What is a prophet? A strident voice denouncing injustice? A wild-eyed visionary calling sinners to repentance? These images hardly fit Katharine Drexel, a refined, wealthy woman who disliked being in the public eye and felt strongly attracted to hidden prayer. And yet, like the biblical prophets of old, this self-effacing heiress became a voice in the wilderness and a countercultural witness to the gospel call to justice. More »

As I was growing up, my family could have said, with the disciples of John the Baptist whom Paul discovered at Ephesus, “We haven’t even heard that there is a Holy Spirit” (Acts 19:2). More »

I remember seeing a billboard once that showed a graphic portrayal of Jesus suffering on the cross. Underneath was the caption “Be a priest like me.” It was a startling message for vocations. More »

The lottery jackpot had climbed to an astounding $365 million. All over the country, people tried to increase their odds of winning at least a piece of the pie by banding together and buying tickets in large quantities. More »

Have you ever been surprised by your children’s reaction to something you did for them? Perhaps you brought home a small toy for your son, and he continued to thank you for several days afterwards. More »

The girl was walking in the fields some ways off from her home, when two strangers appeared and asked her to pick them some fruit. Brought up to show courtesy to adults, the nine-year-old hurried to obey. Not until she was in the forest did she realize it was a trick. More »

As the Carmelite monks chanted psalms in their church across the courtyard, the head cook labored in the monastery kitchen. There, against the background hiss of boiling water and the steady beat of his knife against the chopping block, stood a middle-aged man—a lay brother whose duties prevented him from joining the others in prayer. More »

Let us join with Christians around the world in praying for these special intentions of our Holy Father. More »