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World at Prayer blog
Reflections of Family and Faith
"The family that prays together stays together." - Venerable Patrick Peyton
Growing up, I had a neighbor who was a carpenter. Nothing fancy—small town jobs: fixing sagging doors, building dining tables, mending leaking roofs patched more times than you could count. His hands were rough like tree bark, his knees creaked like old floorboards. No one gave him awards. No crowds gathered to watch him work. But there was a quiet pride about him—the kind that comes not from money, the kind that comes not from fame, but from knowing you built something that mattered, something that would last. When I think of Saint Joseph, I think of that neighbor. And I realize something: holiness often wears work boots, not halos.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
Imagine walking into your kitchen early in the morning. You're still sleepy. The coffee hasn’t kicked in yet. And then, out of nowhere, your five-year-old grandson asks, “Grandma where do people go when they die?” You are taken aback, what to answer. That jolt — that shift from the ordinary to the eternal — is what this Gospel feels like Doing What is Rite In Jewish tradition, funeral rites were sacred and precise. The body of the deceased was wrapped in cloth, anointed with spices and quickly buried- usually before sunset. But the mourning for the dead person was not rushed. For three days, it was believed that the soul would travel close to the body. During this period when the tranquility of the earth allowed space for mourning and prayer, it was customary for family and close friends to visit the tomb, especially early in the morning.
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Brief and contemporary inspiration focused on hope and family prayer will be delivered to your inbox! Articles include live video, written word, and links to resources that will lead you and your family deeper into faith.
Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
On this Monday in the Octave of Easter, with the fragrant incense and Easter lilies fresh in our minds, we hear Matthew’s account of Mary Magdalene and the other Mary immediately after they have discovered the empty tomb. It’s no surprise that they were both fearful and overjoyed as they ran to announce the good news to the disciples. It’s in this state and urgency to get to the disciples that “…Jesus met them on the way and greeted them.” They did what was right and natural to them, as “…they approached, embraced His feet and did Him homage.” For 21st-century people, it goes against social convention to imagine the two Marys embracing someone’s feet and doing homage because in some places and cultures, we have drifted from understanding that worshiping and expressing devotion to Jesus is proper to Him.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
As we journey through this Holy Week, we’re invited in a special way to reflect on the profound love and sacrifice that define our faith. It’s a privileged and sacred time to turn our hearts towards the events that changed the course of history through the suffering, death, and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. In the first reading from Isaiah, we hear the voice of God calling his servant: "The Lord called me before I was born, while I was in my mother’s womb he named me...I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
Have you ever walked into a kitchen hungry, and just after someone’s baked fresh bread or simmered a pot of soup on a cold day? The aroma hits you before a word is spoken. You feel warmth, welcome, love. In our homes, smells, scent and aroma carry meaning. They speak when words fail. In his article, The Fragrance of the Ointment, J.R. Miller says that the fragrance of Mary of Bethany's ointment that filled the house is a beautiful symbol of Mary's life. "She was not an active follower of Christ, except in her home and quiet daily life. She did not leave all and go with Him, as some other women and men did. Her name is not connected, even in tradition, with anything startling or great. Our first glimpse of her is her sitting at the Master's feet as a learner. Into her heart, she received the words of the Master, which were life to her. Like a handful of spices, they fell into her heart and transformed her life into radiant beauty."
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Holy lives of inspiration | Why pray?
Do you believe in miracles? Listen to the compelling homily from Father Jomon Kalladanthiyil, C.S.C., as he shares powerful insights into the lives of Saint Andre Bessette and Venerable Patrick Peyton. Prayer is essential to a life of faith, as was also illustrated in the life of our Father in faith, Abraham.
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