Dear Friend,

In the 5th century AD, St. Augustine wrote about the "Four States of Man":

*The first state of man (the haec sunt prima) is "living according to the flesh -- with reason making no resistance." This can be seen in so many ancient cultures and religions (and unfortunately more than a few in our own time) with their human sacrifices, their idols, their pagan ceremonies, and even cannibalism.

Dear Friend,

I hope this week's "pastor's Pen" will give you a laugh.

A man has been lost and walking in the desert for about five days. One hot day--actually, they’re all hot--he comes to the home of a community of Irish missionary priests.

Tired and weak, he crawls up to the house and collapses on the doorstep. One of the priests takes him in and the community nurses him back to health.

Dear Friend,

Saint Theresa of Avila once said, ʺA growing Christian must have at his or her roots the life-giving waters of penitence.

The cultivation of a penitential spirit is absolutely essential to spiritual progress.

The lives of great saints teach us that self-distrust is vital to godliness.

Dear Friend,

Healing takes time, patience, and determination to persevere through the long process of healing.

It’s not easy, but it is the reality of the healing process.

A good friend recently told me his own experience with the healing process of his right knee. About two years ago he had a total right knee replacement.

For almost the entire history of the Church, the Blessed Virgin Mary has been returning to the world she left nearly two millennia ago.

In this revised and expanded fourth edition, Those Who Saw Her shares the latest developments, updates, and Church teachings on the apparitions of Mary.