When my daughter was engaged to be married, I took voice lessons so that I could sing the Ava Maria at her wedding in Italy. While th at did not happen (long story, lol), one of my very favorite songs of all time is the Ava Maria. May you experience a moment of Heaven listening to it now, featuring  the famous cellist, Hauser.

Sunday's Gospel about the Good Shepherd lends itself to thinking about parenting from the shepherd's perspective. Shepherds live with their sheep and so being together gives parents the opportunity to know their children very well. Each person in a family has a unique disposition and temperament.  As parents are "shepherding" their children through the uncertain time of social distancing due to Covid 19, we become like the shepherd to our children in attending to their needs and concerns with a new intentionality.  In the parable, we realize that Jesus wants us to know that He shepherd's us with God's loving care. Parents are that loving Shepherd to their children. Parenting  is a very holy work  that parents are involved in daily. Jesus is with us to nurture, guide, and protect. The voice that we "hear" manifests itself as the caring voice inside us. It may come through others with whom we share our concerns or through those we rely on for sound...

Praying With The Gospel of Spring May 1 always makes me think of spring even more than the spring equinox.  It is when the birds are singing, the grass is greener, and the plants begin to really flower.  Our prayer today starts with an adult prayer, using gospel readings, meditations, and reflections. Then a children’s prayer and activity follow. Below are 3 texts from the gospel of John that portray the return of spring. 1.  Read and meditate on John 11:1-44 Lazarus, like an opening bud, comes out of the tomb.  He is still bound but is received back into the hands of the artists in the assembly.  Gently they unbind him and set him free.  Leaving death behind, he steps back into life. Spend time reflecting on a moment when you stepped out of the tomb of death and into the womb of life. 2. Read and meditate on John 20:10-18 Mary, weeping at the tomb, is experiencing the terrible darkness of the death of Jesus.  She has not yet ...