Sacraments

February is the perfect month to write about the importance of Christian marriage. After 20 years of marriage and seven children, I have learned through the good times and difficult times that my marriage is not only a blessing but a gift…

BY PAT GOHN The seven sacraments — Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony — have five important elements in common. They are the sacraments of Christ. All are instituted and based on the…

It’s just after 5 p.m. and the parishioners are filing out of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Parish in Windham, Maine, following the Saturday Vigil Mass. As they go through the church doors, Fr. Lou Phillips is waiting to greet them.…

Many years ago I edited a book titled Now That You Are Catholic by Fr. John J. Kenny, an introduction to Catholic customs for the newly initiated. While the book offered great advice for Catholic neophytes, it did not touch on the many…

June is a big month for weddings. For those of us planning to marry or are already married to non-Catholic spouses, the journey often ends up more difficult than we could have imagined. Once upon a time, Catholics were usually expected to…

Prayer for newly ordained priests O Jesus, our great High Priest, hear our humble prayers on behalf of your priests, Father ___. Give them a deep faith, a bright and firm hope, and a burning love which will ever increase in the course of…

Years ago I was working as a wine manager for a large wine retailer. One of my main responsibilities was to teach the salespeople at my location how to sell wine that would yield the highest margin of profit for our company. It was both…

Let’s face it, there are plenty of us who could stand to go to confession more often. And we have a duty to receive the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. According to the Church’s command, “after having attained the age of…

Years ago, if you told Catholic author and blogger Leila Miller you were getting a divorce, she may have told you how sorry she was, and that would be that. But today she’d do everything in her power to help save your marriage. That’s…

Saints’ quotes are some of my favorite things about the Catechism of the Catholic Church. They bring the richness of our faith alive. Besides saints being beacons of holiness and wisdom, their genius is often found in their simple and…