religion &
spirituality
The true story of the feast of Corpus Christi
There’s a great story about how the feast of Corpus Christi came about. You’ve probably heard it before. It involves a doubting priest, a pope, and one of the most celebrated saints of the medieval Church. It’s a beautiful story. The only problem is, it isn’t true. READ MORE
11 quotes from the saints to celebrate Corpus Christi
This weekend, the Church celebrates one of the great solemnities in our calendar: the feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (more popularly known by its Latin name, Corpus Christi). READ MORE
Saint Marie Rivier: The Woman-Apostle
In 2022, Pope Francis canonized a French woman whose soul was so on fire with a passion for sharing Christ with others that Pope Pius IX reportedly called her the “Woman-Apostle”. READ MORE
Blessed Justin Russolillo: Apostle of vocations
Giustino (Justin) Russolillo was born one unusually snowy January day in 1891 in the town of Pianura near Naples. The third child of ten born to a bricklayer and a seamstress, Justin grew up in a poor but pious family and was recognized from an early age for his intelligence and his piety. READ MORE
Titus Brandsma: Saint of Dachau
Titus Brandsma was a Dutch Carmelite priest who was killed in the infamous Dachau concentration camp in 1942. Although the circumstances of his death made him a martyr, it is the holiness of his life and the courage and faithfulness with which he approached his imprisonment and death that make him a saint. READ MORE
Blessed Luigi Maria Palazzolo: Friend of the poor and abandoned
Blessed Luigi Palazzolo was an ordinary man, an ordinary priest, whose holiness lay in his extraordinary openness to the movement of the Holy Spirit, responding unhesitatingly to needs as he encountered them, devoting his whole life to those who had been cast aside by others and for whom there was no other help. READ MORE
Mother Maria Francesca Rubatto: Uruguay’s first canonized saint
Anna Maria Rubatto – “Marietta” to her family – was born in 1844 to a working-class family in Carmagnola, a northern Italian town 18 miles south of Turin. And for the first four decades, her life was fairly unremarkable. READ MORE
Understanding the Indigenous delegation to Rome: Some helpful resources
As conscientious citizens and as witnesses to the Gospel’s message of love, it is the duty of Canadian Catholics to be informed and aware of Catholic involvement in injustice towards the Indigenous Peoples of Canada and also of the work being done within the Church toward healing, reparation, and reconciliation. It is also important to understand where we as a Church have fallen short. READ MORE
Beatification of Rutilio Grande and his fellow martyrs: Everything you need to know, including where to watch
Fr. Rutilio Grande had been a strong advocate for the poor, using his position of authority and trust to build up the community around him and also using his sermons to denounce the injustices committed by the Salvadoran elite and the military. For his courageous and outspoken faith, he was murdered by those in power, the first among many priests assassinated during the years of civil strife in El Salvador. READ MORE
12 beautiful quotes from St. Irenaeus, our newest Doctor of the Church
Today, Pope Francis has honoured St. Irenaeus of Lyons, one of our Church Fathers, by formally declaring him a Doctor of the Church. This makes him the 37th Doctor and the earliest one (the next closest Doctor being Athansius, who was born almost 100 years after Irenaeus died). READ MORE
Letting ourselves be human | Word Alive
I’m sure many of us wish we could have “perfect” families with perfectly harmonious relationships, but the fact of the matter is, like the Holy Family, we are real people. And the beauty of having relationships with real people is that the more imperfect and difficult and human they are, the more grace there is when we live them with compassion, kindness, patience, and love. READ MORE
St. Irenaeus of Lyons: Doctor of Unity
Although Irenaeus is most famous for his writing which set out early orthodox Christian teachings in opposition to those of the heretical groups we call Gnostics, Pope Francis intends to recognize in him an added attribute, one that is sorely needed in the Church today. He intends to give him the title “Doctor of Unity”. READ MORE
How the science of genetics was born in a Catholic monastery
