Saint Catherine of Siena
SAINT CATHERINE OF SIENA Originally published by Blessed Is She Unaware of what I was going through, a friend sent me a picture of a kintsugi bowl with the message, “When I see you, I see gold.” Kintsugi is the Japanese art of bowl-mending. Artisans reassemble broken ceramic bowls and costly gold is set into the […]
Reclaiming Sabbath Rest
RECLAIMING SABBATH REST Originally published by Blessed Is She “rest” This word reverberated in my stomach and tied it in knots. I had come to the end of another week, exhausted, once again. Ministry work, household chores and school schedules toppled over juggling health challenges. Somewhere along the way, lines between ministry and family time […]
Saint Teresa of Calcutta: A Saint in the Darkness
SAINT TERESA OF CALCUTTA: A SAINT IN THE DARKNESS Originally published by Blessed Is She In Something Beautiful for God, the British Journalist Malcolm Muggeridge wrote about an exhilarating experience while filming a documentary on Mother Teresa in 1967. The film crew had arrived at the “Home for the Dying” but were disappointed to encounter a […]
Saint Maximilian Kolbe: A Prophet of Hope
SAINT MAXIMILIAN KOLBE: A PROPHET OF HOPE Originally published by Blessed Is She Holocaust survivor and Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel, in one of his essays, relays his experience in Auschwitz. A Jew was being executed while the rest of the camp watched aghast. As he hung on the gallows, struggling in the throes of […]
Saint Joseph The Worker + The Meaningful Mundane
SAINT JOSEPH THE WORKER + THE MEANINGFUL MUNDANE Originally published by Blessed Is She Tolkien’s short but poignant work “Leaf by Niggle” offers fascinating insights into the intersection of our personal and professional lives. Niggle’s vocation involves painting leaves. But he battles against his own inertia as various chores and inconveniences keep him from finishing […]
Navigating Unmet Expectations In Motherhood
NAVIGATING UNMET EXPECTATIONS IN MOTHERHOOD Originally published by Blessed Is She A few months ago, I overheard my daughter Kristen talking over the phone with her friend. She beamed as she relayed how I had accepted her not-so-good grades with calm and composure. She explained that she was expected to work hard and give it […]
When You’re Dreading Valentine’s Day
WHEN YOU’RE DREADING VALENTINE’S DAY… Originally published by Blessed Is She If you want to know how Valentine’s Day can make single women feel, watch 30 Rock. In the 13th episode of the hit American television series, the unattached Liz Lemon goes to great extremes to avoid Valentine’s Day… even if it means sedation via oral […]
Saint Paul’s Missing Pieces
SAINT PAUL’S MISSING PIECES Originally published by Blessed Is She We visited our new neighbors recently. Among other things that adorned their living room, a large card table filled with tiny puzzle pieces occupying a dainty corner as children beamed with ecstatic eagerness. Apparently assembling complicated jigsaw puzzles was winter tradition. As candid conversations waltzed […]
Peter + Paul: Saintly Polar Opposites
PETER + PAUL: SAINTLY POLAR OPPOSITES Originally published by Blessed Is She A few years ago, a colleague at work asked, “Why does the Catholic Church spend so much money on expensive cathedrals when half of the world suffers in poverty?” I wasn’t surprised. As an atheist turned Catholic, I have been there and wonder […]
What To Do When You Struggle To Forgive
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU STRUGGLE TO FORGIVE Originally published by Blessed Is She “Forgiveness is letting the prisoner go free, only to know the prisoner is me” is an adage that could not be truer in Corrie ten Boom’s life. In her book, The Hiding Place, the Dutch Christian writer describes her experience in Amsterdam during […]
