On Palm Sunday 2017, two bombs exploded in northern Egypt: one inside the church of Saint George in Tanta, and the other outside the Church of Saint Mark in Alexandria, the mother church of Egyptian Christians. Forty-seven people died during the celebration of Mass, over 100 were injured. Several weeks later, on Easter Sunday, a priest in Egypt delivered a homily which I read a few days later. I was stunned by the message, especially since just a few years... Read more
Every game has its own set of rules. Board games have rules, though they are usually only consulted when someone is trying to cheat. Card games have rules. Every sport has rules. Without them, there would be total chaos. Imagine we are on a field, ready to play soccer. We hear the whistle, and I run toward the ball as fast as possible, I pick it up with my hands, hold on to it tightly, and I run all the... Read more
Every person has a need to be heard. This need is significantly increased if a person has been deeply hurt. At any given encounter with an individual, he or she has a unique life story to tell that has forged his or her thought and belief. It is important to listen before speaking, especially when interacting with someone hurt through negative experiences by the Church and her members. A recent study conducted by the Barna Group notes that people want... Read more
When I was thirteen years old, I traveled to Cusco, Peru, the old capital of the Inca Empire, for the first time. I arrived by airplane; it was just a short one-hour flight from Lima compared to the 24 hours it takes by bus due to the mountainous terrain. During the flight, we each received a box with two small sandwiches. I ate one and stored the second in my pocket for later. After getting acclimated to the high altitude... Read more
Religion in ancient Rome involved the worship of many gods, and among them was Janus, god of doors, gates, transitions, and passageways. You may have seen a depiction of him before without realizing who he was. He is portrayed as a head with two faces, each one looking in the opposite direction: one looking to the past and another to the future. Oftentimes Janus also holds a key in his hand, signifying his power over doors and transitions. Janus is... Read more
There is a beautiful painting of the birth of Jesus, painted in 1622 by a Dutch painter, where the source of light for the whole painting is the baby lying on the manger. The light of Jesus shines brightly on Mary and Joseph, the shepherds, the animals, and everything else on the scene. The use of light in this way not only speaks of the great skill of the artist, but it makes a theological point that the Church stresses every Christmas:... Read more
The Catholic Church in Qatar is composed of about 200,000 lay faithful who hail from a long list of nations, but mostly from the Philippines and India. Catholics living in Qatar are exclusively migrants, and about 80% belong to the Latin Rite, in other words, they are Roman Catholic. The remaining 20% belong to the other rites of the Catholic Church including the Maronite (Lebanon) and Syro-Malabar (India) Churches. The one parish church in Doha, Our Lady of the Rosary,... Read more
A few years ago, I had the opportunity to visit Doha in Qatar. Even though it was a brief visit, and we only remained in the city, I learned a few things about this Arab country. It is very hot. As we left the airport at midnight on the way to our hotel in downtown Doha, the temperature was at around 100 F. The next morning, I had made plans to walk two short blocks from the hotel to the... Read more
En 1656 el rey Juan II Casimiro de Polonia proclamó a la Virgen María reina de su patria. En el Santuario de Nuestra Señora de Częstochowa, ubicado en el Monasterio de Jasna Góra en el sur de Polonia, un orbe y un cetro cuelgan a la izquierda de la icónica imagen de la Virgen Negra. Símbolos de autoridad real, quienes sintonizaron el reciente funeral de la reina Isabel II de Inglaterra, observaron su orbe y su cetro colocados sobre su... Read more
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Pope Benedict XVI, Ratzinger, dies
Just a few days after Pope Francis asked for prayers for Pope Benedict XVI, it was announced today that Pope Benedict has died. “With sorrow I inform you that the Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI, passed away today at 9:34 in the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican. Further information will be provided as soon as possible.” He was the Pope of my four years of study in Rome. I felt particularly close to him, following his apostolic journeys, and buying... Read more