Last June I wrote this post on cult-like behaviors in society and within religious groups. One of the reasons I appreciate the Catholic hierarchical infrastructure of diocese and parish is that we are thrown together as a family with people and leadership that we would not necessarily choose. This is difficult because I naturally want to join a group where everyone thinks like I do. That feels good. Instead, if I am Catholic I have to put up with people... Read more

Today’s gospel readings exhort us to learn humility by helping the poor, but that raises the question “who is poor and who is rich?” Are you poor because you don’t have a high income? Maybe a person with a low income but no debt is richer than a person with a high income who is over their head in debt. Are you rich because you have much money? What’s a lot? I’ve met a good number of people who seem... Read more

HuffPo reports that an atheist in New Jersey has succeeded in getting a license plate that reads ATHE 1ST. The problem is the statement is ambiguous. What if I read it and conclude that the driver is… A theist? That’s the problem with atheists…they haven’t thought of all the possibilities. Their advertising stunts are so lame. What about the one in Times Square last year which showed encouraged people to enjoy Santa Claus, but not Christ because Christ was a... Read more

We celebrate this week the life of that most famous of sinner-saints, St Augustine, who said, “Lord make me chaste, but not yet.” Augustine’s lust for love and his desire for God are tied together with his passionate approach to life. “Love is the beauty of the soul!” he cries. What Augustine teaches us is the practical joy of repentance. Repentance is simply the heart felt realization that one is a sinner. So often this realization is linked with guilt–as... Read more

 Guest blogger Deacon Richard Ballard is the Pastoral Associate at Our Lady of the Rosary parish in Greenville, South Carolina. He is co-author (with Ronda Chervin and his wife Ruth Ballard) of the best-selling What the Saints Said About Heaven.   Without a doubt, it is a terrible exercise to contemplate the fate of the damned. To even try to imagine the unending wretchedness in hell of those who die in a state of mortal sin, who willingly and freely... Read more

I’ve just had this incredible contribution to the blog combox: As a single career woman who hopes one day to have children, I like to keep my reproductive system toned like the rest of my body. I try to get pregnant at least once a year but always try for twice, I think that’s better. I usually wait until just after the first trimester to abort. I always feel and think I look so much better after. My skin looks... Read more