In this era of podcasts and streaming services, vigilant Catholic parents will want to search for cinematic productions which tell absorbing stories without descending into standard societal sinkholes: needless profanity; permissive drug use, cheerless nudity; sympathetic portrayals of sexual depravity; and smirking dismissals of the existence of God 

I was reading at a Starbucks on the northeast side of Colorado Springs one morning last month when a teenage couple walked into the cafe. The girl was pulling a large suitcase and was wearing a baggy beige Cabela’s sweatshirt with pictures of deer and oversized grey sweatpants. The boy was similarly unkempt, wearing jeans three sizes too big and a dark, zip-up hoodie with pictures of marijuana leaves down the sleeves. His black hat was pulled low across his forehead so that his eyes disappeared behind the bill. The girl ordered and they went onto the patio to smoke as they drank, leaving the suitcase inside.

If you grow onions, now is the time you are enjoying the harvest. Lucky you! Who can resist the wonderful scent of sauteed onions cooking in the kitchen, or the fresh bite of pickled onions on a favorite sandwich. If you haven’t grown them and you have a lot of direct sunlight in your yard you might want to consider this.

How many priests can say their apostolic endeavors brought relief to galley slaves, were involved in international diplomacy — or were abducted by pirates?  Well, my friends, hold onto your hats as we explore the tumultuous life of St. Vincent de Paul. 

Sometimes, we Catholics get our heads stuck on a particular challenge in the church and don’t realize how it may be affecting other faith traditions. So it is with “The Great Dechurching” (Jim Davis and Michael Graham, Zondervan Press, 2023), a thoughtful and accurate depiction of the largest and fastest religious shift in U.S. history.

While as a deacon and a writer I tend to pray about the challenges that the Catholic Church faces (scandals, politics, programs, recovery from COVID, etc.), I completely missed the broader trends affecting virtually all Christian churches in America.