It started as an ordinary enough day. I was just starting the workday at my office when my phone rang. My new nephew had been born!

It has been a clear and consistent belief of the church, “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven”

When I put dinner on the table, I told my children that I bought the placemats because “bee is for Buettner.”

When fasting, we are more likely to be attentive; be intelligent; be reasonable; be responsible.

This week, as we find ourselves marking the second anniversary of the day schools—and the world—shut down, I find my mind wandering back to March 2020. Our world turned upside-down.

The scenes of brave Ukrainians standing in front of tanks, making Molotov cocktails, picking up arms to fight an overwhelming aggressor, taps into some powerful American myths about righteous struggles and David vs. Goliath contests.

I love having a prayer basket for Lent. I don’t know why pulling an intention out of a basket feels so ceremonial and important, but it does.

Two years ago, on Ash Wednesday, we went to Mass as a family. It was a beautiful service on what was otherwise a relatively ordinary winter day.

Would it be a mortal sin if I left the church? I believe in Jesus as my savior, and I look forward to receiving the Eucharist. Am I a hypocrite in staying?

~1~ Sometimes when I run out of ideas for dinner, we make fondue. It requires a little prep—cutting up vegetables and meats and preparing the broth, but then John takes over the pot and handles the cooking. It always feels fancy and special, but there are never leftovers. I wonder whether people will expect dinner […]