I had the opportunity to participate in the “March for Life” in Rome on Mother’s Day in 2016. This is an annual event where all with the same belief in the dignity of human life gather to join in prayers and march in faith to offer hope to a world of despair. During the event, I had the honor of meeting Emanuela Molla, the daughter of St Gianna Molla, the heroic mother who followed the example of Christ and chose to give up on cancer treatment during pregnancy, hence, her own life, in order to save the life of her unborn child, Emanuela. I shared this encounter and the heroic story of St Gianna online, which raised many questions on whether St Gianna’s suffering and sacrifice was really necessary and worthwhile.
Why are moral absolutes important for Catholic morality? Why do some people reject the idea of moral absolutes simply on the basis of a disordered view of suffering? Continue reading
I kind of hate Instagram. I like it in theory- a place where we can share images that communicate and share our lives, our hopes, our passions. But I hate the twisted and vicious cross I’ve seen it become in my 15-year-old daughter’s life.
Frankenstein has been the subject of many movies, some campy classics and some rather awful.
Being grateful is more of a gift than a duty. Something in us changes when we are grateful. We glimpse our daily reality in a different way, like scuba diving below the surface of the ocean and discovering a world of beauty that exists just out of sight. When we are grateful, we see below the surface of our busy lives and discover treasures that were hidden just out of sight. Here are five of them.
Genesis Chapter 12 to 22 is about the “Cycle of Abraham”, which described how Abraham was the chosen one by God, in which He would establish the covenant with (CCC 72), and the strong faith demonstrated by Abraham throughout the chapters. “By faith, Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place which he was to receive as an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was to go. By faith, he lived as a stranger and pilgrim in the promised land. By faith, Sarah was given to conceive the son of the promise. And by faith, Abraham offered his only son in sacrifice” (CCC 145). 
Winning the War against Anger
Genesis Chapter 1 to 11 was like a prologue to God’s salvation of man. It showed a repetitive pattern of man sinning against God, hence, God’s punishment, and led to God’s salvation for man. This ultimately brought out the key message of God’s infinite love and mercy for man and His preparation for the salvation of man, since the beginning. ‘From the beginning until “the fullness of time,” Word and Spirit remain hidden, but it is at work. God’s Spirit prepares for the time of the Messiah’ (CCC 702).
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. (Jn 14:1)” Our Lord doesn’t leave a margin here. Worries are a red flag; something is wrong. We are never supposed to worry. He doesn’t say “do not let your hearts be troubled too much.” No. It is never his will that we be weighed down.
My response to restlessness is to fix things, or to do something that makes me feel like I’m fixing things. I remember being overwhelmed as the 23-year-old mother of a 6-week-old child and deciding that I HAD to rearrange the furniture in the living room at 3:00 in the morning. Dragging couches and chairs, and moving everything somewhere else gave me a satisfying sense of control in the whirlwind of motherhood that had taken over my life. It changed nothing, but it made me feel better.