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If it hadn’t been for an elder brother taking him under his wing, Saint Peter Damian may have taken a very different path in life. But with his brother’s guidance, he matured into a holy man, monk, and bishop. A man of prayer and devotion, Peter Damian was also a spiritual writer.
Like faith, wisdom is practical and needs to be carefully cultivated. It calls for humility, and cannot flourish in the presence of jealousy and ambition and self-promotion.
Simplicity is when we roll up our sleeves with and for others in a great community of needful belonging.
Two young children who died early in life, Jacinta and Francisco Marto, gained the attention of the Church and the world when Mary appeared to them at Fatima. Without being martyred, they became witnesses and messengers of God’s goodness.
To be sacred also means to participate fully—even if not consciously—in the ongoing dance of relationships, which are the fundamental divine reality.
Read Jesus’ warning found in Luke 21: “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy.” Spend a moment recalling how physical fatigue is felt in your body.
Saint Conrad of Piacenza offers a different slant of holiness. Married, he and his wife opted to live separate lives─she as a Poor Clare and he as a Franciscan hermit. All this after he set a fire which was spread by the wind and destroyed the nearby fields, forests, and town.
Speech is a dangerous gift. We have to know how to control it. The way in which we use our speech is a determinant factor in our whole moral quality.
We experience a great love for the world. What we love is what moves our heart, and what moves our heart is what moves our lives.
We often find ourselves reflecting on the fear of the disciples in the upper room, but that is not the only part of the Pentecost story.
