Religious Education - Children
Catechist BlogFrom the Pastor
From our Pastor It would seem that with many here in Northern Virginia having received the vaccine and the news that children may soon be able to receive the vaccine, there may be some light at the end of this dark tunnel called COVID. It is good to see more and more...
The Transitus of St. Francis
In Western Christianity, the Transitus (translation from Ecclesiastical Latin: crossing or passing over) refers to “the time of passage through death to life”. The Christian theologian German Martinez writes that: “The idea of death in the Latin transitus … represents...
Pandemic Driven Hunger
Pandemic-driven hunger is making the world more unequal Anthony Faiola, Washington Post July 12, 2021 LIMA, Peru — Worsening inequality, as poorer people and nations lose years of gains in the battle against hunger and poverty, is likely to be one of the lasting...
Life in Our Sister Parish
Who does not remember the impact by the Covid pandemic on food security here in the United States. The evening news had stories nightly. And this was in the United States. Life in our Sister Parish - Lima Peru The impact of the pandemic was particularly hard on the...
Let your light shine!
You have a flashlight and you walk into a darkroom. Do you immediately shut off your flashlight? Of course not! You use the flashlight to see in the darkness. Jesus gives us this practical or everyday wisdom in today’s Gospel: “No one who lights a lamp conceals it...
Francis of Assisi – Military Adventures
Much of Francis’ youth had been spent as an apprentice in his father’s cloth business by day and as playboy by night – a time that the older Francis refers to as “When I was in sin.” At the same time, the intrigue and rivalry of imperial and papal politics swirled...
Francis of Assisi – the Young Man
The first article of the series about St. Francis essentially proposed that what most people think they know about St. Francis of Assisi is a very limited and romanticized version of the “poor man from Assisi.” Such versions often emphasize the Francis who loves...
Francis of Assisi – An Introduction
Every year – or so it seems – very good biographies of St. Francis of Assisi are published. The ones published in the last 10 years all share some great qualities: readable and increasingly historical – introducing the “real” St Francis of Assisi to the world. You...
Memorial of St. Hildegard of Bingen
Today is the Memorial of St. Hildegard of Bingen. From the first reading from the Book of Wisdom we hear Set me as a seal on your heart, as a seal on your arm; For stern as death is love, relentless as the nether world is devotion; its flames are a blazing fire. Deep...
Love and Forgiveness
“So, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; hence, she has shown great love.” Love does not earn forgiveness, rather the experience of forgiveness leads to love. Jesus teaches this message in today’s Gospel. Today’s Gospel has had a history of...