Esther the Queen, and the festival of Purim
14th and 15th Adar 5780 – it is Purim again. In Israel that means: lots of sweets and drinks and masquerading in…
2020
The art of limiting ourselves
Freedom and happiness, we are told, either openly or subconsciously by the way everything in our current society is wired, is the…
Days in February with Saint Francis de Sales – on spiritual dryness, sadness, and gentleness towards ourselves
The days are ever the same, though no two of them are alike, and they grow long: Under grey skies we approach…
Days in February with Saint Francis de Sales – on “external mortification“
The renovation of our hearts “I cannot approve of those who in reforming a man would begin with external things – his…
Days in February with Saint Francis de Sales – on prayer
With Lent being a season of penitential and intensified prayer, let us prepare ourselves for it with the words of Sacred Scripture…
Days in February with Saint Francis de Sales – on obedience, chastity, poverty
I have just started to get my kitchen ready for Lent. I put all the things that for seven weeks will soon…
Marriage, and true friendship
Mere eros is an unreliable compass when it comes to marriage. Let us think of marriage rather as a very special kind…
Days in February with Saint Francis de Sales – advice on how to dress
Really? There are saints who counsel us on our wardrobe and appearance? Indeed there are. The Catholic religion is so healthily down-to-earth.…
Preparing ourselves for the season of Lent
In the Old Liturgy, the traditional Roman Rite, we are always slowly and gradually prepared for everything, prepared even for the preparation…
Reclaiming Saint Valentine‘s Day
Dear reader, I share with you my very personal take on how we can reclaim Saint Valentine‘s Day this year as a…