Tag Archives: Travel

Where do the candles go in a procession?

Posted on March 12, 2019 by

Worship is not a DIY affair; we can all come up with ways to make it more interesting or “meaningful”, but that is not our place, for we receive it from the Church and her tradition. In recent years, of course, … Continue reading →

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Wayside Chapels

Posted on February 21, 2019 by

During my recent trip to Wisconsin I was delighted to learn of a wayside chapel near to where I was staying, which was, itself, amidst the rolling farmland — not far from a big city, but very rural. Now usually, … Continue reading →

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More Good Cloistered Nuns

Posted on February 19, 2019 by

Last week I made a retreat at the monastery of the Discalced Carmelite Nuns of the Holy Name of Jesus in Denmark, Wisconsin. This was not my first time there, but it was the first retreat I’ve made with them. … Continue reading →

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A Meditation on One of the Requiem Chants

Posted on November 2, 2018 by

Our mid-day Mass for All Souls here at the Cathedral of St. Paul will have a simple musical accompaniment: a chant schola singing the Church’s beautiful requiem propers. In my homily, which I copy below, I reflect on a surprising … Continue reading →

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Working on Holy Days of Obligation

Posted on November 1, 2018 by

There are five [or six] Holy Days of Obligation each year in the United States: Immaculate Conception (December 8), Christmas (December 25), Mary, Mother of God (January 1), Assumption (August 15), and All Saints (November 1). [In a few regions … Continue reading →

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Images above Altars

Posted on November 8, 2017 by

I’ve been on my annual retreat this week, which I am making in a beloved city in Mexico. During this time I have been sharing some photos on social media. One, in particular, generated some comment: Some have wondered not … Continue reading →

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Something You (Sometimes) See in Seminary Chapels

Posted on October 28, 2017 by

I’m visiting Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans at present, and noticed an interesting detail in their chapel. It is surely not an accident that there are four steps leading up to the main sanctuary level, then three steps from … Continue reading →

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Walking the Road to God

Posted on September 16, 2017 by

A kind reader sent me a book called Walking the Road to God that I had had on my wish list. The author, Father Lawrence Carney, went to the same seminary as me, a year ahead of me. I remember … Continue reading →

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Prayers for Confessors to Say

Posted on June 26, 2017 by

One spring during my period of studies in Rome, I spent Holy Week at a parish in Edinburgh, Scotland and assisted with the sacred functions there. It was there that I saw, for the first time, a beautiful prayer for … Continue reading →

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Checking on the Nuns

Posted on February 16, 2017 by

I had a brief trip down to Montgomery today, and on the way back I stopped in at the Dominican Monastery of St. Jude. I’ve written about them many times on this blog. A wonderful group of cloistered Dominican nuns! … Continue reading →

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Excellent Nuns to Hold Discernment Retreat

Posted on April 12, 2016 by

The wonderful cloistered Dominican nuns of St. Jude Monastery in Marbury, Alabama have notified me about their upcoming discernment retreat. Here is an info-graphic – click to enlarge: This Vocation Retreat will be on the weekend of June 3-5 for young women aged 16-27, so if … Continue reading →

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On the Feast of St. Anne

Posted on July 26, 2015 by

July 26 is the feast of St. Anne, grandmother of Jesus and mother of the Blessed Mother. PRAYER TO ST. ANNE Good St. Anne, you were especially favored by God to be the mother of the most holy Virgin Mary, … Continue reading →

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