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Time Magazine a few years ago carried an article of the latter years of billionaire Howard Hughes. If the story is to be believed, it is one of the most tragic ever told. It tells of a story of 15 years of seclusion, loneliness, boredom, and drug addiction. For most of that time his only entertainment was watching old movies on his private screen. His primary food was chicken soup, and his only associates were people who were paid to be with him. He neglected his appearance until his hair and beard reached to his waist, and his fingernails were […]

Wars and earthquakes are, for the most part, beyond our scope. The trembling of the earth and the shaking of governments are things that most of us cannot control. The same is true of many events. None of us can exercise complete control over his or her own life. Some things come our way without asking our consent or waiting for our permission. And it’s silly for us to worry about that kind of thing. Why should we wring our hands and wrinkle our brow over things that we cannot help? The Serenity Prayer makes a lot of sense at […]

I am told that some young people shy away from the Church and following Jesus for fear that life will lose its luster. I’m not sure where that notion comes from. But I do know that it does not derive from the New Testament, at least not from a true understanding of the New Testament. There is enough tragedy in its pages to make it the saddest book in all the world. Yet instead there is a prevailing mood of joy, confidence, and expectation. Jesus was certainly no frowning savior. His first followers were for the most part young people. […]

What exactly was or is demon possession? How did it happen? Was it voluntary or involuntary? Did it occur through guilt or ignorance or accident? Are there parallel instances today? All of these are questions the total answer to which I do not know. Yet despite the mysteries, there is one area in which the New Testament communicates clearly and effectively. It speaks to us about the tragedy of divided living. We all have “horns” and “halos”, strengths and weaknesses. We are both good and bad. All people of insight have felt this same conflict within themselves. St. Paul wrote, […]

For all of us life can be and should be, an exciting experience. It does not have to be dull, drab, or boring. When I say this I am of course, not speaking in absolutes. None of us would expect, or even want continuous excitement. Nevertheless, all of us, saint or sinner alike, do live for those times and places when life is exciting. And we more or less endure that which lies in between. In this we are all the same. The difference between us is found in the ways and means by which we seek our excitement. In […]