Social Skills – See People for Who They Really Are
Is Love Blind? If we want healthy relationships, we need to practice specific social skills from friendship building. The old saying, “Love is blind” comes from literature. Geoffrey Chaucer and William Shakespeare both used the phrase for satire and comedy. But our culture embraced it as a truism meaning that love overlooks the details of…
Read MoreLiving the Theological Virtues and Embracing Your School of Love
God calls each of us to our vocation to help us grow in the theological virtues. We are called within our specific vocation to grow in our general vocation. Pope John Paul II called the family the “school of love.” He referred mainly to the fact that children learn what it means to love from…
Read MoreSpiritual Growth in Lumen Gentium from Vatican II
Lumen Gentium is the Sacred Constitution on the Church. Pope Paul VI wrote the encycilcal Ecclesiam Suam (Pathways of the Church),. In that document, he tells us that Lumen Gentium is an examination of conscience for the Church. It asks the question, “Church, what do you say of yourself?” It uses Sacred Scripture and Sacred…
Read MoreVatican II – What is Renewal?
What exactly did the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council mean by calling for a renewal of the Church? One thing that amazes me is that even after 50 years, people, in general, are still pretty mystified about what Vatican II was all about and what exactly renewal of the Church was meant to be. This is…
Read MoreThe Virtue of Prudence: Making Relationship a Priority
In this series on the Well-Ordered Life, we have taken a look at the challenge most Catholics face finding time to grow in their faith, where the moral virtue of prudence can help us. The reason that being too “busy” is the wrong way to look at time challenges Why we are so overwhelmed and the…
Read MoreHow to Change Your Life: Character Development Makes You God’s Masterpiece
Building your character is the fastest and surest way to change yourself for the better. To develop our character we can use the best in human psychology, Sacred Scripture and the Catholic moral tradition. But the true power of character development is the power of grace. Our choices can cooperate with grace to transform us…
Read MoreAdam and Eve – Original Man
What was life like in Eden before Original Sin? Pope John Paul II calls the state of human nature before it was damaged by original sin “Original Man.” Original Man was characterized by a number of important qualities. Adam and Eve Enjoyed Original Justice The human personality was in harmony. There were no unfulfillable desires…
Read MoreMoral Principle of Totality and Integrity
Definition The human body is an integral part of the human person and is therefore worthy of human dignity. It must be kept whole. No body part should be removed, mangled or dibilitated unless doing so is necessary for the health of a more essential body part or the body of a whole. An unessential…
Read MoreWhat is Moral Theology and Why Does It Matter?
As a highschool morality teacher, I get two very different questions from Catholics and Protestants. Catholics often ask me, “Why would you study thay?” Protestants have asked, “What is it, anyway?” Most Catholics assume that this area of theology is an outdated, irrelevant, dry-as-dust subject of study. Most Protestants think that morality is pretty simple…
Read MoreAuthor Book Reading: It’s OK to Start With You
This week’s book reading is from therapist Julia Marie Hogan, LCPC. She reads from her book It’s OK to Start With You. In this book reading, Julie reads from the second chapter of her book, “Being Mean to Ourselves,” in which she talks about how to deal with out “inner critic.” This fascinting book…
Read More