With his methodical ways of exploring how physical traits are passed from one generation to the next, Gregor Mendel revolutionized the natural sciences and founded the branch we now call genetics. But it is important that we remember him not only as the “father of genetics” but also as a Catholic priest and an Augustinian friar. READ MORE
Farm boy, hero, saint: Meet Fr. Emil Kapaun, the US Army chaplain every Catholic should know
It is hard not to feel inspired by the example and witness offered by the life of Fr. Kapaun. He shows us that holiness and heroism find their origin in the everyday and ordinary. None of us knows what the future will bring or where or to whom our life of faith will lead us. But like Fr. Kapaun, we are all capable of living to the full the life each of us is called to. READ MORE
7 resources to help you celebrate St. Joseph
March 19 is the feast of St. Joseph – husband of Mary, earthly father of Jesus, patron of workers, patron of the Universal Church, and for those of us who live in Canada, patron of our country, too. It’s a special day, which we celebrate as a solemnity in the Church – the highest level of feast day. It’s a day to set aside our Lenten gloominess for a brief moment and give thanks. If you’re stuck for ideas on how to celebrate, here are a few resources that might help. READ MORE
Becoming Christs | Word Alive
Have you ever thought about how bewilderingly simple baptism is? It only requires water and a few words (I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit) – 18 in English. 18 simple words and a substance which makes up 71% of our planet. READ MORE
A COVID Christmas carol for St. Joseph
Jupiter and Saturn aren’t the only things aligning this Christmas, it seems. Just in time for Christmas in the Year of St. Joseph, we have a brand new, never-before-heard carol from the perspective of Jesus’ foster father, called – appropriately enough – “Joseph’s Carol”. But it wasn’t planned that way. READ MORE
Pope Francis announces the Year of St. Joseph
Yesterday, the Vatican announced that this year (December 8, 2020 – December 8, 2021) would be a year dedicated to St. Joseph, husband of Mary and earthly father of Jesus Christ. READ MORE
Telling them apart: So many Johns, part 3
Today I continue my exploration of saints named John with three you’ve probably heard of but may know nothing about. That was certainly the case with me before I looked them up! READ MORE
Saints and their furry and feathered friends
Whether stories about the saints’ relationships with animals reveal a yearning for a new Eden or are intended to show a command of supernatural graces which could only come as God’s gift to his most faithful disciples, I really don’t know. But they sure do make for some entertaining stories! READ MORE
Telling them apart: Teresa, Teresa, Thérèse, and Edith
Every year between August and October, we celebrate the memorials of four amazing women named Teresa (in some form). Each one has a fairly popular following in the Church today, and it’s hard to get them mixed up if you really know them, but if you don’t, it can be really confusing. READ MORE
Telling them apart: So many Johns, part 2
No doubt you’ve heard of St. Benedict of Nursia, founder of Western monasticism and patron saint of Europe. But have you heard of St. John Cassian? If you don’t know about him, you probably should. You might say that St. John Cassian taught St. Benedict everything he knew. READ MORE
Telling them apart: St. Ignatius of Antioch vs St. Ignatius of Loyola
St. Ignatius of Loyola is known around the world, thanks mostly to the vast spread of his spiritual children – the Jesuits – and their role as educators. But did you know that there was another, much, much older St. Ignatius? And did you know that Ignatius of Loyola’s real name wasn’t even Ignatius? READ MORE
Telling them apart: The Saint Lawrences
Even if you’ve only heard a few stories about saints, you probably know the one about St. Lawrence, who, while being roasted alive on a gridiron, asked his torturers to turn him over because he was “done” on that side – making him the patron saint of both cooks and comedians. But he’s not the only St. Lawrence. READ MORE
10 great quotes from St. Josemaria Escriva, founder of Opus Dei
St. Josemaria Escriva is best known as the founder of Opus Dei, a Catholic organization of laypeople and priests, which functions on the principle that every single person is called to holiness in their ordinary daily life, wherever God has called them to be.
