In 1953 at the age of 17, Pope Francis had a life-changing experience in confession.

Often we want to get around troubles and challenges in life rather than go through them.  If only we could skip from the beginning to the end without going through the middle. 

I must admit the above title caught my eye. I never considered Patrick as a Prophet for Social Justice. Wander down this path with Kevin Ahern. You may be surprised.

I don’t often think of it. But one of the courses that influenced my life was a history course.

Some words stay with you for a lifetime! Sometimes front and center. Other times they sit just beneath the surface… like a quiet motor doing its job unnoticed.

Over a lifetime, we each learn the stories of where we fit and don’t fit, and who are our good and bad guys.

Try to “listen” for the backstory of at least one conversation today.

Polarization is not new.

The challenge during Lent is to make sure we take time to listen to the God who speaks in the ordinariness and messiness of our daily lives.

Lent is a time of listening… cleaning my ears to hear the Good News.

Belonging is “the feeling of security and support when there is a sense of acceptance, inclusion, and identity for a member of a certain group.” 

At first glance, it may seem like quite a stretch to connect Ash Wednesday, Valentine’s Day, and Systemic Change. But hear me out. Actually, it is not that hard.

Much to my surprise, Pope Francis seemed to comment on yesterday’s Mindwalk. Of course, I know he never read it … but his reflection today certainly fit! See if you agree with his comments on “Blessed are the poor in Spirit.” Pope Francis begins with a question Who...

One of the buzzwords among internet literati is “social media influencer.” That’s “digital speak” for someone who has an impact on what others think, say, and do.

In the sermon on the mount, Jesus flips the script to show how different his mission was from what ordinary people expected.

Today I ask you to imagine where you might expect Jesus would begin his mission and who would he choose?

But let’s look at God’s imagination and the imagination of St. Vincent de Paul.

The Jerusalem headhunters would not have been very interested in Jesus’ leadership team. They preferred the way rabbis were picked from among the most promising in their schools.

We are all on a journey and our journeys have a pattern and overlap more than we realize. We are all on a journey to a “final frontier.”

My parents were dreamers. Their dreams kept them going.  

I knew the letter was coming. But I never expected to be drawn as deeply into it.

Anyone seeking health insurance or entrance into a school knows the term “open enrollment.” Triggered by a Pope Francis’ homily on the feast of the Epiphany, 

In this Vincentian Mindwalk, I am asking whether Christmas is the celebration of a moment in the past or something that takes place in your life every day?

“Tell me your friends, and I will tell you who you are.” These words are but echoes of words spoken over 400 years before Christ.

Almost every family has one. You know… the person who remembers the family history, the stories of Uncle… and Aunt…,  the in-laws, and the outlaws.

Did you know Pope Francis has Twitter accounts in nine languages and almost 53 million followers?

In this season, as we prepare for the birth of Christ, I am reminded of Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus.

In a sense, I have never outgrown the “why” stage of childhood. Parents may realize it is all part of children trying to understand their world.

Sometimes it seems that everybody wants to change our way of thinking. That has probably always been true. But it certainly feels truer now in our polarized times.

A simple fact of life. We don’t always agree… especially on things that are important to us.