Tuesday, November 30, 20210186Greek philosophers centuries before Christ acknowledged the immense mystery of our being human. Man, they said, is a microcosm, a condensed universe, containing in himself the vast expanse of height and depth, glory and misery, perceived in the intricacies and infinities of the created order. An extension of this idea is the beautiful...
Friday, November 12, 2021056One of the hot topics in political discourse today is globalization – that is, the tendency for the world population to become more integrated, or at least more technologically connected. Some people see this tendency as a threat to local communities, while others rejoice in it for its economic and social effects.
Thursday, October 28, 20210149“On the seventh day, God completed the work He had been doing; He rested on the seventh day from all the work He had undertaken. God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it He rested from all the work He had done in creation” (Genesis 2:2-3).
Thursday, October 14, 20210150Lots of us say we’re stressed. What is stress? According to the American Psychological Association, we can distinguish two kinds, one positive (eustress) and the other negative (distress). Positive stress is what we feel when we stand before a challenge that we believe is proportionate to our abilities — we feel excited and ready to...
Sunday, October 3, 20210184By Father Thomas Esposito
Special to The Texas Catholic
Near the end of his letter to the Colossians, St. Paul includes a greeting from his fellow disciple Epaphras, “a slave of Christ Jesus, always fighting for you in his prayers so that you may be perfect and fully assured in all the will of God” (Colossians 4:12). Paul’s...
Friday, September 17, 2021072Lately, I’ve been thinking about the upcoming diocesan synod announced by Bishop Edward J. Burns, which will integrate the synod announced by Pope Francis. What will this local synod, and then also the universal synod, mean for the Church in Dallas? After reading both Bishop Burns’ letter announcing the diocesan synod and “Radical...
Thursday, September 16, 20210707Pope Francis recently made a much-discussed decision to restrict the celebration of “the Latin Mass,” also known as the Extraordinary Form of the Roman rite. As the bishop of Rome, he has the power to give bishops the authority to allow the celebration of the Tridentine rite in their dioceses. But his judgment, expressed in a motu...
Friday, August 20, 20210123 Photo by Cameron Kologinczak, seminarian of the Diocese of Austin, studying at Holy Trinity Seminary.
By Father John Bayer
Special to The Texas Catholic
This summer I had the joy of serving as chaplain for 12 seminarians from Holy Trinity Seminary as they participated in a formation exercise with COR Expeditions. COR...
Wednesday, July 21, 20210421Few religious orders can match the Carmelites’ All-Star lineup for sanctity of life and brilliance of theological writings: John of the Cross, Teresa of Avila, Thérèse of Lisieux, and Elizabeth of the Trinity are the heaviest hitters in this illustrious branch of contemplatives. Equal to those great figures, in my opinion, is the...
Saturday, June 19, 2021055On Dec. 8, 2020, Pope Francis dedicated the coming year to St. Joseph. Now, in June, we are at the halfway point. To participate in his intention for the year, I read “Consecration to St. Joseph: The Wonders of Our Spiritual Father” by Father Donald Calloway. It was recommended to me by a friend, a layman, who started a prayer group...
