As I write this, I am on my way home from Rome after attending a meeting of the CIOFS International Formation Secretariat. Working with my brothers and sisters has been such a positive and uplifting experience that I began to think about why this would be so.
In some cases, a young person discovers a renewed faith-life, but doesn’t know how to nourish this new reality. Finding time and energy to give thought, let alone action, to their spiritual lives is often not a “luxury” they feel they can afford. We, as more “seasoned” Catholics, can offer simple ways to revitalize this important area of their lives. Reflecting on the story of St. Francis and his experience of renewal and transformation, we know he was close to the same age as many of the young people we hope to serve. He too sought answers when he felt confused ...
True “abiding” in Christ is borne of prayer: Lord Jesus, without You we can do nothing. You are the true Gardener, Creator, Cultivator and Custodian of Your garden, which You plant with Your Word, irrigate with Your Spirit, and cause to grow with Your grace.
God loves my story and God loves your story, not because our stories are perfect (they are not), but because they are our stories. And God loves us. It is in and through the stories of our lives that God meets us, and makes His home in our hearts, and saves us.
For many people, a pilgrimage is a time of renewal. Going to a specific, holy place, often walking more than usual, praying in a place that is made significant by who has been there and what has happened in the past, any one of these things would help us to reflect on our lives, and a pilgrimage usually has all of them. ...
The theme for this edition of the TAU-USA is “Renewal.” What comes to mind? A day of rest? Something one does for a magazine subscription or a driver’s or professional license? What happens when we do not renew something? We may become burned out or exhausted in terms of our mind, or we may need to pay extra or pay a fine in terms of a license, or perhaps we might not be able to practice our profession/work. How about a renewal of our commitment to the Gospel? ...
Conversion, commission, and crucifixion initiated your Christian existence, your Franciscan vocation. In your Baptism you died to sin and self, you rose to God, to “newness of life.” At your profession you said—three times—this is what I want!
I have some good news to share with you. The new TAU-USA newsletter team has produced its first digital-only newsletter (Issue 111). The theme for Issue 111 is very fitting for this time of year - "Renewal." The full newsletter is available in English and Spanish. Selected articles have been translated into Korean.
Our lives are not our own. We are called to give over our lives in service to others. Pope Francis inspires us to find ways to reach across the boundaries of all Christian faiths. “Our borders should be windows, not barriers of division,” he challenges.
God’s mercy is manifest in the Church, being the fruit of the Paschal Mystery, preaching and confessing mercy, recalling it and imitating it, realizing it and making it present in the sacrament of salvation.