Question: What’s the difference between Confirmation and professional basketball and hockey? Answer: The Confirmation season doesn’t last forever! more

Jesus left no doubt in the minds of his Apostles, nor should there be any doubt in the minds of later believers, that Jesus’ ministry would be brought to a joyous completion by the Holy Spirit. more

My father’s sister lived most of her married life in Lyndhurst, Ohio. In the early 1950s, my father drove my mother and me via a rather roundabout route to visit my aunt at her home in this Cleveland suburb. more

This time of the year sees thousands of young people in Rhode Island participating in a very important, time-honored ritual – marching across stages and platforms, in the presence of family and friends, to pick-up diplomas and degrees, thus graduating from high school or college. more

At time of this writing, the prospect of so-called marriage between same-sex couples is being hotly debated in the state’s legislature, in the press, and on the Internet. more

A couple of weeks ago I had the honor of participating in the Annual Interfaith Holocaust Memorial Observance at Temple Shalom in Middleton, Rhode Island. I had been invited to the service by Rabbi Marc Jagolinzer of Temple Shalom. more

It was not the front page or the editorial page or the letters to the editor in the Providence Journal a couple of weeks ago that caught my attention, but rather the real estate section. more

Shepherds occupy a prominent place throughout sacred Scriptures. In both the Old and the New Testaments, shepherds hold a special place in salvation history. more

That’s a headline we haven’t seen yet, dear readers, but probably will in the next couple of years. And, make no mistake about it – that’s exactly what the headline will say as the story makes its way around the state and across the nation. more

Readers should go to their computers and google “The Bad Vicar” to watch a very amusing video about the contrast between religion and spirituality. more

My appreciation of poetry inclines more toward Emily Dickinson or perhaps even Mother Goose rather than toward the 19th century English Jesuit, Gerard Manley Hopkins. more

Easter is upon us, a joyful, hopeful and blessed day for all the followers of Christ. more

To this day the Passover meal among Jews remains a family festival. The Pasch, unlike the other great feasts of Judaism — Pentecost, the Day of Atonement — Passover was a day to remain at home. more

Jesus wasn’t always nice. I had to remember that in responding to some letters I received from readers who were disappointed by my recent article, My Interview with President Obama. Some folks didn’t like the rhetorical device I employed, namely the fictional interview I composed. Others felt that I was too hard on the President when I criticized him for using tax dollars to fund abortion overseas. They said that I was not being charitable as Jesus would have been. more

There is not a believer anywhere who has not demanded from the depth of his soul, “Sir, we would see Jesus.” The words of the eager Greeks in today’s Gospel echo the sentiments of everyone who seeks a personal commitment to Jesus Christ. more

Guess the author of the following quote: “We see faith, the root of all the Christian virtues, lessening in many souls; we see charity growing cold; the young generation daily growing in depravity of morals and views; the Church of Jesus Christ attacked on every side by open force or by craft; a relentless war waged against the sovereign pontiff; and the very foundations of religion undermined with a boldness which waxes daily in intensity. more

In doing some research for another project I’m working on, I came across an internet article that explained a belief and practice that’s been around for awhile but is, apparently, growing in popularity. The belief is that St. Joseph can help you sell real estate; the practice is to bury a statue of St. Joseph on the property you want to sell. more

The Transfiguration of Jesus Christ on Mount Tabor in the company of his three select disciples reinforces the victory of the Savior over Satan that was proclaimed in last week’s Gospel for the First Sunday of Lent. more

Last week New York Yankees superstar Alex Rodriguez finally had his day of reckoning. Facing 200 reporters in Florida, A-Rod admitted to taking a “performance-enhancing drug” from 2001 to 2003. In a deliciously ironic declaration, he said “I’m here to take my medicine” and then went on to explain, in a thirty-minute interview, some of the details of his steroid use. more

Nicholas II, the murdered Tsar of Russia, died savagely 91 years ago with his wife, son, four daughters and a few family attendants. more