Question: I have been told that women served as deacons in the early Church? If this is true, what was their role? Answer: Instances of women serving as deacons in the early Church, especially in Syria, are referenced in various documents. However, evidence shows deaconesses did not have the same …

On Nov. 24 this year, the universal Church celebrates the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, more commonly known as the Feast of Christ the King. Pope Pius XI instituted this feast in Dec. 1925 by the promulgation of his encylical, Quas Primas, written in the …

I attended a funeral a couple months ago. The dear lady who passed away was 90 and she clearly had been treasured by the large number of family and friends present. Between the grief among the congregation and my close proximity to the casket during Mass, the reality of death …

Question: In the Scriptures, why is Jesus referred to as the bridegroom, and what is the theological meaning pf the term? Answer: Each of us is made for union with God, but we do not always live up to this calling. Unlike us, God is faithful and He desires to …

Next year, the men in my family will celebrate an important milestone: 25 years of going on an annual camping trip together. When it all started, my dad and uncle were there, but the rest of us were just boys. We idolized the grown-ups for their ability to pitch a …

All God-given vocations are important. That is why God gives them! Our archdiocesan Prayer for Vocations specifically mentions the vocational call to a chaste single life “and faithful husbands and wives, who are a sign of Christ’s love for His Church.” The Vocations page on our archdiocesan website (catholiccincinnati.org/ministries-offices/vocations/) also …

By the time Jaymin was 12, he had lived in more places with more people than one can easily count – and all of them were drug users. The police finally caught up with his mother and her boyfriend, who were using heroin and neglecting their children, so Jaymin and his …

In the many years I’ve been an editor for Catholic publications, the way all the stories and columns in a given issue line up to support one another still never ceases to amaze me. Yes, some of that is planning and assigning particular stories, but often the stories find us …

Todas las vocaciones dadas por Dios son importantes. ¡Es por eso que Dios las da! Nuestra Oración arquidiocesana por las V ocaciones menciona específicamente el llamado vocacion a una vida casta y soltera “y esposos y esposas fieles, que son un signo del amor de Cristo por Su Iglesia”. La …

Each October, beginning on the first Sunday, the Church in the U.S. observes Respect Life Month. While, of course, we should embrace and applaud this celebration, I wonder how helpful abstract concepts like “respecting life” are in helping us to stand as witnesses against an encroaching culture of death. In …