Mahatma Gandhi stated, “We must become the change we want to see in the world.” Lent and New Year’s Day are the traditional times to consider change. It’s easy to see that our world must change. We can’t continue polluting the air and water, we can’t keep killing one another,

Lent is three days old, and I’m already feeling weak about my Lenten resolutions. That’s no surprise, but it is surprising that the Gospel for today suggests that all that fasting and discipline aren’t always the best things. Jesus’ disciples aren’t fasting, and Jesus defends them. No one fasts or

You’ve probably heard the saying “Inch by inch, life is a cinch. Yard by yard life is hard.” As I start my Lenten journey I take a deep breath and wonder how I’ll ever persevere through 40 days. But 40 days are only one day forty times; however, that still

As we begin Lent and look for ways to improve, the first place to look is with our family. George Bernard Shaw wrote, “A happy family is but an earlier heaven.” How true! Is there some tension in the family? Is there an elephant in the living room that no

Albert Schweitzer said, “Aim for service and success will follow.” This axiom describes so many of our world’s finest citizens. Today we honor George Washington, a man in service of the ideals of freedom, unity, and democracy. Make this a day of service. Perhaps success will follow.  

“Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see” (Mark Twain). Perhaps your day will be brightened by receiving candy, flowers, or cards. And you may be brightening someone else’s day in the same way. The origin of today’s sweet treats and flowers lies in

I admire Abraham Lincoln, a man with a great imagination. At the end of the Civil War he imagined the unimaginable—bringing the South back into the United States without punishment. Lincoln also imagined a country without slavery, a country where every person had a right to vote and own land.

This week marks the half-way point between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. While many are longing for spring, I don’t mind that winter is only half over. Winter happens to be my favorite season. I realize that’s a bit unusual, but it is. I never tire of looking

“Knowledge is like climbing a mountain. The higher you reach the more you can see and appreciate” (author unknown). Our Catholic schools merit all the attention they receive during this Catholic Schools Week. The facts students learn may serve them well on a Jeopardy game, but those facts surrounded by

As I write this blog, I don’t know what the weather will be like on January 22. Typically it’s one of the coldest days of the year, often with several feet of snow in some states. I admire the thousands of persons who travel to D.C. despite bitter cold to