St. Phillip Neri said, “The best preparation for prayer is to read the lives of the saints … quietly and with recollection a little at a time. And to pause whenever you feel your heart touched with devotion.” Word on Fire’s new collection of sermons, commentaries, biographies, and other writings …

One of the things Pope Francis has said that I have always appreciated is, “God has a sense of humor.” That has certainly been evident throughout my life. There has often been my plan and God’s plan … with the latter always prevailing! I grew up the fourth of six …

Early Years Dennis Marian Schnurr was born in Sheldon, IA, on June 21, 1948 and grew up in Hospers, IA. He studied for the priesthood at the North American College and the Gregorian University, both in Rome, and was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Sioux City on July …

By Hannah Brockhaus Vatican City, May 19, 2025 / 06:52 am Pope Leo XIV held a private meeting with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the papal library on Monday morning. Details of the meeting were not released, but the Americans later spoke with …

The Archdiocese of Cincinnati joyfully celebrated the ordination of two new priests on Saturday May 17, 2025. The men were ordained to the priesthood for service to God and the Church. Archbishop Robert G. Casey celebrated the Mass. Within the course of the ordination rite, the archbishop invoked the authority …

Explore the traditions of this joyous time in pictures This article first appeared online in May 2018. Tradition of the first blessing Waiting to receive a blessing from a new priest is a longstanding ordination day tradition. After Mass, the new priests are greeted by their former seminary classmates, who …

Deacon Adam Lewis is well aware of the mystery in his vocational story. Preparing for his ordination to the priesthood on May 17 with Deacon Kevin LeMelle, Deacon Lewis noted wryly, “There are people who have been in seminary longer than I’ve been Catholic.” Raised in a Christian household, Lewis …

I know my pastor well, for a parishioner. My husband and I were friends with him years before he came to our church. Father Anthony’s sense of humor is clever; he keeps a clean house and an even cleaner office; he’s grounded and compassionate; and he’s a movie buff with …

When I was young, a priest spoke of Our Lady with these words: “The greatest prayer you can offer in this life is for the grace to give the Holy Spirit the freedom to do with, in, and through you whatever He wishes, as Our Lady did in her Fiat. …

As the 2025 Italian Open is underway in Rome, Pope Leo XIV receives professional tennis player Jannik Sinner in the Vatican, along with his family and the president of the Italian Tennis Federation. By Deborah Castellano Lubov On Wednesday, Pope Leo XIV received tennis champion Jannik Sinner in the Vatican. …