I read through essays my students submitted in response to the assignment of spending an hour outdoors, undisturbed by phones or to-do lists. They write about the vortex of stimuli that rush through their over-busy minds. You write about memories that have surfaced: of times at home with parents, grandparents or siblings, playing on the … Read more
When I hear the word saint, the first image that comes to mind is not a Carmelite nun kneeling in a dark chapel and fingering her rosary. Well, I am sure that many Carmelites are saints, but they are not the first thing I think of. The first image that comes to mind is a … Read more
I have two middle school-aged sons and the word of the hour is embarrassing! They are tired of their ever-changing bodies all the time. They fall asleep at unusual times and in unusual places: on a friend’s couch, in the middle of the five-minute drive to the store, while putting on their pajamas. Without having … Read more
This year we mark the 20th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11th 2001. Use these resources to pray for peace. Photo of Tribute in Light by Jesse Mills on Unsplash. Previous articleGrandparents Day Wisdom and Giveaway
On a Saturday morning while our sons were playing peacefully indoors, my husband and I went out into the front yard to discuss what we were going to do at the house next. While we were outside, one of our four-year-old twins locked us out. The moment we heard the click, we turned to see … Read more
With this video version of St. Peter Faber’s “Prayer for Vocations” we close our month of Faber Fridays. Keep drawing inspiration from Faber with Jon M. Sweeney’s book Peter Faber: A Saint for Turbulent Times. Previous articleFour strategies to differentiate
In the retreat of St. Ignatius there are various “rules for discerning spirits” – what we would simply call principles of wise discernment. There are four helpful strategies in these rules that you can use when trying to make a good decision. Arrange the pros and cons.Make a list of all the benefits of a … Read more
The corpse flower only blooms once every three to ten years. It’s very rare. Well, actually, the plant itself is not rare, just the flower. That’s the part people are waiting in line for. It takes a lot of patience to wait for this particular plant to flower. Once it does, not blinking to avoid … Read more
We think of Ignatius alone in his cave in Manresa, who wages a spiritual battle and learns to recognize God’s direction for him. Ignatius was sometimes overwhelmed by guilt about his pre-conversion life. He suffered from what we now call ruthlessness, an obsession with any sins we have committed or rules that we have not … Read more
Editor’s note: Throughout July we are celebrating 31 days with St. Ignatius, a month-long celebration of Ignatian spirituality. In addition to the calendar of Ignatian articles found here, this month’s posts on dotMagis will explore cannonball moments – moments that changed the course of a life, like a cannonball hit the course of the life … Read more