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The Blended Rosary 5th Mystery: Seek and Ye Shall Find
This is the final part in our five-part series on the Blended Rosary. You can read part one here, part two here, part three here, and part four here. The Fifth Mystery The Finding of Jesus in the Temple; The Institution of the Eucharist; The Crucifixion; The Crowning of Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth The Fifth Joyful Mystery at first seems more distressing than joyful—Jesus is missing. Mary and Joseph have gone on pilgrimage to Jerusalem, “as was their custom,” signaling their obedience to the Mosaic covenant. And when the caravan departs the city, Jesus at twelve years old makes a decision to stay behind in the temple.…
The Blended Rosary 4th Mystery: Prophecy and Promise
Note: This is part 4 in a 5-part series written for SpiritualDirection.com. You can read part one here, part two here, and part three here. The Fourth Mystery The Presentation in the Temple; The Transfiguration; The Carrying of the Cross;…
The Blended Rosary Third Mystery: A Strange Way to Save the World
Editors note: This is part 3 in a five-part series on The Blended Rosary written for SpiritualDirection.com. You can read part one (Intro and First Mystery) here and part two (Second Mystery) here. The Third Mystery The Birth of Jesus; The…
The Blended Rosary Second Mystery: You Shall Be My Witnesses
Editors note: This is part 2 in a five-part series on The Blended Rosary written for SpiritualDirection.com. You can read part one (Intro and First Mystery) here. The Second Mystery: The Visitation; The Miracle at Cana; The Scourging at the…
The Blended Rosary: Intro and First Mystery
Confession time: sometimes when I pray the rosary, my mind wanders. Most of those wanderings do not merit recording. But sometimes, my mind wanders between the mysteries, and even between the sets of mysteries. In these wanderings, I’ve uncovered and…
The Narrow Way
I remember years ago, as a child, reading with awe the stories of great missionaries and martyrs. And so when in China I met “real live people” who were daily risking their lives to bring the Gospel, I was somewhat…
Have a Very Mercy Christmas!
The day is raw and rainy, and nobody wants to go the store for the necessary groceries. Even though (or perhaps especially because), the time to make dinner is fast approaching. Helpful Hal, nudged by his conscience and his wife,…
Know Rest for the Weary
“Never wake a sleeping bear!” says Aunt Margaret. “Or Aunt Grace!” pipes in then two-year old Zippy, wise beyond her years. I am not a morning person. I’ve often joked that the answer to “When does human life begin?” is…
Pilgrims & Progress
Note: this post has been edited to include two new pilgrimages I am leading in 2025, one to Italy for the Jubilee Year and one to Portugal. I grew up surrounded by books, and even today I often picture myself…
Bumper Cars: Let Him Drive
In each of the last several years, at the beginning of Advent, God has given me a theme for the upcoming year. One year the theme was “receiving”; another was “silence.” Each has been a theme that God developed powerfully…
Mary and the Magnifying Glass
I remember the day when I was in fifth grade when some of the more mischievous boys, not generally inclined towards academics, nonetheless took a sudden interest in science. They would get up and go to the potted plants on…
