Although few of us will ever sing at the Grand Ole Opry, may each of us find a way to use the talents God has given us.

Anyone along the way could have said, “No.” “Not today.” “Why should we bother?” But people said yes,

When we know we have safe spaces where we can return — like our family home, our favorite chair or our regular parish pew — we can strike out in good faith and courage to do whatever challenging work that God calls us to do.

We need to tone down the rhetoric and see each other as people – flawed and fearful, but also hopeful and holy.

God shows us that our imperfections can become fields of second chances – moments when perseverance, mercy and shared burden accomplish what perfection never could.

Since the Second Vatican Council the Catholic Church has been entirely committed to ecumenism. While much of the work to accomplish unity is handled at higher levels, we each need to do our part.

It’s useful to observe that the Church presumes that one seeking an indulgence will already be in a state of grace, meaning free from unconfessed mortal sin.

The weight of a loaded schedule is possible even in retirement, but the weight is made lighter in silence with God, and in time for stillness to stop and sip coffee instead of taking it to go.  

As the nation marks the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution this year, this series will examine the origins of the church and Catholic life in each of the 50 states, following the order in which they ratified the United States Constitution. The journey begins in Delaware, the first state — small in size, but foundational in the nation’s constitutional life.

As the pro-life movement faces tensions with previous political allies, Catholic writer Kathryn Jean Lopez, a senior fellow at the National Review Institute and religion editor at National Review magazine, recently spoke with Charles Camosy for OSV News about the loving, human encounters that can spread what St. John Paul II called “the Gospel of Life,” even in difficult times.