Our Lady's Lamp

The name Mary gets knocked so often because it's so common, but the name brings me joy on many levels. It's not just because I have several dear friends named Mary. It's also because two of my favorite people of all time are named Mary: Mary Magdalene and Mary, Mother of Jesus. These two come to the forefront especially at Easter, and as we leave Easter Sunday and enter the Easter Season (Oh, yeah. Easter's not just a day, y'all! We celebrate Easter until Jesus returns to Heaven and sends His Spirit! So, we get to celebrate for another 50 days!). How do we carry this Easter Joy, this Easter Fire into a world of war, famine, disease, division, and fear? By following the examples of these two beautiful Marys. I've written about Mary Magdalene before , She's, second to the Blessed Mother, one of the most misunderstood saints of all time, I think. And at Easter Time, her heart shines through. Magdalene was one of the only people to stand beside the cross

"Be glad, let earth be glad, as glory floods her, ablaze with light from her Eternal King, let all corners of the earth be glad, knowing an end to gloom and darkness." Fire so often gets the bad rep. It's always the weapon of choice for the bad guys, it's known as uncontrollable, and is often equated with anger and rage. But fire is also light, warmth, and beauty. My favorite Mass of the entire year is the Easter Vigil. It usually starts around sunset, with the church in total darkness, with a fire burning outside. From this fire, a single candle, the Paschal Candle, is lit and processed into the dark church, with the minister proclaiming "Christ our Light." As he continues in, the rest of the church follows, each lighting their candles from this single, Paschal, candle, then passing it along to the next person. At the beginning, people are bumping into things, trying to get to their pews, but as the light spreads, soon even those with unlit c

"Sooner or later, we all go through a crucible... Most believe there are two types of people who go into a crucible: The ones who become stronger from the experience and survive it, and the ones who die. But there's a third type. The ones who learn to love the fire and choose to stay in their crucible because it's easier to embrace the pain when it's all you know anymore." ~Sebastian Blood, Arrow I remember when I heard the bad guy in Arrow's Season 2, Sebastian Blood, say that. I was struck quiet for a moment. I think I actually backed it up and played it again. The Crucible is a common image, used by many saints, philosophers, and TV shows. It's that hard time that either crushes the carbon into powder or turns it into the diamond. Every superhero has one of those defining moments, often the death of a loved one: Uncle Ben, Mr. Murdock, the Waynes, St. Rita's husband and twin sons, John Paul II and World War II. For others, it's experiences: O