A letter writer in the May 12 Globe and Mail asked on behalf of her 14-year-old granddaughter, “Are the people who oppose the right to choose an abortion the same people who protest vaccine and mask mandates?” Grandma declared that yes indeed, they are the same folks.

If you’re reading The Catholic Register, you’ve probably never said: “I’m spiritual but not religious.” However, you’ve certainly heard someone else state this now almost cliché phrase. Let’s count the ways this phrase is false… and dangerous. (What I generally say to people who tell me they are “spiritual but not religious” is: “You may want to be careful with that.”)

As society emerges from the spectre of the pandemic, we have a unique opportunity to construct a positive “new normal” in which we live out Gospel values personally and collectively.

Each new cancer treatment has become a door to walk through. On the other side of the door is a new room. The door to the old room closes never to be opened again.

The new film about a Montana priest, Father Stu, starring Mark Wahlberg and Mel Gibson, is ruffling some feathers. I’ve seen it, and didn’t think it was that controversial. Father Stu is based on the true story of a roughneck, smart-aleck, aimless young boxer who retires the gloves early and heads to Hollywood for a film career — only to discover God, the Church and his vocation to the priesthood through his new SoCal Catholic girlfriend.

Near the beginning of what is arguably the Second Vatican Council’s most important document, the Council fathers wrote, “It pleased God, in His goodness and wisdom, to reveal Himself and to make known the mystery of His will... .” Knowing that mystery enables us to share in the life of God.

The statistics are chilling even though they are imperfect. CBC reported that in December 2021, 35 names were added to the Toronto Homeless Memorial list of those who died while homeless in Toronto. The actual number of deaths could be higher. 

Today’s social media world has made abbreviations seem more ubiquitous than ever.

When I think about the long list of things I need to practice, resurrection has never made the list. But I have been returning to the theme year after year in my writing. In 2017, I wrote about not being ready to rise. The next year, I was baking buns and reflecting on relaxing into the rising work of God. And then, the danger of daring to embrace joy. Apparently, I need more practice than I thought.

Every religion has celebrations tied to the natural world. Celebrations of birth and death, darkness and light, sowing and harvesting all mark the rhythms of our lives and our encounter with God. What does this mean for a humanity hurtling towards the ecological upheaval that a global temperature rise of three degrees promises to deliver? The spectre of climate chaos threatens to disrupt the order by which we connect to God through creation.