General Archives - Page 243 of 276

Books on marriage offer thoughtful research, practical tips

By The Catholic Herald|2010-11-01T15:34:02-05:00Nov 1, 2010|General|

"More Perfect Unions: The American Search for Marital Bliss" by Rebecca L. Davis. Harvard University Press (Cambridge, Mass., 2010). 259 pp., $29.95.

"What I Wish Someone Had Told Me About the First Five Years of Marriage" by Roy Petitfils. St. Anthony Messenger Press (Cincinnati, 2010). 103 pp., $12.95.

Each year millions of American couples seek counseling to save their marriages. Their reasons go far beyond a desire for personal fulfillment; they see this institution as the very glue that holds society together. In "More Perfect Unions," an intriguing and thoughtful study, Rebecca L. Davis traces the evolution of Americans' intense commitment to heterosexual marriage.

"Americans care deeply about marriages – their own and other people's – because they have made enormous investments of time, money and emotion in trying to improve their own relationships, because they idealize what a good marriage can offer, and because they believe that the stakes extend far beyond their personal decisions about whom to marry or whether to divorce," she writes.

Schums’ suggestions for coping with loss of a child

By The Catholic Herald|2010-10-29T16:06:53-05:00Oct 29, 2010|General|

“You’ll never get over it, but you will get through it,” advice to the Schums from a parent who also [...]

Parenting, the job that never ends

By The Catholic Herald|2010-10-28T17:02:10-05:00Oct 28, 2010|General|

Maryangela My youngest sister, Elise and her husband, Mike, recently celebrated the birth of their first child, Wyatt James. In fact, Wyatt arrived on 10-10-10 at 10 …. 54 p.m.!

It’s exciting to have a new baby in the family, even if he is miles away in Arizona. Hearing Elise talk about Wyatt and how he’s changed life in their household brings back many memories of our own early parenting years: little sleep, interrupted nights, seemingly endless diaper changes and even the dreaded chore of packing the diaper bag before venturing out with the baby.

Oh, it seemed so challenging, and it also seemed like it would never end. But the sleepless nights, diapers, baby food jars and stroller-toting days did end and now that I look back, they seem like a blip in time. And, what has replaced them in some ways is so much more challenging.

There are still sleepless nights, but now it’s not a baby keeping us awake; it’s a teenager with a car out at the Friday night football game or at the homecoming dance; and instead of chasing a toddler, it’s trying to balance the various schedules of three active girls; instead of scheduling doctors’ appointments to make sure vaccines are up-to-date, it’s arranging college visits and making sure applications are turned in on time.

When our girls were little, I could control virtually everything around them, from what they ate to when they slept and where they went.

But as they grow older, my ability to control them and their environments lessens. Certainly that’s a good thing and it’s part of the process where they learn to be their own individuals and make choices for themselves, but as a parent it sure can be difficult.

4 hearts, 1 mother

By The Catholic Herald|2010-10-28T16:53:21-05:00Oct 28, 2010|General|

When I was pregnant with our first child, Jacob, more than 15 years ago, I came upon this quote by [...]

Why do so few children know their prayers?

By The Catholic Herald|2010-10-28T16:44:29-05:00Oct 28, 2010|General|

I am a catechist who is involved in first Eucharist preparation. I am appalled that so few of the children [...]

Baby Chloe is ‘miracle, gift from God’

By The Catholic Herald|2010-10-28T16:42:04-05:00Oct 28, 2010|General|

Chloe Lundy, 2, plays on a swing in the yard of the home of her grandmother, Debbie Hendricks, in Dousman [...]

Colorful Gospel for Oct. 28, 2010

By The Catholic Herald|2010-10-28T16:35:48-05:00Oct 28, 2010|General|

Illustration by Phil YounkClick on the photo for a printable PDF!Based on the Gospel of Luke 19:1-10Lost, found and saved! [...]

Look out, Gray Lady, Dolan is angry

By The Catholic Herald|2010-10-25T18:01:53-05:00Oct 25, 2010|General|

Of all the challenges Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan has in New York, the biggest one might be The New York [...]

The Calling

By The Catholic Herald|2010-10-25T15:10:23-05:00Oct 25, 2010|General|

NEW YORK –– In "The Calling" (Pleasant Avenue), filmmaker David Ranghelli focuses on the struggles involved in responding to a religious vocation. This absorbing documentary follows a young male novice and a mother superior, both of whom belong to a small community called the Family of Jesus the Healer.

Ranghelli turns his camera on this recently established, traditionally inclined group of priests, brothers and sisters at an interesting moment, just as their founder, Father Philip Scott, announces his prayer-based decision to relocate them from Tampa, Fla., to Peru to serve that country's poor.

For Tampa native Orlando Castillo, a young man from a prosperous background who wishes to "live simply," and who seeks spiritual formation from Father Scott as he discerns a vocation to the priesthood, this move adds a further strain to an already difficult situation. As frank interviews with them show, Castillo's parents – his father in particular – have serious reservations about the life their son is embracing.

Conviction

By The Catholic Herald|2010-10-25T15:08:12-05:00Oct 25, 2010|General|

NEW YORK –– "Let justice be done though the heavens fall" ran an ancient Roman maxim. The fact-based portrait of [...]