When I was young, my mother gave my siblings and me 5 cents for each Bible verse we memorized. This motivated us to look for the “low-hanging fruit” of short verses, finding in 1 Thessalonians 5 a ...

I remember the first time I tried to pray for a solid hour. I was about 19 and in my college dorm room. Before that day, I was praying anywhere from 5-10 minutes in one sitting. Outside of that, I ...

In the serene hours of the night and the tranquil moments of the morning, a practice as ancient as humanity holds a unique power—prayer. Prayer, an act of spiritual connection, has transcended ...

Prayer is powerful, but faith must be matched with action, courage, character, and the willingness to work toward what we ask ...

Many, many people whom I meet want to pray, or pray better, but struggle. Indeed, a friend of mine often quips, “If you want to humble a Christian, ask him how his prayer life is.” And this is not a ...

Buried deep in the Norton Anthology, George Herbert’s little poem with the unpretentious title “Prayer” is easy to miss. Decorously contained on a half-page with regular rhyme and punctuation, it ...

Like so many other people, I have been reflecting on the life, teaching and legacy of Pope Francis since his death in April. While his pastoral ministry focused on mercy and inclusion ("todos, todos, ...

In 2011, I joined a few thousand or so other people and signed up for a newish service that, I thought, might be handy. The idea behind it was to get email reminders for novenas as you prayed them in ...

Pope Francis asked the faithful to pray for him when he was elected and introduced as the pontiff March 13, 2013. Pope Francis guides billions of the Catholic faithful, among others. He knows the ...