Weekly Inspiration: Friends of God

Weekly Inspiration: Friends of God

There is an antiphon for the feast of St. James that has always stunned me: “They drank the chalice of the Lord and became the friends of God.” St. James is one of the Apostles who dared to ask Jesus if he could sit at his right or left in the kingdom of heaven. Jesus...
Weekly Inspiration: Growing Wonder

Weekly Inspiration: Growing Wonder

Each Lent, I see more people adopting the practice of turning their phone to grayscale, penitentially depriving themselves of color. I live in southeastern Michigan, which always makes lists of “cloudiest cities in America” with cloud cover more than fifty percent of...
Weekly Inspiration: Pierced By Sin

Weekly Inspiration: Pierced By Sin

In recent weeks, the daily Mass readings were from 2 Samuel and for several days we heard stories of King David. As the scriptures about David, Bathsheba, Uriah, and Nathan were proclaimed, I found myself responding with unexpected emotion. My heart was deeply grieved...
Weekly Inspiration: Staying on the Cross

Weekly Inspiration: Staying on the Cross

I recently came across a photo of a Japanese pilgrimage site with statues of Mary and the Japanese martyr Yasutaro as he endured torture for refusing to renounce his faith. His torture involved being imprisoned in a Sanjakuro, a three-foot square cage. I have...