Just the name “Easter” brings thoughts of new life, springtime, of freshness, of the Resurrection. This is not only a day — not only a few weeks on the church calendar — but, for Christians, a way of life.

This weekend, we said goodbye to one of our little zebra finches, Hermione.

From baking sweet breads to blessing baskets, Holy Week is full of long-standing traditions that transcend cultures and continents. The following list includes a quick overview of family favorites.

In retelling the fairy tales of bygone eras, filmmakers would do well to allow Snow White’s prince to come, Belle’s Beast to transform and Cinderella’s slipper to fit.

We know that God is totally loving and merciful, and is always ready to forgive. And this is why Jesus left the church with the sacrament of penance, to provide a means for reconciliation after post-baptismal sins.

God is good and full of mercy, with plans for us — plans of fullness, not of harm. Increasingly I feel called to serve that reality, to quiet down and let the frenzied world turn its terrible ways while in the grips of a chaos magic that has been increasing in its scope for many decades.

A baby giraffe. A new little—well, not so little—life in the world. It was just the spark of joy this gray April day needed.

As Christians, we boldly speak the name of our Savior, and in doing so we both acknowledge him as God and dare to utter the divine name, for the word Jesus means “I AM saves.”

OSV News’ Charlie Camosy recently spoke with Melissa Moschella, professor of the practice in philosophy at the University of Notre Dame’s McGrath Institute for Church Life and author of “Ethics, Politics, and Natural Law: Principles for Human Flourishing,” about the Catholic tradition surrounding this concept and its special importance and relevance in society today.

As the rain falls softly, we know the lesson of Lent: that as we listen to God’s voice in our lives, we also stand on sacred ground.