READ MORE
Remembering Eucharistic martyrs on the feast of Corpus Christi
There is something fascinating and awe-inspiring about martyrs for the Eucharist. To risk one’s own life to save that of another is noble and heroic. But to risk one’s life for what to all appearances is a piece of bread defies all logic and can only be attributed to a deep and visceral faith. READ MORE
“As the magnet draws iron”: St. Philip Neri’s secret for converting souls
St. Philip Neri came into this world in Florence, Italy, on July 21, 1515, and grew up in an era of great change and turmoil. And by the time of his death on March 26, 1595, he merited not only the title of “Saint” but also “Apostle of Rome”. READ MORE
Stephen Colbert vs Be Not Afraid: The case for Catholic art
Even though Catholic art can and does encompass a broad range of material, from sacred music to late night comedy, again and again I encounter an entrenched perception of Catholic art as being only that which at least deliberately implicitly, if not explicitly, addresses matters of faith. Why is this so? And why might this be a problem? READ MORE
St. Catherine of Siena and the plague
I think we have all been searching our memories lately for saints who lived through (and even died from) outbreaks of terrible diseases. Among these was St. Catherine of Siena, whose hometown experienced its third outbreak of the bubonic plague, or Black Death, in 1374. One of my favourite stories from her biography comes from this period. READ MORECreativity and prophecy are the hallmarks of a Christian in this time of pandemic
In times of crisis, whether our own personal crises or a worldwide one such as we are experiencing today, it can be hard to look beyond the here and now. It can be hard to imagine what the future may look like when a future beyond this one seems so uncertain and when the present needs all our attention and our energy. READ MORE
Why Querida Amazonia is a document for everyone
The apostolic exhortation Querida Amazonia is a reflection on the 2019 Synod on the Pan-Amazon Region, which looked at issues specific to the region, including the lasting effects of colonization and the challenge of serving isolated communities. The exhortation, however, is addressed “to the whole world”. Is there really something for everyone in Querida Amazonia? READ MOREBeans, beans, good for your… soul?
High in protein and fibre, low in fat, and full of nutrients like iron and potassium, pulses are an important part of many popular dishes. And for those who are into the whole gluten-free thing, they’re now being used as flour in everything from pasta to brownies. So what inspired the United Nations to declare a day devoted to the awareness of these awesome little seeds? The short answer is poverty.
READ MORE
St. Francis de Sales and the tale of the wise statue
In his Treatise on the Love of God, St. Francis de Sales tells a story so simple, so naively profound that it goes straight to the heart of the matter and reveals a great truth about our relationship with God. READ MORE
Telling them apart: Two Saint Marguerites from Montreal
Pop quiz: Can you name a female Canadian saint canonized by Pope John Paul II who lived in Montreal back when it belonged to France and founded a religious order which was not only one of the Catholic Church’s first uncloistered orders for women but also had a profound impact on modern Canada? Hint: Her first name is Marguerite. READ MORE
Reclaiming poetry for the Christian imagination: Anthony Esolen’s The Hundredfold
Not long ago, when my boss offered me a book which had recently arrived at our office, I took one look at the name Anthony Esolen and grabbed it. I was surprised by what I found. I was expecting something along the lines of his books, Ten Ways to Destroy the Imagination of Your Child and Out of the Ashes: Rebuilding American Culture. What I found instead was a book of poetry. READ MORE
Telling them apart: Thomas Becket and Thomas More
They are two Thomases who were Chancellors of England and close friends of kings named Henry who had enormous egos and vile tempers. Both were embroiled in controversies which straddled the Church/state divide and put them in opposition to their former friends who ordered their deaths. Who wouldn’t get confused? The only solution to untangling these two Thomases is to get to know them a bit better. READ MORE
Telling them apart: So many Johns, part 1 | Two from Ávila
With so many saints called John, it’s hard to keep them all straight. From John the Baptist and John the Apostle to the recently canonized John Henry Newman, John just might win the prize for the most popular male saint’s name with close to 150 holy men answering to that name. I have no intention of sorting through over 100 saints in one blog post, so let’s just start with two Doctors of the Church from the Spanish Renaissance. READ MORE
Embracing Nagasaki: The Christian paradox of joy in a suffering world
Though there are writings out there to help us understand the place of suffering in our world and in our lives and the joy we can find there, it seems to me that as individual Christians, each one of us has to face the paradox on our own as well and find the answer in our heart. READ MORE
Telling them apart: You mean there’s another John Newman/Neumann?
