amen columns AmenAmen Matysek CommentaryCommentary Amen: On the trail with Father Beshoner George P. Matysek Jr.October 29, 20153 min read After a long hiatus, Father Beshoner recently relaunched Catholic Under the Hood with a seemingly monumental mission: telling the 2,000-year history of the Catholic Church from apostolic times to the present. AmenAmen Matysek CommentaryCommentary Amen: Dying doing what you love George P. Matysek Jr.June 17, 20143 min read In attempting his 20th crossing June 8, my cousin began having problems about a mile into the swim. Rescuers could not revive him, and he died at age 58. He leaves behind a wife of 31 years. AmenAmen Matysek CommentaryCommentary Babe Ruth’s diamond George P. Matysek Jr.February 12, 20143 min read One hundred years ago on St. Valentine’s Day, George Herman “Babe” Ruth Jr. began his meteoric rise in professional baseball when he signed a contract with the minor league Baltimore Orioles. AmenAmen Matysek CommentaryCommentary Of haberdasheries and ‘Death Dust’ George P. Matysek Jr.August 15, 20133 min read For years, a tattered and taped copy of the Aug. 30, 1902, issue of The Catholic Mirror has jockeyed for attention on my sometimes-cluttered desk at the Catholic Review. AmenAmen Matysek CommentaryCommentary This Priest Appreciation Day, thank priests who change lives George P. Matysek Jr.May 29, 20133 min read Father Dale Picarella had just finished greeting a mob of parishioners at the end of Mass when I approached him in the sacristy with a special request. Would he visit my mother at Bayview Medical Center in East Baltimore as she was recovering from cancer surgery? AmenAmen Matysek CommentaryCommentary Pope Benedict XVI offers lesson in humility George P. Matysek Jr.February 21, 20133 min read The goodness and humility witnessed by the future Baltimore archbishop were on display for all the world Feb. 11 when Pope Benedict XVI quietly announced in Latin that he would step down due to his advanced age and lack of stamina. AmenAmen Matysek CommentaryCommentaryRespect Life Amen: Telling questions for pregnant women George P. Matysek Jr.January 10, 20133 min read My brother was in line at a local supermarket when he observed a young woman strike up a conversation with an apparent longtime friend. Showing off her slightly protruding belly, the younger woman announced that she was pregnant. AmenAmen Matysek CommentaryCommentary ‘I have connections in heaven’ George P. Matysek Jr.August 30, 20123 min read Mercy Sister Lois Mueller was a bundle of energy when I first met her at The Villa retirement home in Baltimore three years ago. I was visiting for a story I was writing about how retired nuns kept in shape by playing bowling and other Nintendo Wii video games donated by students of St. Joseph School in Cockeysville. AmenAmen Matysek CommentaryBlogCommentary Clarity in Rome confessional George P. Matysek Jr.February 23, 20123 min read The Scala Sancta, “Holy Stairs,” are believed to be the passageway Jesus walked on his way to face Pontius Pilate before the crucifixion. St. Helena, mother of Constantine, brought the staircase to the Eternal City from the Holy Land in the middle of the 4th century. AmenAmen McMullen Commentary Don’t knock the ‘Net until you try it Paul McMullenJanuary 26, 20123 min read Romanticizing the past fogs its hardship. For all the appeal of bygone days, does anyone really want to go back to 1932, when our grandparents in Appalachia had to haul wood and water, and stoke the stove to cook and clean? Previous 1 … 9 10 … 10 Rita BuettnerSeptember 4, 20226 Min Read