Today, we are reminded that it is not enough to follow all the prudential rules of the church (e.g. fasting). Rather, it is vital to train the entirety of the human person - body, mind, soul, and spirit - to focus entirely on God who creates, redeems, and sanctifies. Thus, it is incumbent upon each of us to follow the eternal Logos, Christ, the Word made flesh, who leads us to salvation. And to listen, to obey, and to be forever changed by the Holy Spirit who leads us into sa

Intercede for me and pray for my spiritual sons and daughters so that we may have a stable foundation of contemplative prayer and a ministry of healing the afflicted. Mary, my dear mother in heaven, I am deeply, deeply grateful for your protection and eternally humbled by my priesthood. Please keep me close and give me strength to walk with everyone who comes for confession and spiritual guidance. An icon representing the Feast of the Protection of the Theotokos.

The Lord exhorts us to forgive others without ignoring the reality of systemic abuse in our lives. He invites us to share in His eternal...

Intercede for me and pray for my spiritual sons and daughters so that we may have a stable foundation of deep prayer and a ministry of healing the afflicted. Please keep me close so that I may have strength to walk with everyone who comes for confession and spiritual guidance. Portrait of Nilus (+1005), Sanctuary of San Nicodemo in Mammola.

Intercede for me and pray for my spiritual sons and daughters so that we may have a stable foundation of deep prayer and a ministry of healing the afflicted. Please keep me close so that I may have strength to walk with everyone who comes for confession and spiritual guidance. An illumination from Hildegard's Scivias (1151) showing her receiving a vision and dictating to her teacher Volmar. She died in 1179.

My dear St. Theoctistus of Sicily, you served God and His people by raising up a monastery that became a place of refuge, rest, and protection for people suffering and dying under the tyranny of iconoclasm. Your compassionate tears, your unrelenting labor, and your constant prayer brought forth the uncreated silence of the Holy Spirit and the uncreated light of Christ for those you served. O Righteous One, I ask your intercession today for a brotherhood of men who commit them

My dear St. Sabinus of Sicily, you served God's people by using your gifts of discernment and wonderworking. And sought the omnipresent...

To my dear brothers and sisters, and sons and daughters in Christ: Having spent a lifetime in constant observation and continual meditation (by the grace of God), it is clear to me that now is a time for every man, woman, and child to take specific and intentional steps to find their way back to God, His Most Holy Mother, the saints, and the sacraments. Here's how: GO TO CONFESSION. Too many people have come to ignore this beautiful and healing sacrament, which reproves the i