In Simplicitate Cordis

From the beginning of the day, we took it as a quiet sign from God that we should spend the Feast of St. Joseph visiting churches dedicated to him.  After morning prayer at the Irish College and a quick coffee downtown, we made our way to San Giuseppe al Trionfale . The church isn't really that old; it was built in the early 20th century and entrusted to the Oblates of St. Joseph. It was intended as a center of devotion to St. Joseph, especially for working families and ordinary faithful. There is something appropriate about that: Joseph, after all, is the quiet patron of the hidden life, of labor, of fidelity without recognition. Once there, we were delighted to learn that the relics that normally live in a different church we had planned to visit (St Anastasia) had been transferred to this church for the feast day! The veil of Our Lady and the cloak of St. Joseph . For this solemnity, these sacramentals were here and available for veneration. I touched my scapular, consecratio...

Papal Audience this morning! HERE is what he said. We arrived early, the air still cold. Sitting in St. Peter’s Square, you begin to notice what Bernini intended. The colonnades stretch outward, forming what he described as the maternal arms of the Church--gathering, embracing, holding everyone together. That’s exactly what it felt like. People from every nation, every language, and yet one faith. We got to know a lot of people from all over the place in the US and beyond. So many mutual connections.  When the Pope passed by, he looked directly at me. For a moment, it felt very personal. I simply said, “We love you Pope Leo.” Pope Leo also blessed Antonio's niece, who is 3 years old.  Afterward, lunch at the Irish College, then back out. St. John Lateran, the cathedral of the Bishop of Rome, the mother church of the world. Not St. Peter’s. This one. There is something grounding in remembering that. Then the Holy Stairs. The Holy Stairs, or Scala Sancta, are 28 marbl...

Up early for Assisi. Been looking very much forward to this, largely because this year marks the 800th jubilee of St. Francis. His witness has not faded with time. If anything, it has grown sharper. His life still calls out simplicity, poverty, total surrender to Christ. We barely made the train. First stop: the Basilica of St. Clare. There, before us, the San Damiano Crucifix, the very cross from which Francis heard the words, “Rebuild my Church.”  Not an idea. Not a feeling. A command. Amazing to look at the original thing. I've seen versions of the Cross hundreds of time, at St. Francis Hospital, at Marian Univeristy, all over. Now I've seen the real thing. Nearby, the remains of St. Clare. As I approached, a woman nearby began shouting in distress. It was a jarring moment. Evidently an unhappy spirit was in her. What is holy casts out that which is not holy.  Along the walls were Clare’s words: “Gaze upon Him, consider Him, contemplate Him, as you desire to imitate Him...

 Today began a short pilgrimage to Rome. We came to visit our seminarian, Antonio. I first met him when he was in sixth grade in Shelbyville. Now he’s in his third year of seminary, studying abroad at the Irish College. To see a vocation unfold over time like that, it’s one of the quiet privileges of being a priest.  We arrived around 9am, me with 20 minutes of sleep. I got settled at the Irish College, where preparations were already underway for the Feast of St. Patrick. A joy to be here of all places during these days! And among priests and seminarians, in a house that has formed so many for the service of the Church. We made our way to the Vatican Museums. So much beauty, but a few moments stood out. Caravaggio’s Entombment-- the sheer weight of Christ’s body, the raw humanity of it, draws you into the reality of the Passion. And Raphael’s School of Athens --all those great minds searching for truth. Every human heart is searching, but in Christ the search ends in encou...