It all started with Lent. I wound up experiencing a lot of suffering throughout the Lent of my junior year in college in various different aspects of my life. In my relationships, in my schoolwork, and even in my mental health… Coping with my depression and anxiety started to become more and more difficult.
Read MoreMost of my trip to Lourdes was spent asking the Lord to reveal where in my life I needed the most healing, and after sitting in the queue for over an hour, meditating on rosary after rosary, I was finally ushered inside to ask the Blessed Mother to heal my heart from a life of past abuse.
Read MoreGrowing up, I was the youngest of four girls and I was always the one who had a doll in my arms with a bottle, a blanket and anything else that I thought my baby needed. All my dreams of growing up were of being a mom. It was all I ever wanted: to get married, start a family and be a stay-at-home mom.
Read MoreDear Sister,
I have lots of kids. Some of them are called my “big kids” and some of them are called my kids. My kids are my three beautiful children, Joseph Nicholas (5) Hannah Kateri (3) and Benjamin Francis (5 months). My “big kids” are the countless teens that walk through the doors of my parish in a town in New Hampshire. I am a wife, a mom and a youth minister.
Read MoreDear Reader,
One of our Lord’s most remarkable qualities is His ability to bring positive results from negative events. Saint Ignatius, for example, suffered a brutal injury on the battlefield. During his rehab, he had his conversion.
Read MoreDear Friends,
Even as a child my family could see that I was a nurturer; I could constantly be found taking care of a doll or stuffed animal in a gentle and intentional manner. The desire to provide them with a safe, loving, comfortable environment was certainly within me! I can vividly remember the day that I put on a full wedding ceremony for two of my teddy bears.
Read MoreI’ve always had a fascination with the wind. I love the way it seems to move just about everything in creation, from the tallest of trees to the small, cut shavings of grass. I love the way wind can send shivers up your spine or give our bodies a small moment of respite on a hot, muggy day. I love thinking about how the wind makes animals run for shelter or makes the trees whistle and whisper to one another.
Read MoreFor many years, I struggled with the notion that I wasn’t very good at anything. I had a friend who was a star swimmer, friends who were in all honors classes, a friend who was the lead in the school play, and friends who just seemed to have it all together. And then there was me.
Read MoreDear sisters,
I was in second grade when I wrote down my first story. I remember it well, the feeling of the plush green carpet beneath my feet as I made my way into my father’s wood-paneled study. His massive leather-topped desk held my wide-ruled notebook paper and sharpened #2 pencil. I scooted the desk chair up as far as my eight-year-old legs could manage and I began my work. Thirty minutes later, it was done: a sketch and accompanying short story titled “The Adventures of Hamburgerman.”
Read MoreWhen I was pregnant with my fourth child, God blessed me with an opportunity to go on a retreat where I first heard the message that we all have an individual call from God – a vocation – that is the path to our holiness. For some, it is a call to the single life, for others it is the call to marriage and motherhood – for all, it is a call to sanctify our lives and offer up our days as a prayer to our Heavenly Father.
Read MoreWhile crying is often seen as a sign of weakness and lack of emotional stability, I believe that showing these strong emotions can make us better reflectors of Jesus.
Read MoreGod speaks to each of us in the language He has written into our hearts and learning to listen to His voice and let our hearts speak to His through creative artistic expression is a joy-filled and life-giving dialogue. The beauty we co-create with our Lord is not a masterpiece to be hung in a gallery, but the masterpiece of our own broken hearts and lives becoming whole and radiant with His infinite colors and Light.
Read MoreSo what is the truth of what it means to be a Catholic woman today? The truth is that our vocation is not found in one single decision in time. Our vocation is not proven through what we went to school for, our ability to hold a job, or where we live. Our vocation is not necessarily one thing. Our vocation can change with the seasons. Whether we are married, single, or a religious, God can call us all over the place, to a number of different careers or workplaces; we should not be convinced that one path is the only path.
Read MoreIf you fail, falter and grieve, you are human, and the gift of your humanity is that, through His suffering, we can be redeemed – and be made just a little stronger –to continue our mission.
Read MoreIn this mini-documentary, Lauren shares how her relationship with the great female saints of the Catholic Church empowered her understanding of womanhood and inspired the creation of her business Brick House in the City.
Read MoreOn Christmas Day 2017, my father was diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer. By April he was gone, my world came crashing down, and I was thrown headlong into grief.
Read MoreEight months after we got married, I took a pregnancy test at 3 am. It was positive. Although my husband was amazingly supportive of our NFP journey, NFP was my idea. And we weren’t trying to conceive that month! After four hours of panicked Hail Marys, I finally nudged my husband, Taylor, awake (silently sending up one last prayer that he would receive the news well!). He was overjoyed!
Read MoreIt was a hot and muggy Wednesday evening as I sat alone in a church pew for adoration. Sweat was soaking the back of my shirt, tears were streaming down my face, and my only thought as I knelt before the golden monstrance and the Blessed Sacrament within was “What the heck am I doing here, God?”
Read MoreSisters, when we are lost, God asks us: “what happened to you and where are you?” Imagine what your life would look like if fear, anxiety, doubt or worry did not dictate any of your decisions. Imagine letting go of control, of your own carefully crafted plan for your life and trusting that God’s plan and timing are so much better than what we can conjure up for ourselves. Imagine surrendering everything. What would your life look like?
Read MoreThis is the important thing, I think: longing for Heaven must be felt. We must allow this thirst for our true home to grow in us. There is real pain in this world, but there is also real beauty. It is our sacred duty to hold these two things in tension. We must be like Mary at the foot of the Cross, contemplating her crucified Son. We must be like Anna beholding the risen Son, and let the glory of God radiate through our broken bodies, lighting the way home.
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