When Pope Francis was introduced to the world, tidbits about his life and preferences began to emerge: little things, such as how he enjoyed the South American beverage mate and how he was a lifelong fan of the Saints of San Lorenzo soccer team. One article about his likes made reference to a favored devotion of his—Our Lady Undoer of Knots. The moment I read that, my internal ears perked up.
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On May 11, 1873, the steamer Kilauea deposited thirty-three-year-old Father Joseph Damien de Veuster on the landing at Molokai. Bishop Maigret told the disease-ridden crowd gathered there that he had brought them “one who will be a father to you, and who loves you so much that . . . he does not hesitate to become one of you; to live and die with you.” More »

A Gift of Fear

Lapa Benincasa’s shrieks bounced off the walls of her kitchen and into the narrow streets of Siena. Her daughter Catherine, the twenty-fourth of her twenty-five children, had just shaved her head. More »

"MMaaarrrrrrkkkkkkkkk!” She shouted, letting all in our suburban utopia know that my presence was needed at home immediately. I could always tell when my mother was worried about my whereabouts. More »

The buzzer sounded so loud and harsh that John could hear it through the thick wooden door to the rectory. “What am I doing here?” he thought to himself as he saw the face of the gruff old priest appear in the tiny side window. More »

It could never happen to me. But as I peered at the results of the pregnancy test, I saw that it had. My promiscuous lifestyle had caught up with me. The man with whom I had had an intimate encounter had only been in my life for a few weeks; I would never see or speak to him again. More »

"Why?” It’s a question we all ask. We want to know why things happen. We want to grasp the meaning and purpose behind what we’re experiencing, the suffering we’re enduring, or the choice someone else makes that directly affects us.
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