There are three things uppermost in my mind as I write to you and all of these are precious gifts, not to be taken for granted: God’s mercy, the sun, and books. You might think that a strange combination, but they are all very much worth celebrating and all quite connected. Sunday is Divine Mercy Sunday. That naturally has me thinking of the reality of God’s mercy, especially since the liturgy from Holy Thursday through Divine Mercy Sunday has us contemplating the great love and mercy of Jesus...

Ok, so I've been a Postulant (a.k.a. "nun-in-training") for almost two years, so maybe it doesn’t come as a big surprise that I’m a bit smitten with Jesus. To clarify, though, I mean “awesome” not in the way it's used to describe a good pizza, but in the literal sense: “inspiring wonder, awe or fear.” I have so many reasons for being in awe of Jesus, but one big reason I've been praying with lately is just how patient he is with me. Think about it. Nine times out of ten, when someone is as...

The question of what makes a movie ideal for Christmas, the day we commemorate and celebrate Jesus’ birth, is subjective. It often depends completely on the audience—among my Facebook friends, for instance, the 1988 thriller Die Hard came out as an unlikely favorite when I recently posted this question. But come to think of it, John McTiernan’s action movie starring Bruce Willis has all the right elements: It starts at a Christmas party and includes danger, a pregnant woman, bad guys, reconci...