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Reflections of Family and Faith
"The family that prays together stays together." - Venerable Patrick Peyton
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A couple of years back, I lived with a brother priest who, for years, had struggled with alcohol addiction. He was in an out-of-rehab, and when he realized he no longer had control over the addiction, he joined the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) movement. Alcohol addiction or any other addiction for that matter is one of the diseases that does not recognize your title, academic background, vocation in life, economic status, or your gender. Anyone can get it, and it can terribly affect one’s career, vocation in life, spiritual life, relationships, and even one’s physical health. At the time I met this brother priest, he had been sober or “dry” for so many years. He attributed his sobriety to being active in AA. Every day, he attended one or two AA meetings, did his daily reflections, and sponsored and accompanied many other candidates on the road to recovery. The Danger of a "House Swept Clean" An addiction is like a “demonic possession.” It can take over your life, leaving you with no control over your own life. If by the grace of God, you regain your freedom from the addiction or “the demon,” you have to find something different to fill the “empty house” or the empty heart that has been vacated by “the demon.” The Lord is speaking to us today about the fragility or the danger of the “swept and clean” yet empty house.
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We are in the world of ‘fast things, fast foods, fast internet, and fast transport system!’ We are bothered by anything that is slow. Everything needs to be very fast. If it is not fast, it hurts us and mostly, we will give up on that cashier, hotel, or transport system.
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From the sayings of the desert Father; A brother questioned Abba Arsenius to hear a word from him and the old man said to him, "Strive with all your might to bring your interior activity into accord with God, and you will overcome exterior passions.” The disciples ask Jesus to teach them how to pray, and the prayer he gives to them, “The Lord’s prayer”, basically invites them to totally surrender to God, to bring all their focus on consistently carrying out his will.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
There’s an old story about a group of single men in a Bible study. After listening the gospel of the day, they got into a debate over which sister, Mary or Martha, would make the better wife. One insisted on Martha: “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach, and she sure knew how to cook!” Another voted for Mary: “She was thoughtful, quiet and loving, I’d be happy with a woman like that.” Finally, another guy ended the debate: “I’d like Martha before dinner and Mary and her quiet after dinner.”
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
We all draw lines. Sometimes with a pen. Sometimes with our eyes. Sometimes just in our heads, where we don’t say it out loud, but we know, who belongs and who doesn’t. Who’s one of “us,” and who’s one of “them.” Who’s good and who’s just off. Who deserves help, and who brought it on themselves. Let’s talk about one of the most universal lines we all draw, the kind that shows up not in theology books, but in traffic. If I’m driving slowly, I’m responsible. I’m aware. Maybe even holy. But if someone else is driving slowly? They are an idiot, holding everyone back. Probably texting. Or sightseeing on the highway.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
On September 7, 2025, Pope Leo, by God’s grace, raised Carlo Acutis, an Italian teenager, to the altar as a saint. This canonization was an extraordinary family affair. For the first time ever, twin brother and sister and both parents celebrated the sainthood of their son and brother. Carlo died as an only child in 2006 at age fifteen. His mother and father yearned for other children without success and began the long process of adoption. Antonia, his mother, said Carlo appeared to her in a dream to tell her that she would be a mother again soon. Not long after, she discovered she was pregnant with twins. The boy, Michele, proclaimed the first reading at Mass and Francesca presented relics of Saint Carlo at the offertory.
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