I remember the first time it happened. I was talking to my sister-in-law, and somehow we got on the topic of NYOO-min and education. Suddenly, our conversation came to a grinding halt. “Wait. You’re talking about the American saint, right?” “No, the British blessed. Who are you talking about?” “John Neumann, bishop of Philadelphia.” WAIT! YOU MEAN THERE’S ANOTHER ONE?! READ MORE7 things you probably never knew about Cardinal Newman
While reading Fr. Ian Ker’s comprehensive biography of John Henry Newman, I was struck by how much the details of his life added to my appreciation of him as a person – details about his personality, his hobbies, things he did, things that happened to him, which find no place in shorter works which are hard pressed to discuss in brief his accomplishments and the major outline and themes of his long and influential life. READ MORE
All about Blessed John Henry Newman – to be canonized October 13
Attempting to present a brief biographical sketch of a man like Blessed John Henry Newman feels rather like trying to describe a giant by exhibiting a portrait of his little toe. However you approach the task, you can only scratch the surface of who he was and how he influenced the world around him. READ MORE
Telling them apart: Three great Gregorys
Every year on January 2nd we celebrate the feast of St. Basil and St. Gregory. But for the life of me, I can never remember which Gregory it is – Nyssa or Nazianzen (which I can never remember how to spell, by the way). I know one was the brother of St. Basil and one was his friend, but which one is which? And is one of them Gregory the Great? (Spoiler: the answer is no.) READ MORE
Telling them apart: Two Augustines
St. Augustine, Bishop and Doctor of the Church, is probably one of our better known saints. At least by name. But what do you really know about him? And can you really tell him apart from that other St. Augustine? And did you know, strangely enough, that they both have famous legends involving children/angels? READ MORE
Hail, Holy Queen: A celebration in quotes and images
Every year on the 22nd of August, we celebrate the feast of the Queenship of Mary in which we honour Mary’s unique position as Mother of God and Queen of Heaven. In 1954, Pope Pius XII instituted this feast day to call greater attention to Mary’s special place in salvation history, in the tradition of our faith since its earliest days, and in the life of every individual person. READ MORE
All about Blessed Dulce Lopes Pontes – the Good Angel of Brazil
Recognized during her lifetime for her great service to the poor, Blessed Dulce was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1988. Her passing was mourned by the people of Brazil, and her beatification Mass in 2011 was attended by 70,000 people and broadcast live on national television. She has been called the “Mother of the Poor” and the “Good Angel of Bahia”. READ MORE
Telling them apart: Saint Chryso-what?
Today I am looking at two “golden” Doctors of the Church. Chances are most people have never heard of these two saints of the early Church. And if you’ve only heard of one, it’s probably John Chrysostom, who is considered one of the great Church Fathers. Here is a brief look at two great men who, in a time when public speaking was an art form, were known as men of golden speech. READ MORETelling them apart: Which St. James the Apostle?
