It was a quiet Sunday afternoon, the kind where the world seems to slow down, and one can hear the whispers of their own heart. I found myself in the small, sunlit chapel of our parish, gazing at the serene statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary. There was something about […]

So often in life we come to various ‘crossroad’ situations that can raise our ‘blood pressure’ if not our anxiety and fears, and our response can too quickly become – something like: “How can God let this happen to me?” “What did I do to deserve this?” “Where is God in all of this?”For sure, […]

A promise is an act of will in which one commits to give something to or do something for someone. We make promises constantly, knowing that we do not intend or want to keep them. For example, when we say, “I promise I’ll be there in five minutes” – while […]

On Saturday May 24th, Cardinal Sean O’Malley ordained eleven men to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Boston. One of them is a dear friend of mine, as well as a brother in the seminary:  Giovanni Argote. When Giovanni entered the seminary, I was already at the end of my […]

I have never given a commencement address. It seems to me to be different than writing a homily. Sound bites are more important, but of course the focus is on the graduating class and their aspirations for a happy and successful future. As Catholic Christians we know that our purpose […]

At that time the disciples  approached Jesus and said, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a child over, placed it in their midst, and said, “Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:1‑3)I […]

I was in my early thirties when I started feeling extremely intense anxiety about seemingly nothing even though my life was going well at the time. I had everything I needed to be happy – a fulfilling relationship, a great job, a supportive family, caring friends, and perfect health. Yet, […]

As I write this blog, I am 2 weeks away from celebrating what will be one of the most important days of my daughter’s life. She will be receiving the Sacrament of Holy Communion, the greatest expression of God’s love for humanity! After a two-year preparation, the excitement is sensed […]

I was diagnosed with leukemia when I was 18 years old. Back then people didn’t survive cancer, at least I had never heard of anyone who had. The whole family was in a tailspin, but not my mom; she was too busy scraping us all up off the floor and […]

Today, out of nowhere, I realized that… I am successful!!! It took me a long time to achieve my success, and it is necessary to tell you the story of what happened, so that you can replicate it. It all started one day during my adolescence:  someone had given me […]