Pope Francis walks down Via del Corso to pray at the Church of St. Marcellus in Rome March 15, 2020. (Vatican Media) The photo, was stunning. You’ve probably seen it. A couple of versions of it appeared in various media and multiple social media channels: Pope Francis making a lonely pilgrimage through the deserted streets … Continue reading A lonely pilgrimage through the deserted streets

Love Your Enemies: How Decent People Can Save America from the Culture of Contemptby Arthur C. Brooks. Broadside Books (March 12, 2019) I had high hopes for Arthur C. Brooks "Love your Enemies: How Decent People Can Save America from the Culture of Contempt," (and was reading it as a book club selection) but was … Continue reading Somethings can’t be forgotten and forgiven, a book review

A teacher who was a guest on a  National Public Radio show Nov. 24 described a scene I could remember from my childhood and my children’s elementary days too. Michelle Portera, an 18-year veteran teacher described how she used to celebrate Thanksgiving in her first grade classrooms: You make the Native American headdress, and you make a … Continue reading You live on stolen land: A Thanksgivings Day reflection

Mary George completed the Parent Café training and will be helping host the cafes at the Renewal Center. Precious Blood Resource Services and Precious Blood Renewal Center are teaming up to help people faced with the challenges (and joys!) of raising children. The two provincial ministries will be hosting Parent Cafes that are open to … Continue reading Parent Café opens at Renewal Center

Michael Sanem, director of faith formation at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Kansas City, Missouri, speaks on “Divine Mother, Divine Mover: A Marian Spirituality of Pilgrimage." In February this year, Pope Francis met in Abu Dhabi with the Egyptian Sheikh Ahmad el-Tayeb, the grand imam of al-Azhar and a leading religious authority for … Continue reading Mary: A bridge between Muslims and Catholics

You’ve probably seen news about the synod of bishops meeting at the Vatican this month to discuss issues that impact the church in the Amazon region of South America. (See for example, Pope Francis opens Amazon synod, says to ‘light the fire of the Gospel’ in the region.) But did you know there is a strong Precious Blood connection to that meeting?

Beets, spinach and radish planted March 27, 2019 Dave Blanchard, a reporter for National Public Radio, interviewed renowned travel writer Barry Lopez about his latest book, Horizon, which “All Things Considered” host Ailsa Change described as “a nod to heading over the edge of the familiar into the unknown.” Lopez sees travel as a moral … Continue reading First plantings and the insistence of life

The number hate groups operating in the United States has increased, rising 30 percent over the past four years. (Source: Southern Poverty Law Center) Scores of religious and civil rights organizations have asked U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to request an evaluation by a U.N. expert of the scope of racism in the country, … Continue reading Religious groups seek UN evaluation of racism in the US

Dorothy A. Coday, wife, mother of eight, grandmother of 13, and great grandmother of three, devout parishioner of Sacred Heart/St. Mary’s Catholic Parish, died March 12. She was 88. Dorothy’s children and grandchildren remember her as a strong, faith-filled woman who instilled in them a love of family and faith. She inspired her children with … Continue reading Mourning the passing of Dorothy Coday

“The Food Insecurity of North Korea” read the headline on the NPR website last summer. When I saw it, I was reminded of the reporting I did in the late 1990s, during North Korea’s last severe famine. As many as 2 million people might have starved to death in the 1990s; the true number -- … Continue reading Food insecurity still stalks North Korea