Read & Reflect
Articles, reflections, news, and homilies — thoughtful Catholic content for the faithful, published regularly.
Spirituality
Spirituality
Fulton Sheen’s Advice on Planning for Heaven
In my previous article, I shared a few of the insights that Archbishop Fulton Sheen taught me as I have grown older. Lessons about finding a new mission after retirement, remembering that we are made for eternity, and discovering the peace that comes from counting blessings instead of birthdays. As...
Spirituality
Psalm 112: A Standard for Men
Throughout my adult life, I have spent a fair amount of time praying and meditating about being—or, more accurately, becoming—a good man, a good husband, and a good father. In recent years, by a great gift of Providence, I have become more devoted to the model of St. Joseph proposed by my Catholic f...
Spirituality
Satanic Attacks and the Prayer “Especially Suited” to Conquering Evil
A Visitor from Heaven, Part IV: Apparitions in Northern Italy In Part III, I sketched the troubled life of the Italian visionary Francesca Sgobbi, noting her remarkable humility and briefly tracing her journey through Poland. THE DEVIL’S ASSAULT Amid encounters with personal evil, Francesca repeated...
Spirituality
The Same Weeds in the Wheat Field: Rome, Contraception, and Christ’s Call
While everyone was asleep, his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat. (Mt. 13:25) Things like that really happened in Christ’s time. People poisoned wells and sabotaged fields. They sowed weeds in their enemy’s wheat. Ancient Rome’s Decline What else did people do at the time of Christ? T...
Spirituality
Parables of the Kingdom of Heaven & the Gift of Time: 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time
This Sunday, Jesus uses parables to teach about the kingdom of heaven. What do all three of them have in common? Gospel (Read Mt. 13:24-43) In this chapter of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus uses parables to teach the large crowd gathered to hear Him at the seashore. In the first one, He says, “The kingdo...
Spirituality
How Parishes Can Tell Whether Conversions Are Well Rooted
The recent talk of a Catholic revival has stirred real hope, but hope needs discernment if it’s going to serve the Church well. Last Easter, many priests, parish leaders, and Catholic commentators saw encouraging signs in fuller pews, more converts, and a renewed openness to the Faith. The New York...
Spirituality
The Precious Blood of Jesus and Restoring Human Dignity
In the midst of Ordinary Time, immediately following the month dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Precious Blood of Our Lord is offered as July’s special devotion and adoration focus. Reminding us of the price Jesus paid for our sin, we realize how much He loves us and how valuable each of...
Spirituality
AI and the Displacement of the Heart
Pope Leo XIV, in his January 26, 2026, message on the World Day of Social Communications, had much to say about the dangers of Artificial Intelligence. One statement in particular caught my attention and provoked a stream of thoughts: “AI models are shaped by the worldview of those who build them an...
Spirituality
May You Receive Pardon and Peace: 2,000 Teens and the Sacrament of Penance
It is always an honor to volunteer at Catholic conferences and retreats. I have attended and volunteered at many in my life, each leaving me with profound, quiet experiences. This was the first time I was put on a Reconciliation team, and it has been my favorite one by far. At this Catholic teen con...
Spirituality
The Life of a Visionary: “The Sick Person Who Becomes the Monstrance for Christ”
A Visitor from Heaven, Part III: Apparitions in Northern Italy In Part II, I introduced a glimpse into the life of Francesca Sgobbi and her husband Giorgio, marked by the latter’s terminal illness, followed by the former’s pivotal mystical experience. Fr. Jerzy outlined the urgent need to abandon ou...
Spirituality
The Mystery at Pleasant Lake, AI, and the Artist
Recently, I had a coffee with a friend, where our conversation turned to AI and the ways it’s pulling humanity from God. We shared thoughts about how we were trying to remain rooted in what it is to be human in the West’s technocratic autocracy. He spoke of his recent trek through a long stretch of...
Spirituality
How MAiD Is Counted and Not Counted
Euthanasia, Cause of Death, and the Disappearance of the Act The normalization of euthanasia rarely happens all at once. It usually advances by a series of softenings. First the language changes. Suicide becomes “physician-assisted death.” Then it becomes “medical assistance in dying.” Finally it be...