Anna Caruso

                 Over many years I have heard and read many definitions of faith.  One of my favorites goes like this: “Faith means betting your life on God.”                 To some people faith is a serious flaw in the fabric of religion.  The Philosopher Bertrand Russell once wrote:  “We may define faith as a firm belief in something for which there is no evidence.  When there is evidence, no one speaks of faith.  We do not speak of faith that two and two are four or that the earth is round.  We only speak […]

                 Some people ask why is prayer necessary at all?  God knows what we need; why tell Him?  He wants the best for every one of us; why should we request anything?                  Well, there are some things that God cannot give us.  We must keep in mind that Christian prayer does not mean persuading God to give us what we want.  That is pagan prayer.  Christian prayer means putting ourselves in the position where God can give us what He wants to have.  Giving, in this sense, is not a simple, one-sided […]

Have you ever noticed that prayer can appear to be a simple exercise for some people?  Not so for others.  Many people find it difficult, if not impossible, to pray.  Even those who have come to church for years may pray only rarely.  Often they have no sense of a personal participation or little awareness of the presence of God. Most Catholics would like to learn to pray more effectively.  They believe that God welcomes their prayer.  How does one talk to God?  Will my words be acceptable?  Do I sound like others I have heard pray? Prayer is not […]

                Do you know how magnificent a sacrament the Eucharist is?  It ought to be looked at as a jewel that reflects light from its different facets.  The Eucharist is a covenant between ourselves and God, a remembrance, a thanksgiving, a Real Presence of Jesus among us, a mystery of faith, and a spiritual food for our journey of life.                  In addition to all this, there is another facet of the Eucharist which we need to rediscover.  The Eucharist is a sacrament given to us by Jesus for our healing.                 More […]

Fear is one of the most powerful of all human emotions.  We are born with it.  A little baby must learn to laugh for joy.  But from the moment of birth he or she can weep for fear.  This seems to suggest that the capacity to be afraid is part of our natural God-given instinct.  And if that is the case, our challenge is not to get rid of it, but to learn how to deal with it.  Let us take a look at the animal kingdom.  Not one of them is without fear.  And all of them seem to […]