An Advent of Hope in a Season of Loneliness

These last months of the year can be some of the hardest and the craziest. Final exams, gearing up for holiday celebrations, deadlines at work, and the busyness of daily life seem to be crescendoing. They become a cacophony of noise right before Christmas and the new year. We are in the middle of the…

10 JPII Quotes To Get You Fired Up Today or Any Day:⠀

1. “Do not be afraid. Do not be satisfied with mediocrity. Put out into the deep and let out your nets for a catch.”⠀ 2. “It is necessary that the heroic becomes daily and that the daily becomes heroic.”⠀ 3. “Genuine love…is demanding. But its beauty lies precisely in the demands that it makes.”⠀ 4.…

Finding a Good Community

“Saints are like grapes, they come in bunches.” This is a quote that has stuck with me since the first time I heard it from a priest my freshman year of college. I was fresh out of high school and ready to take on the world, having moved three hours away from home to attend…

Do You Brush Your Teeth?: How Chastity and Brushing Your Teeth Are More Similar Than You Think.

When you were a kid did you ever totally forget to brush your teeth? Whether it was because you were staying up late  into the wee hours of the night making prank calls, snacking on pizza and oreos, or a late night post soccer tournament and you were dead exhausted? Because I know I totally…

Bullying, Repression, and Healing

I saw his face pop up from the seat in front of me. “Well, what do we have today?” I remained silent. The bus, far from being brand new, jumped and rattled violently with every little bump in the road it passed over. I clinched onto my lunch box tighter and stared out the window,…

Stepping up the the Plate to Be a Better Brother

I write this coming back home for the first time after several months of mission.  The window on my plane flight home presents to me a cloudy sky lit ablaze by the waning sunset. It’s dramatic and theatrical, much like my writing tone.  Mission life has given me a unique opportunity to reflect upon and…

Navigating Attractions

If love is our end as human persons, then our lives should revolve around this question: How can I best love the people I encounter? Simple question, not so simple execution when attraction enters the scene and seemingly clouds all rational thought processes. When attraction comes, sometimes confusion follows. If we are not in a…

Who Are You in the Silence?

Blaise Pascal once said, “All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.”  This world is so full of noise and distractions, making it difficult to be alone with our thoughts. Personally, I love me some music. I find myself constantly craving to fill the room with music. Often…