A few years ago I achieved a long-time goal of walking the Camino de Santiago – a pilgrimage route which leads to the tomb of St. James the Apostle. From time to time, someone would ask the inevitable question: Which St. James the Apostle is it? And no one knew. Out of 12 men chosen to be his Apostles, Jesus called two men named Yakob. In English we call them James. But which one is which? READ MORE
What we can all learn from Inspector Javert
Running blindly along the straight and narrow path, he has smashed into God, and it shatters him. His world falls apart. He cannot henceforth be the same person. Two options are left to him: to bend like Jean Valjean or like St. Paul and let himself be remade by God, or to destroy himself. READ MORE
15 awesome quotes from Pope Saint Paul VI
Pope from 1963 to 1978, Paul VI is probably best known as the pope who made Vatican II happen and the one who wrote Humanae Vitae. But in his 15 years as head of the Catholic Church, he also wrote 7 encyclicals, 12 apostolic exhortations, and hundreds of homilies, letters, and speeches. READ MORE
Living in the land of martyrs
Of course I knew of the martyrs of the early Church, but they were also stories that belonged to a different reality. To my limited experience of life, they had no immediacy. “Dungeon, fire, and sword” to me were a poetic allusion to adversity. I never thought to ask: “Which dungeon? What fire? Whose sword?” Until I lived in England. READ MORE
Four books that made me
Have you ever thought how different life would be without books? As a bibliophile since my earliest days and someone who still prefers a book to a screen, I cannot imagine my life without books. In fact, it wouldn’t be my life at all. And that got me thinking: What are some of the books that have had an impact on my life? READ MORE
Notre Dame in pictures: S+L pays tribute to an icon
All of us at Salt and Light were greatly saddened by the horrific fire in Notre Dame Cathedral yesterday. Our hearts go out to the people of Paris and especially to all those for whom the cathedral is a spiritual home. But our own sadness and the reactions of people around the world brought home to us how important our historic churches are – not only to their local communities or just to all Catholics but to all of humanity. READ MORE
Pope Francis: Favourite Photos from Year 6
6 years ago today, Catholics gathered in front of computer and television screens for their first glimpse of the man who would succeed Benedict XVI as pope. Amidst cheers from the crowd in St. Peter’s Square, we caught through the camerlengo’s Latin a last name: Bergoglio. READ MORE
How John Henry Newman changed my life
It never ceases to amaze me that something which started out as a blank piece of paper and some ink can become a window into the soul of another human being. And no length of time can diminish the freshness, the immediacy of that human connection. I especially think about the incredible gift of writing on a day like today: the birthday of Blessed John Henry Newman. READ MORE
A Time Less Ordinary: 7 Easy Tips for Getting Through the Season
I don’t know about you, but every time I get to this part of the year, I seem to go through a spiritual and emotional slump. Caught between the joy of Christmas and the penitential focus of Lent, I find it hard to get motivated to stay (or get) spiritually fit. READ MORE
Farewell, Sister Wendy
Last week as I was catching up on some of my reading I came across the obituary of an unlikely celebrity: Sister Wendy Beckett – Catholic nun, hermit, and renowned and well-loved television art critic. That name and the image of that black-wimpled, bespectacled nun with the buck teeth immediately took me back to a moment of my own past. READ MORE
10 Christmas Quotes from the Saints
10 beautiful quotes to ponder during the Christmas season from some of the Church’s best-loved and most eloquent saints, like St. Augustine of Hippo, St. Anthony of Padua, and St. Bernard of Clairvaux.
READ MORE
Keeping the X in Xmas
As a child, I was told that I shouldn’t write “XMAS” because the purpose of the X is to remove Christ from the picture. So for years I squeezed the full nine letters into impractically narrow calendar boxes. Until I discovered that the X in Xmas is not an X at all. READ MORE
Vocation Myths | Part 6
We often resist God’s call. And that can lead to an understanding that God calls us away from ourselves, that His plans for us are in competition with our own plans for happiness and fulfillment. READ MORE
Vocation Myths | Part 5
God desires to see us fulfill our vocation, but His idea of what that looks like and our idea often differ significantly. God’s idea of fulfilling one’s vocation is that which will lead to greatest holiness and eternity with Him in heaven. Our idea is often more earthbound. READ MORE
Vocation Myths | Part 4
When we are faced with decisions, especially big ones, it is good for us to consider what God may be asking of us, and the best advice I ever get when faced with tough choices is the reminder to “take it to prayer”. But sometimes we get a little confused about what to expect from such prayer. READ MORE
Vocation Myths | Part 3
Even when people understand that vocation can be much more than just a call to serve God through a life in priestly ministry or a religious order, they still often have a restricted understanding of vocation, limiting it to major life choices, especially those that require an external form of commitment, such as marriage. READ MORE
JPII: Did you know?
