Sunday, January 20, 2013
A weekly column by the pastor of St. Mary-St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Charlestown.
We walked along the sidewalk and there were flower gardens, lawn, shrubs and trees all along the way. He was holding my hand—it was a stretch for both of us for he was only two years old. The weather was warm and lovely, typical for springtime in Virginia, and there were ants and various bugs crawling everywhere, celebrating the rites of spring. My nephew caught sight of these critters and nothing would do but he had to let go of my hand and crawl along, following a busy colony of something. He was lost in amazement, completely outside of himself in wonder as he crawled through puddles and over rock in pursuit of the mystery of this life. I have always held that memory as a classic understanding of what it means "to wonder." Wonder is …
42.373777
-71.061765
Saint Mary-Saint Catherine of Siena Parish
55 Warren St, Charlestown, MA
/articles/father-ronan-to-wonder
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Sunday, December 23, 2012
A weekly column by the pastor of St. Mary-St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Charlestown.
It was painful to move any part of my body. The pain medication lasted only a couple of hours and barely diminished the intensity. Nights were very long and I recall once looking out the window of my bedroom toward the east where the ink-black night was ever so slowly fading to the hope of a new day. Gradually the slightest tinges of color became visible and I found within myself a quickening expectation that at the dawn of the day, the pain would be easier and I could find a way forward. That chapter of my life is more than 10 years past, and after a few months the peculiar autoimmune disease that was ravaging the muscles in my body was brought to remission and I recuperated. Yet from time to time I remember clearly how anticipation of …
42.373777
-71.061765
Saint Mary-Saint Catherine of Siena Parish
55 Warren St, Charlestown, MA
/articles/father-ronan-awaiting-the-dawn
1824630
/locations/8429551
Sunday, December 16, 2012
A weekly column by the pastor of St. Mary-St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Charlestown.
Did you ever have the experience of hearing some piece of music that you liked and, for days after, the melody keeps running through your head? Sometimes that can be a distraction. But at other times, it can be enjoyable, perhaps inspirational, or even evoke a profound and meaningful awareness as has been the case for me this past week. The psalm we sang at last weekend’s Masses proclaimed: The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with gladness and joy! As I moved through the week, and even now recall those words, I keep calling to mind the great things God has done for me and for us. At the heart of what God has done for us, of course, is the Incarnation—the birth of Jesus, Son of Mary in Bethlehem so long ago and still very …
42.373777
-71.061765
Saint Mary-Saint Catherine of Siena Parish
55 Warren St, Charlestown, MA
/articles/father-ronan-god-s-promise-fulfilled
1824630
/locations/8379894
