The Journal
Reflections on Faith, Grief, History, and the Sacred in Ordinary Life
Every reflection begins with a question.
Sometimes that question comes from Scripture.
Sometimes from grief.
Sometimes from history.
Sometimes from the ordinary moments of everyday life.
These reflections are offered in the hope that together we may discover God’s presence, deepen our faith, and learn from those who have gone before us.
Welcome. I’m glad you’re here.
Latest Reflections
Recent essays on faith, grief, history, and discovering the sacred in ordinary life.
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Wisdom for the Way
I have been doing this a really long time so it is no surprise that I have preached on this passage a few times. And either because I am remarkably consistent or because I have run out of sermon titles, I called that sermon Wisdom for the Way. I went back and read that sermon…
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When Is the President Not the President?
Emmanuel Macron skipped Pope Leo XIV’s enormous Mass in Paris, then changed his schedule to attend Mass in Metz. The explanation reveals how much more complicated French laïcité is than “separation of church and state.”
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Michaelmas: When the Darkness Comes
What can an ancient feast of angels tell us about September storms, shortening days, and the courage to keep watch for one another?
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When the Drum Called Hull Together
On September 28, 1666, the Town of Hull hired a man named Nathan Parmele to beat a drum whenever the people needed to gather. Almost nothing else is known about him. The drummer disappeared into history, but his summons still has something to say: Come together.
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God’s Sustaining Presence
As artificial intelligence becomes capable of doing more of the things we once thought uniquely human, perhaps we are asking the wrong question. Instead of asking what humans can do that machines cannot, what if we asked: What kind of people is God calling us to become?
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Just Because a Machine Can Do Something for Us, Should It?
The other day I needed to remember how to make something I had not made in a long time. Once, that sort of question would have meant reaching for a cookbook or calling someone who knew. Now I can type a few words into my phone and have an answer before I have found the…
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Mabon, Creationtide, and the Sacred Rhythm of Autumn
There is a phrase I have used for years to describe my spiritual life: My home is Christianity, but I have many cottages. Christianity is home. It is the place from which I understand God and humanity, love and suffering, life and death. Its stories have shaped me, its prayers have carried me, and its…
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AI Is Holding Up a Mirror to Us
Tonight, at the opening Mass of the DELTA Summit on AI, Faith and Human Flourishing at the University of Notre Dame, Cardinal Blase Cupich asked a question that has become increasingly difficult to avoid: What does it mean to be human in the age of artificial intelligence? But Cupich did something unexpected with the question.…
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Tensions in the Wilderness
There are some places in New England where simply living somewhere does not necessarily mean you are from there. I was born in the Houghs Neck section of Quincy. My family lived in the Neck for more than sixty years, but I am the only member of my immediate family who was actually born there.…