Editor’s Note: One of the graces throughout Joel’s diaconate discernment has been the opportunity to become friends with the wives of the other discerning men. One, Charlotte Hunkele, has become a spiritual mentor; she has a gift to articulate and explain the faith in such beautiful ways. During one of our retreat weekends, Charlotte . . . → Read More: Totally Dependent on God
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I wonder how many times during my lifetime I have said or thought “I don’t want to do that.” I wanted healthier, happier, richer or better. I wanted more. I wanted something different than what I had at the moment. I didn’t want to serve. I didn’t want to suffer. I didn’t want to give . . . → Read More: I Don’t Want To! While on pilgrimage this spring, Joel and I attended the Beatification Mass for Blessed Pope John Paul II in the piazza outside St. Peter’s Basilica. Much of the Mass was spoken in Latin, a language I don’t speak. Some other parts were said in Italian, some Polish, and even a little English thrown in at times. . . . → Read More: When You Can’t Hear the Mass August 28, 2011: Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time The juxtaposition of this week’s readings against last week’s readings is hard to ignore. Last week, Peter was “all in” when Jesus commanded him to build a Church, essentially to marshal a spiritual army of disciples and storm the gates of the sinful world with the power . . . → Read More: Spiritual Sticker Shock  One comment  Mass Forward, Schmidt, Joel  Catholic Lane, Courage, Devil, Discipleship, Evangelization, Faith, Follow Me, forgiveness, Gary Zimak, Gift, grace, Great Deceiver, Heaven, Jeremiah, Jesus, love, Matthew, Offer It Up, Passion, Persevere, Prophecy, Psalms, Punsihment, Redemptive Suffering, Rock, Romans, Satan, Scripture, St. Paul, St. Peter, suffering, Thessalonians, Will, witness Last night’s lead story on a local newscast caught my attention and was one I had trouble mentally putting down. Here’s a summary of the story: a childcare and preschool center located inside an evangelical Christian mega-church in the Des Moines metro area recently changed management. The center temporarily closed last Monday and will reopen . . . → Read More: Do Churches Have A Right to Mandate Moral Standards for Employees? Have you ever wondered how other people have learned to discern God’s will? George Mueller, a nineteenth century English pastor who was known for his life of prayer and his close walk with God, once shared this simple method for determining God’s will through prayer and the Word: I seek at the beginning to . . . → Read More: Learning to Discern God’s Will Simon weighs in on The Practicing Catholic We were surprised to learn that our blog has been nominated for four Catholic New Media Awards. We considered lobbying for your vote, but after much prayer and discernment, we came up with more reasons for you NOT to vote for us! Here we present that list . . . → Read More: Seven Reasons NOT to Vote for Us August 21, 2011: Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time This week’s Old Testament readings are filled with contrasting images of leaders, often depicted in battle, in action. Those whose faith is in God are exalted and do great things in His name; those whose faith is in themselves are humbled. Statue of St. Peter holding . . . → Read More: It’s a War out There Leave a comment Mass Forward, Schmidt, Joel Abimelech, Caesarea Philippi, Church Militant, Ecclesia Militans, Eliakim, Faith, Gentiles, Gideon, God, grace, Incarnation, Isaiah, Israel, Jephthah, Jesus, Jews, Judges, Kingdom, Lord, Lumen Gentium, mercy, Psalm 138, Rock, Romans, salvation, Shebna, St. Paul, St. Peter, Wisdom St. Peter's Basilica, Rome Photo Credit: Sarah Underhill Today the Church celebrates the Assumption of Mary. From Presentation Ministries: In 1950, Pope Pius XII officially recognized the assumption of Mary into heaven as part of divine revelation. The Church had believed this for many centuries, but the Pope was led by the Spirit to make it official in order to give us hope. . . . → Read More: The Assumption And My Living Sign of Hope  |
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