Who is this Man we read about in the Gospel, the Man we sing out to in Alleluia, the Man who brings us to our knees? We must ask the question because the answer changes everything. Do we believe He is a legend? A story that gives men hope? Do we believe He is a cultural ornament that adorns our year with seasons that allow for parties and presents? Is He simply a good man, a guru of proper living? Is He a lunatic who recruited a cult following? Is He a liar? — A man who claims to be God but is nothing more than a deception?

I understood that those who encountered Jesus during His earthly life would praise Him in this way, but why now? This was a stumbling block for me. I would think if God really is all mighty, what could He possibly gain from my praise? Why does He need something from insignificant me? Or, on the flip side, I would think, God needs my praise because He is looking for a pat on the back. Then I would question all that I knew about humility and the heart of a God who had an ego.

Parents, here is where the rubber meets the road. Here is where your past, or maybe even your present, catches up to your role as a parent and your desire for them to walk a different path than you. When the two catch up, they either collide or fall in step with one another. You decide what happens.

Through Christ, we become a part of the story of Israel; we become adopted sons and daughters of God joining this sacred family; and we hear the words we ache for… you belong. It is through Christ Jesus that we understand who we are, where we have been, and where we are going.

Every day, in every space, we have the opportunity to affirm the dignity and worth of the people we encounter, but so many of us choose silence. If we are honest with ourselves, our silence has allowed the systematic destruction of human life in every community throughout the world.

This week, our Pray, Grow, & Serve walks with your children through the first two Stations of the Cross. We pray that you also invite your children into the Garden of Gethsemane and help them understand God’s desire for our reconciliation with His Sacred Heart.

Our goal is that each day will be an exercise in virtue and preparation for the personal and undeserving gift of Christ's Passion and Resurrection.

Stations of the Cross to pray as a family! These meditations are written to invite your child into Christ’s Passion.

Racism is a conversation that has taken center stage in today's culture and has a necessary place in the work of renewing a culture of life. Protecting those who are vulnerable to the hateful and evil actions of others based on the color of their skin is a fundamental and necessary exercise in protecting the dignity of the human person.

The March for Life is over—the joy of being surrounded by individuals who also acknowledge the reality that unborn human beings are, in fact, human beings and should have protection under the law is starting to let down. As everyone heads home to communities nationwide, we encourage you and your kiddos to keep the momentum in reawakening a culture of life!

Knowing that personal experiences help to put "truth" into context, I share again my own story of an unplanned pregnancy and three abortion appointments as a teen below….

I can promise that when you're answering your child's question about who God created them to be…When they are unsure of the body they are in, or why they are worthy of unconditional love. You will want an answer to their inevitable question, "But why?..

Today’s Feast of the Holy Family is a lovely and fitting feast to celebrate after the birth of Jesus. With this week’s Pray, Grow, & Serve we invite you to have a conversation about the great dignity of family life.

In our all-mighty God's humility, He became man so that we may understand that it is precisely in the vulnerability of our smallness that we can grow and flourish as a child of God.

Mary felt humbled to participate in God’s plan to save His people. She wanted only what God wanted. Her heart was full of thanksgiving and praise…

Why is Judith's story recounted on Marian feasts? Because in St Augustine's words, In the Old Testament, the New is concealed, in the New the Old is revealed. Judith could be considered a "type" of Mary…Her virtue, God's will for her life, and Judith's obedience points us to Mary.

Throughout Jesus’s ministry, He established the Church so that after His death and Ascension all people could still encounter Him as the path to heaven. Through His Kingdom, we are saved!

The psalms emanate a gentle scent of home and a holy nostalgia for the intimate moments of family life. When I curl up with these prayers and a hot cup of coffee, I am overwhelmed by the reality that these verses are the same that filled the air within the Holy Family's home.

As Catholics, we are called to imitate the life of Christ by living His commands to love God and love our neighbor, honoring the dignity of every person we encounter with great humility.

A garden is created by a gardener for a purpose—seeds are planted to someday flourish. For this garden, the seeds are gifts, talents, and virtue and the Gardener, is our Lord.