Born Karol Wojtyla in Wadowice, Poland, on May 18, 1920, by the time he died on April 2, 2005, St. John Paul II was the only pope known to a whole generation of Catholics. And to the rest of the world, he had been the face and the voice of the Catholic Church for more than 26 years. In honour of his feast day, here are some fun stats from his papacy. READ MORE
Vocation Myths | Part 2
So you’ve broken free of that common trap of misunderstanding vocation. Congratulations! Now you’re ready to start discerning more intentionally the path God is calling you to, but you’re already pretty sure that it doesn’t involve Holy Orders or religious vows, so you’re on your own right? Technically, the answer is no, but sadly, for many people, the answer is yes. READ MORE
Vocation Myths | Part 1
More than two hundred and fifty bishops from around the world are currently meeting in Rome to discuss “young people, the faith, and vocational discernment”. But as the Instrumentum laboris of the synod admits, what people mean by “vocation” and “discernment” is not always clear. READ MORE
St. Francis on trial: Lessons for the synod
Imagine in Francis’ place someone you know, or think you know, well. Imagine them voluntarily living on the street. Imagine them stripping naked in a court of law and announcing that from that day forth they will consider only God as their father. Would you go away impressed by their sanctity? Would you think they were gentle and harmless, someone to emulate? Probably not. READ MORE
Countdown to Dublin: Our Lady of Knock
It was an ordinary Thursday evening in 1879 in the village of Knock in the northwest of Ireland. Mary McLoughlin, housekeeper to the parish priest, went out to visit a neighbour, a widow by the name of Margaret Byrne. As she passed by the chapel, she noticed some figures against the south wall that she had never seen before: they appeared to be the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Joseph, and a bishop. READ MORE
How much are our churches worth?
We live in a society that places a high value on the practical and the utilitarian. Things that make life easier are prized above things that make life more meaningful. Beauty gives way to convenience. With such a mindset, it can be hard to understand the value of a beautiful building which needs extensive repairs, especially when you understand value only in terms of dollars and cents. READ MOREWho is my brother? Benedict, Scholastica, and the Body of Christ
To say that all the baptized have been transformed into new beings through Jesus Christ with God as our Father is not mere cozy sentiment. It is reality. And to say that another human being is my “brother or sister in Christ” indicates a real relationship with profound implications regarding my responsibilities toward them. READ MORE
“To set the world at naught”: Thomas More, John Fisher, and the role of conscience
What sets these two men apart is the deep faith which gave them an ability to see beyond the rhetoric of political connivances and the temptations of worldly vanities, in order to stand firm and unwavering in the face of a controversy which threatened to deprive them of their livelihoods, their freedom, and ultimately, their lives. READ MORE
10 inspiring quotes from St. Anthony of Padua
St. Anthony of Padua (1195-1231) is well known as a finder of lost things, but he was also famous in his own time as a great preacher. Because of his tireless and effective work in preaching the truth of the Gospel in a time when people were being led astray by false teachings, he is sometimes called the “Hammer of Heretics.” READ MORE
St. Anthony of Padua and the value of shipwrecks
More than his great works of charity and learning, and more than the astounding miracles attributed to him, there is one small period of Anthony’s life that I find most intriguing, a period characterized by sickness, shipwreck, and silence. Before Padua and before any sermons or miracles, Anthony’s great holiness could be seen in North Africa and Sicily where, to earthly eyes, he accomplished nothing. READ MORE
“My bags are packed and I’m ready to go.” 10 Quotes from St. John XXIII
Pope Saint John XXIII is well known as the pope who set the Catholic Church in a new and modern direction by convening the Second Vatican Council. But he was also a well-beloved pope. Known as “Good Pope John,” he inspired people with his warmth, his wit, and his humble humanity. READ MORE
Transformed By Fire: A Reflection for Pentecost Sunday
There is a dangerous tendency in human nature to try to domesticate the spiritual world. Beings and events beyond our comprehension become tame or even silly. How much easier it is to create nice, cozy, safe images of a world that is not only terrifyingly incomprehensible but also very real. READ MORE