Using a 100-year-old recipe handed down by her maternal great grandmother, Sue Parks continues a family tradition started decades ago that makes Christmases extra special.

Before we sit down to our Thanksgiving feasts let’s mark the day spiritually by attending Mass, praying the Psalms of thanksgiving (Psalms 113-118), or at the very least, pausing with loved ones to give voice to our blessings, despite our difficulties.

This week we are celebrating Discover Catholic Schools Week, which is a time to spread the word about the substantial benefits and meaningful opportunities a Catholic education can deliver for students and their families.

Protecting the body and soul of immigrants and especially their religious faith is still the best means for overcoming daunting hurdles.

Jesus shows us we’re like lamps, meant to be lighted, to be seen, and to help others see the light.

Some Catholics may oppose the death penalty but are just fine with abortion, while others proudly declare that life is sacred but support the warehousing and execution of prisoners.

Governors are using migrants and refugees as tools to try to punish political leaders and jurisdictions for their more supportive positions on migrants and asylum-seekers.

The Rosary offers the moral power of Jesus who showed us a God who was love, and offered a peace that the world cannot give.

And so, here we are in 2022, a fourth “first day” for our 5-year-old, launching into kindergarten with hopes, dreams and expectations of “normalcy” resting on her little outer space backpack laden shoulders.

Jesus is speaking to our human tendency to worry, sometimes ceaselessly, about tomorrow, about yesterday, about the far-off future and the long-dead past. Regrets can nag us from one direction, fear from the other.