It’s no secret that in recent years many Catholics have absented themselves from the Eucharist and there are many reasons for this. But none of these reasons outweighs the depth, the beauty and the reality of Christ’s Presence and his power to change our lives by his transformative love.

Sustainable parishes are being formed that will have what it takes to offer a full range of pastoral services and to evangelize the neighborhoods they are in, while continuing ministries of service.

There’s no better time to begin or resume praying the rosary than this beautiful month of May dedicated to our Blessed Lady.

Just as an old car is most thoroughly restored when its body is removed from its frame, something like that happens when we die: our body and soul are separated until the resurrection of the dead.

To come home to ourselves, we need silence. We need to pray in secret. We need to be open, welcoming to God who wants to dwell in us. We need to trust that he knows us best, loves us most and gives us what we need.

I’d like to offer another view of Lent: it is a time to ensure that our spiritual life is in top-notch coordination.

The family of the Church responded to them by striving to carry out the mission that Jesus entrusted to us.

Pope Francis wrote about encountering Christ and the joy of evangelizing, a church that goes forth, not hiding or shrinking from challenges, but embracing them in openness and love to all.

When we are worried about something specific, we do well to take it to prayer, to ask the Lord to help us discern the path forward, to show us with whom we should be working, and then we roll up our sleeves and address it.

World Youth Day was more than an antidote to the isolation and anger that are so much a part of today’s culture. It was an event, a moment in history, when Christ’s presence in the power of the Holy Spirit was experienced, an experience that happened precisely by coming together, by journeying together in trust and friendship.