The North Star Catholic / OPINION Archives - Page 23 of 29

Francis, filtered

About a year ago, I suggested to one of the top editors of a major American newspaper that his journal’s coverage of things papal left something to be desired, as it seemed based on the assumption that Pope Francis was some kind of radical wild-man, eager to toss into the garbage bin of history all those aspects of Catholic faith and practice that mainstream western culture finds distasteful. My friend replied, in so many words, look, you know how these media narratives are: they’re like bamboo. Once they get started, there’s no stopping them. They just keep growing.

Let’s resolve to connect with others this year

New Year’s resolutions are a renewed focus on areas of our lives we want to improve. For some it is dieting or increased exercise. The stories at CSS have inspired me — and I ask you join me — to focus on a different kind of renewal. This year, let’s try to consciously give and connect with our community. It will not be easy.

Catholic New Year’s resolutions are more surprising

Personally, I like the Catholic idea that the New Year starts with the new liturgical year, Advent, a time of waiting. And instead of making all kinds of soon-to-be-forgotten resolutions, we commit ourselves to the exercise of waiting — conscious, prayerful waiting.

Water brings life — even life eternal

At any event, Jesus, like many others, came to the Jordan River on that memorable day to receive the penitential washing offered by John. He came, like many of his fellow Jews, to heed once again the warnings of the ancient prophets and to be reminded that they and their nation stood in dire need of purification.

LETTERS: Readers weigh in on vandalism of Anchorage cathedral

Readers weigh in on vandalism at Anchorage’s Holy Family Cathedral, the bi-partisan fight for unborn rights and the recent visit to Alaska by Pope Francis’ top ranking ambassador to the United States.

After a bad start, finish your life well

I am turning 65 this month and a lovely question has come to me: “How do I want to finish this life?” We all may have had some bad starts along the way but the Christian Gospel says we can make a great finish.

Live up to ‘the main thing’

It’s a hard Gospel truth, this idea of Christ being with the most marginalized. The truly poor in our midst often don’t smell very good, they often make maddeningly poor choices, and they are sometimes caught up in almost irreversible webs of addiction and despair. Sometimes, all we can do is love them, not fix them, and that can be tough.

As Alaska’s marriage law unravels, we must speak the truth

While the judges have taken over the game on marriage, it is only at the 11th hour. For the past 40 years the old norms have been under relentless attack. Marriage has declined; divorce and cohabitation have climbed; and out-of-wedlock pregnancy has skyrocketed. The old deviancies have become the new norm, and the old morality the new deviancy. The children have suffered the worse, and because of that the future looks bleak.

Advent’s invitation to reconnect

One thought, among many others that interested me, was their proposition that all matter in the universe, from planets to humans, is intricately bound together and has been so since that moment in infinity when God set all existence into being. In short, all things in the universe are intricately joined. We bear within us molecules of stardust.

Don’t fix your life — surrender it

I can’t fix Russia because in reality I can’t fix my life either. I can only surrender it. We can’t fix our brokenness with a new seminar, book or resolution. It is too much and too deep for us to fix. We must surrender our brokenness to the One who has come for the broken.