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           In his letter to the Corinthians, the apostle St. Paul talked about a personal problem, which he describes as a “thorn in the flesh.”  No one knows exactly what that was.  It is generally assumed that St. Paul was suffering from some sort of physical malady.  But the only thing we know for sure is that St. Paul had some sort of personal limitation, which he prayed to be rid of, but to no avail; and finally, he had to settle down and learn to live with it.          I think that […]

        Commonly, we think of our Christian faith as a personal relationship   between the individual and God.  Certainly, it is that, but it is not exclusively that.  We also need to remember that our faith is also a family affair.         We all come from homes; we live in homes; and some look forward to establishing their own homes.  This means that the success and happiness of our individual lives are deeply dependent upon the fate and fortunes of the family.        For that matter, so is the future of our nation.  What happens in […]

          I read an old story about a New Englander and his son who were fishing in the Atlantic, off the coast of Maine.  They had been at it all day, and the sun was sinking low in the west.  A storm was moving in, and the waves were building higher.  The boy, partly afraid of the storm and partly tired and  hungry, was ready to go home.  He said to his dad: “Papa, right now, mother is probably praying for our safe return.”  The father, understood and said with a smile: “You’re right; I’ll hold […]

       The newspapers a few years ago carried a tragic story of a young high school student in Texas who decided to play a game of Russian Roulette.  He took a 38 caliber revolver out of the glove compartment of a friend’s car, emptied all of the bullets out of the chamber, put only one back in, and gave it a spin.  Then he put the gun up to his temple, pulled the trigger, and it fired.  He died in a hospital about two hours later.  And I am sure your reaction to that is  essentially the same […]

            It seems that one of the most difficult things for any of us to do is to hold ourselves accountable for our own attitudes and actions. That experience can be so painful that people will do almost anything to avoid it. The standard procedure is to make an excuse that will place the responsibility on someone or something outside of us. For example, a child coming home from school with a failing grade might explain his or her failure by saying; “The teacher doesn’t like me.” An athletic team, after losing an important game, […]