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Hopefully, your experience of praying Holy Scripture using the Lectio-Divina form of prayer was a good one. However, it can take a bit of perseverance if this is new to you. Do not be discouraged, but continue to call upon the assistance of the Holy Spirit.

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As we approach the solemnity of Christmas tomorrow, we would do well to ask the Holy Spirit to help us enter into the mystery we are celebrating. Implicit in the glory of the birth of Christ, is His death. It is already present, as it has been since His conception in the womb of Mary, in His flesh.

A season of joy, to be sure. A season of wonder, most definitely. A season of magnanimity, most assuredly. For this is the season that proves God's love for us. His Son has been sent for one mission, and one mission only, to pour Himself out for us. 

The Incarnation is the Redemption begun. It is consummated at the conception and culminated at the crucifixion. As we gaze upon the Christ Child lying in the creche, how can we ignore that He is already on the bed of wood?

It is this we celebrate: that in the midst of our depravity, God sent His Son in the fullness of time, born of a woman (Gen. 3:15; Gal. 4:4). It is in this that we find cause for rejoicing.

Carol Houselander, an English author of the last century, asks us to focus our attention on this reality during the Advent season. It is not too late to ponder the cause of our joy in these last hours before Christmas day.

Writing in Reed of God, Houselander offers us these words for meditation and contemplation. She invites us to consider the role of the Virgin Mary, Mother of God, as we consider the coming of the Christ Child:

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In yesterday's blog, we discussed the necessity of evangelization in the modern world and why this call applies in a special way to the lay faithful.

But the question remains, how do we effectively communicate the Catholic faith in the world today? This remains a challenge especially given the competing voices in today's market place of ideas.

Indeed, secularism and relativism have captivated the mindset of the culture. However, St. Paul reminds us in 2 Timothy 4 that our mission is to preach the Gospel "in season and out," and the reality is you and I have been chosen by God to do so in our day and time. And, in the end, truth is on our side.

Following are four steps that help us share the faith with others.

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The Incarnation of Jesus Christ has forever changed the destiny of mankind. Through His birth, death, and resurrection, the chains of death are broken, the gates of heaven are flung open wide, and eternal life has been restored to man. However, accepting the salvation Christ has won remains an individual decision to be made by each human being.

I remember well when I made that decision for myself. It all started with a woman who shared her faith in Jesus Christ with me.

Though she was going through an emotionally difficult time, she was certain God had a plan for her in the midst of it. Her trust stood in stark contrast to my own faith experience which had not recovered from my college years. Like living water flooding the landscape of my soul, her words and her witness brought me new life and led me back to Catholicism.

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O most beautiful Flower of Mount Carmel, fruitful vine, splendor of Heaven, Blessed Mother of the Son of God, Immaculate Virgin, assist me in this my necessity. O Star of the Sea, help me and show me herein that you are my Mother.

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Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has designated May 24th as the World Day of Prayer for the Church in China.  Join us in praying for our brothers and sisters in the China, especially those who are being persecuted for the beliefs and for standing up for freedom.

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Continuing his series on the Christian school of prayer, Pope Benedict XVI told 20,000 faithful in St. Peter's Square yesterday that if prayer and the Word of God do not nourish our spiritual life, we run the risk being suffocated by the many cares and concerns of daily existence.

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If you watch the evening news, you surely caught wind of the story of a 17 year old high school student who evidently planned to kill 32 people at Freedom High School, which is located right here in the Tampa Bay Area, where our offices are located.  Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor  said that authorities found pipe bomb-making materials and a manifesto containing the student's  minute-by-minute plan for the massacre, in which he detailed each murder he intended to commit.  Needless to say, parents, teachers, and students in Tampa and around the country were shocked and worried.  If that weren't enough, just days later, a teacher from the same high school was accused of having sex with a 16 year old student at the school.  Both of these stories are very disturbing.  I believe that we are only seeing the tip of the iceburg and that as economic and social conditions worsen, we will be the unfortunate witnesses of these societal ills which are rooted in the loss of respect for the human person and human sexuality, the degeneration of marriage and family life, and a general loss of morality.  These are the plagues of our time.

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A few days ago a member of my high school graduating class passed away.  Bonnie had always been the type of person who was on the periphery of events, parties, dances, and all of the social things that make up a high school experience.  In many ways, she was challenged – not intellectually but in other ways that can make teenage years tough. Her last days sound as if they were as challenging as those earlier days.  And she left the world seemingly bereft of the parents whom she buried and any close personal friends.  Fortunately, another classmate was made aware of her death through a professional acquaintance.  He notified the rest of us.

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During these first few weeks of Lent, Holy Mother Church directs us to ponder the reality of our mortality and to make a serious appraisal of how we are living our lives in light of it. Today’s reading from Divine Intimacy (#95) by Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalene, OCD, brings spiritual perspective to this most important consideration. Following are a couple of nuggets that impacted me today in my time of prayer:

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