Ecclesiastical terminology can sometimes be confusing. For instance, what is the difference between a cathedral and a basilica. Today's liturgical feast marks the dedication of a cathedral in Rome, St. John Lateran.
The word "cathedral" comes from the Latin "cathedra," which, in English, is translated "chair." Every bishop has a chair or seat. The building or church in which that...
Today’s Gospel uses a word that we have a hard time understanding when it comes to our family. Jesus admonishes his disciples and tells them that they must “hate” their families. For most of us, this notion is completely foreign.
In order to understand it better, it is important that we have some acquaintance with Middle Eastern culture. The people of the...
Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer. (Romans 12:12)
At this point in St. Paul's Letter to the Romans, he composed a long list of what English teachers would call imperatives. These short little statements sound like commands. However, I read St. Paul's list not so much as commands as recipes for holiness.
Verse twelve struck me particularly today. I am...
Irrevocable . . . and inscrutable, two words from today's first reading that struck me and led me to consider or contemplate the beauty of God once again. This reading comes from a section of the Letter to the Romans that was introduced a few days ago, but which we have missed because of the intervening holy days we have been celebrating at the beginning of November. St. Paul is discussing...