When I worked with a traveling retreat team, we used to present a skit that began with one of our team members walking onto the stage, kneeling down, making the sign of the cross, and beginning to pray the Lord’s prayer. The only thing is she wouldn’t get very far, as after saying the words […]
YouCat – The Way of Prayer
By its very nature, ministry means encountering a lot of different people. In the fifteen years that I’ve been privileged to work for the Church, I’ve been blessed to make many friends – some of whom have stood beside me on some of the best days of my life, and many who’ve been with me on my […]
YouCat: Sources of Prayer
When I think of my first experiences of prayer, I vividly remember praying at specific moments to get out of trouble because I had done something wrong or broken something as a child. As a teen, I remember trying to move from those prayers of a moment in need to praying very devoutly when the […]
YouCat: How to Pray (and why)
There’s a question I dread to answer each year. It comes up when I’m sitting at the dentist’s office, and he inevitably looks at me and asks: Mike, how often do you floss? I stammer… once a month? Maybe twice? Usually when I know I need it (after eating popcorn or something else that gets stuck […]
YouCat: Prayer in the Christian Life
A big part of any parents duties includes the challenge of trying to teach kids about the world around them, and about how they ought to act. The varied lessons include talking (and listening!), dressing oneself, eating without leaving bits of food in a three foot radius around your chair, basic rules about sports, what […]
YouCat – The 10th Commandment (Envy)
You shall not covet your neighbor’s goods. If you’ve ever seen Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, you’ll remember Anakin Skywalker’s first encounter with the Jedi Master Yoda. Anakin, you’ll remember, was cast as an awkward Messianic figure – as the one who would ultimately bring balance to the force, but Yoda had some […]