I heard a simple but remarkable idea in a homily which Fr. Arne Panula gave a while ago. In it, he suggested we mentally “tithe” our time at work. The idea is simple: figure out (roughly) what percentage of your income you give back to God, and then mentally block out that percentage of your workday, and set… Continue reading Tithing Your Time At Work
Tag: meditations
Preparing Ourselves as Tabernacles for the Lord
Imagine being in Church for Eucharistic Adoration, and seeing the priest put the Host, the Body and Blood of Christ, in a filthy monstrance. Seeing the Eucharist desecrated in such a way, covered in muck, would be enough to provoke a Catholic with even an ounce of piety. We’d rightly be hurt and even outraged… Continue reading Preparing Ourselves as Tabernacles for the Lord
Our Barabbas Moments
This past Sunday was Palm Sunday, one of the most beautiful Masses of the year. I’ve mentioned before how amazing the music of Palm Sunday, Holy Week, and Easter is, and didn’t even mention in that earlier post some of the better hymns (like St. Bernard of Clairvaux’s devastating O Sacred Head Surrounded). But the Scriptural readings… Continue reading Our Barabbas Moments
A Lenten Fast from Pride
A priest I know was telling me about the dangers of “perpetual penances.” That is, giving up something for a short time (like giving up sweets for Lent, or giving up meat on Fridays) is a true sacrifice, and works internally the way that a fast is supposed to. But a perpetual penance, like giving up… Continue reading A Lenten Fast from Pride
The Servant Church
In John 4, Jesus is on His way back from Judea to Galilee, and He “had to go through Samaria.” John 4:5-9, quoted below, begin to tell what happened next: So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was… Continue reading The Servant Church
Songs of Praise and Prayers of Worship
It’s important that we take time in talking to God to step back from praying for things, and remembering just to praise Him for being God. And when it comes to true “worship” hymns and prayers, nobody beats Catholics (although there are some great non-Catholic contributions in this field, for sure). Anyways, I thought I’d… Continue reading Songs of Praise and Prayers of Worship
“Zooming Out” in Prayer
Jen Fulwiler at Conversion Diary has a characteristically insightful piece on what she calls the “granularity of prayer.” She says she has a tendency to want to pray for incredibly specific things, and gives this hypothetical example: Let’s say our car breaks down. It will cost $684 to fix it, but I don’t have the… Continue reading “Zooming Out” in Prayer
Remembering 9/11, and the Grief of St. Ambrose
May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Today is the ninth anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, events which are hard to forget in D.C. (Going into D.C. from Alexandria, for example, requires taking the Metro past Pentagon station). Words fail me… Continue reading Remembering 9/11, and the Grief of St. Ambrose
Happy Labor Day!
In honor of Labor Day, I thought I’d include a quote from St. Josemaria Escriva on work, since he’s the saint with some of the finest writings on the subject. For example, in The Way, he writes, “Add a supernatural motive to your ordinary work and you will have sanctified it” (359). This notion runs… Continue reading Happy Labor Day!
The Birth Pangs of Our Salvation
When I was younger, I used to wonder why Jesus chose to die such a violent death. I mean, as horrible as John the Baptist’s decapitation was, at least it was quick. Christ had to carry the instrument of His own Death, a heavy Cross, and then hang for three hours with nails tearing through… Continue reading The Birth Pangs of Our Salvation