Our Lady's Lamp

“Out of the darkness of my life, so much frustrated, I put before you the one great thing to love on earth: the Blessed Sacrament … There you will find romance, glory, honour, fidelity, and the true way of all your loves upon earth.”  ~J.R.R Tolkien  "Recognize in this bread what hung on the cross, and in this chalice what flowed from His side... whatever was in many and varied ways announced beforehand in the sacrifices of the Old Testament pertains to this one sacrifice which is revealed in the New Testament." ~St. Augustine  “All love craves unity. As the highest peak of love in the human order is the unity of husband and wife in the flesh, so the highest unity in the Divine order is the unity of the soul and Christ in communion.”  ~Ven. Fulton Sheen “The liturgy of the Eucharist is best understood as a journey or procession. It is the journey of the Church into the dimension of the Kingdom. We use the word 'dimension' because it seems the best way to indi...

So, it's storming, and I absolutely adore thunderstorms. There is little I enjoy more than a full blown, house-rattling thunderstorm. Thunder and lightning always make me grin like a little girl. (Playing in the rain that they often accompany is also loads of fun. Just sayin') And Texas can do a good storm! I love being able to hear the thunder rattle things in the house and crack loud enough to wake the dead (though, admittedly, three-o'clock in the morning is a less than ideal time for that), to see the lightning that will light up the room for several seconds even with blinds or curtains closed. I think it's because it's so powerful. Even though I can't touch it, and I can barely characterize it, I can feel it deep inside me - sometimes literally! The sound reverberates, but it doesn't just it my ear drums, it travels and hits me in my marrow. As a kid, when we traveled from South Dakota to Texas or vice-versa, my sister and I would press our faces to...

Yesterday, it seems, was the day for weddings. A couple at my church were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary (pray for them and for all married couples!) and I got to witness two of my dear friends, Ashley and Israel, marry each other. It was beautiful. And yes, I cried - like a baby! One of the things I loved about their wedding was that Ashley and Israel decided not to change the gospel from what the gospel of the day was. Instead of finding something like the Wedding at Cana or a "Love one another as I have loved you" or something like that, they kept the reading for the feast of the day: The Annunciation. (Since the 25th of March fell in Holy Week, the feast was moved to the Saturday after Easter). For their wedding, they chose to have the wedding of God the Spirit and a mortal woman read. This, I think, was absolutely beautiful. Think about it. An Angel comes as an emissary and tells a young girl that the God of the Universe wishes her to bear His Child and b...

Have you ever sat and just thought about the personalities of the apostles who walked with Jesus? It's kind of amusing, actually. Especially when you get to Peter. This is a man of passion! At times, a rather reckless one. And this is a man of extremes. Here's just a couple. Peter has the faith to say, "Tell me to come out onto the water," but as soon as he gets out there, he starts drowning. Peter says, "You are God!" and he argues with Jesus about what His mission looks like. He is terrified on the mountain top at the transfiguration, then protests when they have to leave. He protests Jesus washing His feet, then says, "Oh, well, then do all of me!" He says he will go to his death with Jesus and then denies Him three times in one night. He has to be told to pick up a sword, but he is the only one who swings it. Do you ever wonder if Jesus simply shook his head, chuckled a little, and said, "Oh, Peter..." when Peter did ...

You know what one of the amazing things about God is? Even though He has a Glorious Throne in Heaven, though He has countless souls who are much holier than I, though He has the angels who can actually see Him in all of His Glory, He still wants to come to me. He desires that my heart be a throne for Him. My heart is unworthy. It's little, in has the splinters of sin, and yet, my Jesus, the God who created the world, who breathed life into me wants to come and be enthroned on my little splintered chair.   I was pondering this at mass tonight, and, you know, it was humbling. Not just that He would want to come to little ol' me, but because I really have nothing much to offer Him. My heart is tiny compared to this world, but it is where Jesus wants to dwell. Despite it's littleness, He cherishes the haven only I can offer. He wants to, as St. Therese reminds us, "find another heaven, the heaven of our soul in which He loves to dwell." He doesn't mind that ...