Mary sees us

“Just try to imitate the Blessed Virgin,” my old pastor would always counsel me. This was when I was a teenager struggling with all the usual teenager sins. The only thing I could see that Mary and I had in common was the color blue: her mantle, my hair. So his advice, while technically excellent, was entirely unhelpful. When I became a mother, I thought the imitation would come more naturally. But the opposite happened:... Read More

Do you have a minute?

Click here – pause - pray – and then send this post to someone you know who needs to take a minute too. Here’s a tip, 1) click on the link, 2) take your hand off of the mouse (no, really, take it off), 3) okay, now, join that hand to your other hand…  you know the rest. About Dan BurkeDan is the founder of Roman Catholic Spiritual Direction and author of the award winning book, Navigating... Read More

Mary, Mother of the Son – Book Recommendation

One of the greatest barriers to my conversion to Catholicism was Marian tradition. To be clear, it wasn’t Mary herself, it was common practice and teaching about Mary that was difficult for me to stomach. As recently as this summer I still had unresolved internal tensions regarding these traditions and my own daily commitment to properly honor her. I was still stuck between my protestant past and my Catholic present... Read More

I am a convert and am struggling with the idea of praying to Mary, can you help? Part III of IV

Q: Dear Father John, I am a convert to the Catholic faith, and I still have difficulties with Mary.  Don’t get me wrong – I believe all the dogma and doctrine fully, but when it comes to praying to Mary, I don’t seem to get it.  What role is she supposed to have in my pursuit of holiness and spiritual growth? A: We have already looked briefly at the source of Mary’s greatness and the power of her presence.  Now... Read More

I am a convert and am struggling with the idea of praying to Mary, can you help? – Part IV of IV

Q: Father John, I am a convert to the Catholic faith, and I still have difficulties with Mary.  Don’t get me wrong – I believe all the dogma and doctrine fully, but when it comes to praying to Mary, I don’t seem to get it.  What role is she supposed to have in my pursuit of holiness and spiritual growth? A: She has the role of helping you cling more closely to her Son, Jesus Christ – that’s what first examined,... Read More

I am a convert and am struggling with the idea of praying to Mary, can you help? – Part II of IV

Q: Dear Father John, I am a convert to the Catholic faith, and I still have difficulties with Mary. Don’t get me wrong – I believe all the dogma and doctrine fully, but when it comes to praying to Mary, I don’t seem to get it. What role is she supposed to have in my pursuit of holiness and spiritual growth? A: God in his wisdom has given us a mother in the order of grace, Mary. He didn’t have to do it that way, but... Read More

The problem with “Praying to Saints.”

At one time in my life I viewed Christians as shallow people blindly following silly rules. As I was to discover, these perceptions were not only wrong, they were worlds away from reality. The root cause of my misconception was my confident ignorance. Until I allowed Christians to speak to me and define their faith in their words, I was unable to get anywhere near the truth. As a Protestant, I had the same problem when examining... Read More

I am a convert and am struggling with the idea of praying to Mary, can you help? – Part I

Q: Dear Father John, I am a convert to the Catholic faith, and I still have difficulties with Mary. Don’t get me wrong – I believe all the dogma and doctrine fully, but when it comes to praying to Mary, I don’t seem to get it. What role is she supposed to have in my pursuit of holiness and spiritual growth? A: This is a great question for the month of August, with the Solemnity of Mary’s Assumption right around the... Read More

Our Lady of Good Remedy Novena

History 800 years ago Christians were being captured and sold into slavery by the thousands, and nobody knew what to do about it. Then, in the year 1198, a man had an idea. St. John of Matha founded the Trinitarians to go to the slave markets, buy the Christian slaves and set them free. To carry out this plan, the Trinitarians needed large amounts of money. So, they placed their fund-raising efforts under the patronage of... Read More