At Ash Wednesday Mass, our family was asked to carry up the gifts. Then on Easter Sunday, our family was asked again.

Father Doyle fields questions about the Catholic Church’s position on Medjugorje and when a reconciled married couple can receive Communion.

It was completely rewarding to watch these hundreds of parishioners so devoted to their town parishes as they reenacted Jesus’ crucifixion.

The Pope Emeritus did the Church a service by offering a diagnosis of the abuse crisis that should be taken seriously by anyone serious about healing the wounds inflicted on the Body of Christ by the abuse of Holy Orders for wicked, self-indulgent purposes.

On Good Friday it is hard to see the beauty through the darkness and the grief. On Good Friday it is finished. We have faith. We know that Easter will bring incredible joy. We know that not all is lost—that life wins out over death, that love overcomes all evil.

Here are a few ways we can exercise our faith and have a little Easter fun.

In 1850, lots of good and thoughtful people defended the institution of slavery. Now, only insane people would. In 2019, lots of decent and thoughtful people defend the pro-choice position. One can only hope that these recent laws, and this viscerally disturbing film, will hasten the day when only insane people would.

You can sit back and watch. You can join the screaming crowds. Or you can walk right beside Jesus, moment by moment, day after day, of this powerful, emotional journey.

Faith is faith in any language. We don’t need to understand the words to feel it in our hearts.

I’ve visited the grand cathedral a few times since the late 1990s. It is an impressive place to visit and to pray.