To live joyfully we must let go of anger, wrath, violence and revenge. Surrender to win. Let go and let God (Pope Francis).

Much easier said than done. In fact, letting go is the hardest thing any of us has to do. It takes courage and humility and trust. Simple but not easy. 

God continues to bless us (even in tough times) with love and mercy beyond our comprehension!

Christmas Memories from 1978, Naples, Florida.  Standing in back from left to right: Patrick, Helen (with Calloway), Jack, Anne and Mary. Front row from left to right: Jay, Dan, Joan and Michael. 

It was the Christmas just before my wedding in Cleveland, December 29, 1978. I remember it as an especially joyful time but, of course, there was a lot of stress too. The holidays are like that for families—joyful, stressful times. 

But I was deeply in love with Sharon, my beautiful bride-to-be, and all was right with the world  that Christmas. 

Many Christmases have passed with much joy and a fair amount of stress passing with them. Gratitude is the best way to look backward. Our family was blessed (even in tough times) by an enduring faith and love. Gratitude is also the best way to look ahead. God continues to bless us  (even in tough times) with love and mercy beyond our comprehension!

What if you could talk to people you love who have died? What would they say about life after death? Would they know you as you are now or be somehow frozen in time?

I asked these questions—and many more—in my book A Communion of Saints: Dreams of Happiness on the Road to Life. Using my imagination, I created a situation in which I encounter in dreams deceased family members, friends and a mystery guest. We talk about life, and death, while remembering both the good times and the hard times of my formative years.

A Communion of Saints is available at danielconwayauthor.com or on amazon.com. Let me know what you think of it.

What we long for during Advent is hope, love, joy and peace, but much more than these, we long for Someone who will come into our lives and fill our emptiness with his abundant life. 

Bishops are good men, not saints; holy men but not perfect. 

St. Juan Diego presents the miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe to his bishop. 

The roses in winter are a sign of new life and hope. December 12, 1531.

I discovered this painting several years ago at the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico. I have always been fascinated by the figure of the bishop who initially dismissed the peasant Juan Diego and was understandably skeptical of his story about the beautiful lady who appeared to him at Tepayac on the outskirts of Mexico City. The lady asked that a shrine be built on that site so that she could comfort her suffering children. The bishop doubted the peasant’s story and he quickly rejected the idea of building a shrine!

But the beautiful lady wouldn’t take no for answer. After first curing Juan Diego’s sick uncle, the lady gave the peasant her tilma (cloak) and asked him to go back to the bishop and give it to him. When Juan Diego opened the tilma in the presence of the bishop, fresh roses fell out. What’s more, the astonished bishop saw the image we now know as Our Lady of Guadalupe miraculously embedded in the cloth.

I have worked with and for dozens of bishops during the past 38 years. They each had/have different personalities and pastoral styles, but all were/are men of the Church with a strong desire to be faithful disciples of Jesus and devoted sons of his mother. I can say of all these bishops that they were/are good men, not saints; holy men but not perfect.

I ask myself: What would Archbishop Tom Kelly do if confronted by someone like Juan Diego? How about Cardinal Francis George? Or any of the other bishops I know?

More than likely, each would have treated the poor, uneducated man with respect. But they would have required more evidence before accepting his story as true and, certainly, before building a shrine. In fact, the Church now has processes that must be followed, and requirements that must be met, before a Marian apparition can be authenticated.

But what if these good bishops had been presented with the awe-inspiring tilma and the roses in winter? Would they have immediately embraced the miracle and praised God for Mary’s presence and her care for the “suffering children” of the local community?

I think the answer is yes. In their hearts of hearts, they would have believed gratefully that the mother of our Lord has come once again as at Tepeyac nearly 500 years ago (and as at Fatima in Portugal 100 years ago). They would still have initiated the proper investigative processes and sought authentication by the Holy See, but they would have done so with confidence and hope—not with skepticism or scorn.

The image I discovered at a gift shop at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe now hangs proudly in my office above my desk. It reminds me daily, but especially on December 12, that I work for this lady (and her divine son) in collaboration with bishops (and priests) who are good men, not saints, and holy men but not perfect.

Political activity must truly be conducted at the service of the human person, with respect for creation and for the common good. (Pope Francis)

This is the authentically Catholic view of politics/public service. It is not about power or prestige. Never self-serving or grandiose, but humble & dedicated to the good of others.

Notice that Pope Francis identifies three critical aspects of public service: 1) the individual human person, 2) God’s creation—all things visible and invisible, and 3) the common good. All three must be safeguarded, nurtured and developed by those who hold positions of responsibility whether in government, business, education, healthcare or the Church. We are called to be responsible stewards of all God’s gifts, and nothing is more worthy of good stewardship than these three precious gifts: the individual person, creation and the common good.

I call this “the authentically Catholic view of politics/public service” because Catholic social teaching is grounded in the the conviction that every man, woman and child is made in the image and likeness of God and, therefore, possesses equal rights and dignity regardless of race, creed, nationality, ethnicity, social background or economic status.

Here is what the Catechism of the Catholic Church (#1929-1930) says:

Social justice can be obtained only in respecting the transcendent dignity of man. the person represents the ultimate end of society, which is ordered to him:

What is at stake is the dignity of the human person, whose defense and promotion have been entrusted to us by the Creator, and to whom the men and women at every moment of history are strictly and responsibly in debt (John Paul II, SRS 47).

Respect for the human person entails respect for the rights that flow from his dignity as a creature. These rights are prior to society and must be recognized by it. They are the basis of the moral legitimacy of every authority: by flouting them, or refusing to recognize them in its positive legislation, a society undermines its own moral legitimacy (Cf. John XXIII, PT 65). If it does not respect them, authority can rely only on force or violence to obtain obedience from its subjects. It is the Church's role to remind men of good will of these rights and to distinguish them from unwarranted or false claims.