Like every virtue, hope is a grace and also a habit, but unique to hope is that its practice may be described as diving into
It is natural to dwell on our own suffering, but in the Fifteen St. Bridget Prayers, our attention is focused on the suffering of our
Anger and Reason My 43-year-old son reminded me several weeks ago how he and his younger brother used to hide from me when they were
I often get all caught up in myself and experience various distressing thoughts and anxieties. These are a combination of temptations to sinful behavior as
I enjoy television dramas. I really do. But I have a very active imagination. I also passively project my “fantasy world” into television dramas so much
God told me one night that He owned me. I heard this interiorly, without any words being spoken. I had been watching a television show
Terror Experienced in Youth I have come to realize that a sense of terror has been a hidden part of my interior life for many
Of course, we could do better, but we usually don’t. We need a savior. St. Paul notes our predicament and then identifies the solution and
Both normal and morbid curiosity can prompt our desire to know the mysterious details of unknown secrets. It often depends on the source we seek
I am returning after four months of what turned out to be spiritual warfare to continue my monthly column for Catholic Stand. I am very
The haunting glow of fiery lava lights up the night sky near our house. The ever-moving lava has been visible like this for just six
A Superficial View of Dad and Me I recently talked by phone with my 91-year-old Dad. He is in a nursing home, thousands of miles
We must all pray for Divine Mercy. God’s mercy is infinite, as St. Faustina tells us. God hungers for us to turn to Him in
My Lent so far has consisted of an unrelenting depression that has been getting worse for months. My mounting anxieties and a sense of hopelessness
BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL. It was Saturday morning, January 13, 2018, at 8:07 A.M. in
I am learning to keep my anxiety and irritation about others to myself. That does not mean that I have stopped my negative thoughts about
A year ago when I was 65 and working in Hawaii, I traveled 4,860 miles to Delaware to visit my Dad who had just been
November 11, 2017 marks the fifteenth (15th) anniversary of the shooting death of my son, Aaron Dougherty. More essentially, this date also marks the 15th
I like the adage: “Some things are better left unsaid”. But I have a hard time following it, especially when I am in one of
The Petty Fight The petty fight started over the placement of my rather-large picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe near the top of our living
The first turning point came when our car initially broke down in Hawaii. I was 6,000 miles away in Delaware, caring for my 90 year-old-parents.
Twenty-five years ago, I started unknowingly sending to my parents, from one thousand miles away, the actual books I would use for my future spiritual