“Full of Grace”: The Power & Purpose of the Immaculate Conception

While I love it now, I didn’t always embrace the the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. In fact, before becoming Catholic, I didn’t even understand what it was. I thought the dogma referred to something about Jesus, and how Mary gave birth to him while remaining a virgin. But it doesn’t. It has nothing to […]

How to Make the Rosary Truly Beautiful

It’s actually pretty ridiculous that I pray the rosary daily. After all, when was the last time you saw a Protestant pastor’s kid meditating on a string of well-varnished beads? Like so many others, I was absolutely convinced that praying to Our Lady would punch my one-way ticket to eternal damnation, so I avoided her […]

Would Pentecost Have Happened Without Mary?

pentecost

Have you ever noticed who is almost always shown in the center of a painting of Pentecost? Yep! It’s Mary. Why? Well, Pope St. John Paul II says she was key in making it all happen. “Pentecost is also a fruit of the Blessed Virgin’s incessant prayer,” says the Holy Father, “which is accepted by […]