwed Up My Life, and Is Screwing Up Yours, Too
I know what you’re thinking, “Oh, here we go again, another crazy Catholic lady harping on why birth control is evil…” While I may be crazy and Catholic (the two are not mutually exclusive), I’m not here to write about the moral and theological evils of birth control. So, you can chillax, friend. Calm yourself…. [Read More]
FREE tickets to dinner benefiting Dominican Sisters of Mary, March 24
The Texas Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist and Catholic Sistas have come together to offer two free tickets to the dinner and live auction for Open Wide the Doors, a benefit that will help the Sisters with the Texas Expansion project. The event will be held on Monday, March 24 at Cimarron Hills… [Read More]
Healing Services with Alan Ames from Australia
Carver Alan Ames was born in England yet today lives in Australia. Alan was transformed from a virtual unbeliever to a powerful apostle of Christ. Alan moves under a powerful anointing, exhibiting the gifts of the Holy Spirit, especially the Gift of Healing. Every person will be prayed over individually. Many reported physical, emotional and spiritual cures have occurred… [Read More]
Last Call for the Catholic Men’s Conference
This weekend, the Central Texas Fellowship of Catholic Men is hosting their 2nd Annual Men’s Conference. I was blessed to attend the first one last year featuring Matthew Kelly, and it was an amazing event. This year, the event will feature presentations by Fr. Larry Richards. It’s sure to be a blessed and rejuvenating time…. [Read More]
Pastoral Plan Listening Sessions
Bishop Joe Vásquez is leading the way for a new Pastoral Plan for the diocese. Our diocese is in planning stages of forming a new pastoral plan, and they want to hear from all of us. This is a good opportunity to share some ideas and bring light to some areas that are in need… [Read More]
Attention Singles! Its time to dance!
Ecclesiastes 3 There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time… [Read More]
DCYC 56: Ablaze
The annual Austin Diocesan Catholic Youth Conference (DCYC) was last weekend, January 17-19, 2014 in Waco, Texas. Nearly 2400 teens from around the Diocese participated in DCYC, making it the largest DCYC ever. This year’s theme, Ablaze, was a fitting conclusion to the Year of Faith which ended this past November, reminding teens that, “If… [Read More]
Win A Trip For TWO To Rome For the Canonization of Blessed John Paul II!
In September, Pope Francis announced that he would declare his two predecessors, Blessed John XXIII and John Paul II, saints in a single ceremony on April 27, 2014. The ceremony will take place on Divine Mercy Sunday, a celebration instituted by Blessed Pope John Paul II in 2000. Thanks to the John Paul II Life… [Read More]
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