The summertime, for me, is really the most wonderful time of the year. I begin waiting for its return from the first cold morning in the autumn, and then in earnest just after the Christmas rush. Taken together, the summer months, with…

My parents were both raised in Boston. My mom was of Irish Catholic descent, and my dad was a Scottish Presbyterian. Both were hard workers and great dancers who loved a good party. In the late 1950s they built a house in a new development…

We who have been Catholic most of our lives tend to not expect any surprises during the week that begins with Palm Sunday. We know we’re going to do a lot of standing and kneeling, a bit of fasting, and then a lot of feasting. We know the…

I love the saints. The saints are close to me, often in my mind and with me in my prayers. In some ways it’s tempting to think of the saints as the spiritual “superheroes” of the Church — think Spiderman, Wonder Woman, Captain America. We…

In recent years, there have been more and more ways to sell personal items online and make a little spare cash. While we used to have to pay for classified ads in the local newspaper or tack an index card on the bulletin board in the local…

by Bishop Robert Reed The news last August that growing numbers of Catholics no longer believe that the Holy Eucharist is Jesus Christ naturally led many commentators to wonder how we can reignite people’s faith in this profound mystery…

My parents were both raised in Boston. My mom was of Irish Catholic descent, and my dad was a Scottish Presbyterian. Both were hard workers and great dancers who loved a good party. In the late 1950s they built a house in a new development…

Lent is a period of prayer and preparation, and some Catholics like to include a retreat in anticipation of Easter. Even the pope and his closest advisers in the Vatican schedule a retreat during the early days of Lent. I’ve found that many…

We are drawing near to the end of 2019, a year in which we looked back on some significant anniversaries. One of the most important, of course, was on July 20 — 50 years since man first set foot on the moon. It made me happy to see that…

It’s hard to believe, but three years have already passed since I received a call early one Monday morning to inform me that I had been named a bishop. As it took a while to get used to being called “Fr. Reed” back in 1985 when I was…