SACRAMENTAL LIVING

“Christians must embody the struggle for holiness in every dimension of their lives and support one another as they pursue the difficult journey to the life of the Kingdom….each of our lives should be seen as a quest or a pilgrimage, which can only be understood in terms of a narrative. Our life-journey is a life-story.” (Fr. Philip LeMasters, Joseph Pearce) “Life in Christ is thus not a journey that happens with angels and demons on the periphery. Rather, it means that He re

Quotes of the Day for March 11, 2026 – Thoughts on lives transformed “Perhaps there is nothing so powerful as a testimony of a life transformed. I don’t believe it’s necessary to suffer so deeply that one’s life is crushed seemingly beyond repair, broken into a hundred pieces, before we fall to our knees and hear God’s longing for our soul. But this we do know; it certainly is an explosive doorway and being witness to God’s mercy. Pain transformed is holy space.” (Jackie Morf

“There are two kinds of fear: one initial, and the other perfect… For example, he who fulfills the will of God out of fear of punishment is still a beginner, for he does not yet do good for the sake of goodness itself, but out of fear of punishment. But he who fulfills the will of God out of love for Him, loving Him simply in order to please Him—this one knows what true good is; he has understood what it means to be with God. Such a person fears God and fulfills His will no l

“Our lives are a gift from God and not of our own making. The Classical Christian spiritual life is not marked by choice and self-determination: it is characterized by self-emptying and the way of the Cross. When a modern Christian confronts the season of Lent – the question often becomes: “What do I want to give up for Lent?” The intention is good, but the question is wrong. Lent quickly becomes yet another life-choice, a consumer’s fast.” (Father Stephen Freeman) “Lent is a

“Someone begins to lose faith when his mind lacks the knowledge of God. A very common excuse, “How can I believe in God if there is so much evil in the world?” shows that the person in question knows very little or even practically nothing about the true faith. Evil appeared in people’s lives with sin, and the cause of injustice, betrayal, murder and other horrors is precisely sin. Let’s recall the First Epistle of the Apostle John the Evangelist: We know that we are of God,

“Do we refuse to forgive? God, too, will refuse to forgive us. As we treat our neighbors, so also does God treat us. The forgiveness or unforgiveness of your sins, then, and hence also your salvation or destruction, depend on you yourself. For without forgiveness of sins there is no salvation. You can see for yourself how serious it is…Our Lord Jesus gives us the teaching regarding forgiveness. He tells us that forgiveness is an integral part of the kingdom of heaven, and the

“We will face trials and tribulations in this life, but we need not be overwhelmed by them. Even Jesus stumbled and fell carrying His Cross…Through the operation of our wills, in cooperation with God's grace, we can surmount many of the trials and tribulations that life in the fallen world brings with it. We must endure them, because they are part of this world that we dwell in, but we need not be overwhelmed or determined by them.” (Fr. Joseph Irvin) “Our task is to become s

“When we are preoccupied, we cannot see things clearly. We misjudge people and situations. We miss out on opportunities to grow closer or to guide people closer to God. Preoccupation means that our heart is not open and our intellect is full of ‘wise’ rubbish.” (Bishop Emilianos) “God’s mercies are “new to us every morning” (OSB Lamentations 3:24). So is His call to discipleship. The Lord said, “Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (OSB Matthew 6:34). As we should not w

“…when you have fear and uncertainty and you want to calculate, define, and control everything, then you’re not living in reality. You become a neurotic and cowardly person. Remember the Parable of the Talents. The man who hid his talent, who hid his charisma, hid from life—he was afraid to live. What do we do? We fear living. We’re afraid to be. We’re afraid of everything. And so, we don’t live, we don’t exist. This fear of not losing anything will not give you a peaceful li

“A conference participant once asked the speaker, "What is the best way for a father to love his children?" The speaker replied, "The best way for a father to love his children is to love their mother." I reflect often upon that superbly accurate statement. And I think the reverse is equally true: the best way a mother can love her children is to love their father. More than anything else in the world, children need a loving family and parents who support each other, even if