The coming of the year 2021 was an event that many people looked forward to with great anticipation. Anything would be better than 2020; between the pandemic, shutdowns, riots, and unemployment, just about anything would be a step up from the past year of complete uncertainty and chaos.
A Double Holy Year
Andrea JLast Updated: January 20th, 2021Camino de Santiago, Church News
The city of Santiago de Compostela has been looking forward to 2021 since the end of 2010 for a very important reason – it is the next Holy Year (Jubilee) of Santiago! These Jubilee years occur whenever the Feast of St. James (July 25th) falls on a Sunday. The next time this will happen will be 2027.
Sharing the Jolly News from Bethlehem
Andrea JLast Updated: December 17th, 2020Holy Land, Saints, Spiritual Reflections
While Christmas is often associated with a jolly old man bearing gifts for all, there is another less-jolly old man even more closely tied with the birthplace of our Savior. And who also happened to offer a gift to the world. Yes, even saints get grumpy sometimes, and St. Jerome was known for his grumpiness. … Read More
The Incomprehensible Beauty of Mary
Bri CampbellLast Updated: December 10th, 2020Guadalupe, Saints, Spiritual Reflections
I’ve only become interested in Our Lady of Guadalupe within the last 4 years or so. I’m a self-proclaimed artist who finds great joy in creating religious art. After completing pieces of many of my favorite saints to hang around my college home, and then my first apartment after graduating, I wanted to create a … Read More
The Great American Saints – Part 2
Krista BehringerLast Updated: December 17th, 2020Saints, Spiritual Reflections
St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Born: July 15, 1850 in Italy Died: December 22, 1917 (age 67) Beatified: November 13, 1938 by Pope Pius XI Canonized: July 7, 1946 by Pope Pius XII Feast day: November 13 Patron of: immigrants and hospital administrators Although born in Italy, St. Frances was naturalized a U.S. citizen in 1909, … Read More
Finding Mashed Potatoes & Turkey in Rome
Bri CampbellLast Updated: November 24th, 2020Italy, Spiritual Reflections
When my husband and I got married we were blessed to meet the now-Saint John Paul II in person. I wore my wedding dress and Pope John Paul II made the Sign of the Cross over us, took our hands in his, and gave us a nod. It will forever be seared in our memory … Read More
The Great American Saints
Krista BehringerLast Updated: December 17th, 2020Saints, Spiritual Reflections
The year 2020 has certainly brought many changes and challenges, causing stress and certain anxieties never before experienced. Timing couldn’t be better for us to connect with a few of our great American Saints and one of our Blessed. We can learn how they lived, prayed, and ultimately accepted God’s will in hopes that we … Read More
Walking the Path to Sainthood
Andrea JLast Updated: August 27th, 2021Camino de Santiago, Pilgrims' Stories, Saints
Throughout the first month of my Camino across northern Spain we had been blessed with the warmest and driest October in 200 years. The sun shone every day and the little rain we did have was warm and ended quickly, allowing us to dry out by the end of the walking day. The breezes were mostly warm and dry, especially once we turned … Read More
The Grace of Parishes that Pilgrimage
Bri CampbellLast Updated: October 29th, 2020Uncategorized
When a priest takes a pilgrimage with his parish something special happens – answered prayers, surprising graces, and spiritual bonds that last a lifetime. Father Jonathan Meyer, the pastor of All Saints Parish in Guilford, Ind., is well aware of the blessings of pilgrimages. He leads an annual Holy Land pilgrimage to convert and connect … Read More
The Top 10 Tips for a Pilgrimage
Bri CampbellLast Updated: October 22nd, 2020Pilgrims' Stories
Take your rosary or prayer book for the long flight and as a prayer aid at the very special holy sites you will be visiting. As St. Padre Pio says, “Pray, hope, and don’t worry.” The best slogan for pilgrimage travel anywhere! Dress for sacred spaces. It’s important to remember that churches in Europe and … Read More
St. Luke & St. Paul: Companions
When you visit a locale with extraordinary significance in salvation history, it’s good to have Scripture close at hand. When my family visited Rome a few years ago, it was Scripture coupled with history that really hit home the richness and depth of our Faith. On our trip, one of the places we visited was … Read More
How I Met My Mother
Bri CampbellLast Updated: October 9th, 2020Spiritual Reflections
Growing up Catholic, I remember disliking the great task that was praying the rosary. In my grade school days, every day of October was increasingly tiresome as each year my class would daily pray a rosary during this month dedicated to it. My mind would wander, my mouth would yawn, my attention span was totally … Read More
Medjugorje and Life Coaching
Bri CampbellLast Updated: October 2nd, 2020Medjugorje, Pilgrims' Stories, Spiritual Reflections
For the past three years as fall approached, I found myself eagerly awaiting a pilgrimage to Medjugorje. The visits to the small village in Bosnia-Herzegovina completely changed my life. Amid the chaos and confusion going on now in the world with the pandemic, social unrest and the upcoming election, I find myself yearning for Medjugorje. … Read More
His Writing was Bold, Just Like His Life
To see the handwriting of saint you admire – the way he wrote his a’s, the slant he used, the handwriting stroke, firm, or light – is a window into their humanity. These little gems of handwritten notes – rare nowadays in our fast-paced culture of emails, texts, and online messaging – are treasured heirlooms … Read More
Recalling the Medieval in Montana
Bri CampbellLast Updated: September 17th, 2020Pilgrims' Stories, Spiritual Reflections
Along with many others in the world today, my travel plans this summer were affected by disappointing cancellations, postponements, forbidden border crossings, and destination changes. My husband and I were initially looking forward to accompanying his parents to the Holy Land this June, a first-time pilgrimage for all of us. We were counting our daily … Read More