Don’t you hate ultimatums? Most of us have encountered (and maybe issued) them at one time or another. They usually begin with “unless” or “if” and threaten dire consequences if one’s expectations or demands are not met.

Thomas issued an ultimatum, inflexible conditions that had to be met in order for him to believe that Jesus had risen from the dead and had appeared to the other Apostles. It would be interesting to speculate as to why Thomas refused to believe—interesting but pointless.

Faced with the discouragement and powerlessness due to injustice, anxiety, dark moments, tight circumstances and the unexpected, Jesus can still shed light on our path. That is how it was for the disciples at Emmaus, and it can still be for each of us.

Better work

The canonization of Fatima visionaries Francisco and Jacinta Marto has been hailed as an exciting moment for the Church, but the rector of the Marian shrine has said that it bears an even greater significance in terms of putting a spotlight on Our Lady's message.

“I think the canonization in a certain way helps to give credibility to the apparitions and to the message of Fatima,” Fr. Carlos Cabecinhas told EWTN News.

Some days – more than others – it can appear that the world we live in is a dark and fearsome place, filled with all manner of evil; that men of peace and goodwill are few and far between, grossly outnumbered by those who choose a path that we struggle to even contemplate. And on days such as those, it can be tempting to lose hope, to fall into a sense of despondency and begin to despair.

President Trump and Pope Francis meeting could take place at end of next month.

Donald Trump’s administration will be asking the Holy See for a papal audience after high-ranking Catholic Republican figures urged for a meeting with the Pope to take place when the President travels to Italy next month.

The Latin language has been dead for hundreds of years, so what are the reasons behind the bond between this ancient language and the Catholic Church? Father Roberto Spataro, secretary of the Pontifical Academy for Latin, answers that not only is Latin the language of many important Catholic texts but it also serves as a connection to the Church's long heritage.

Existing in some form since several hundred years before Christ, the Latin language seems like an unlikely subject still to be generating brand new research, especially among young scholars.

For Lebanese professor Antoine Courban, invited to the recent conference on citizenship promoted by al-Azhar, Islamic culture is attempting to make an epochal turn.

In his apartment on the first floor of a modern building in the heart of Ashrafyyeh, Beirut’s “Christian Quarter”, Antoine Courban, professor at Saint Joseph University, a historical Jesuit establishment in Libanon. Among Byzantine icons and Koranic commentaries, the professor is anticipating Pope Francis’ arrival to Cairo.

The social media feeds are filled with woeful statuses and comments about the possibility of a nuclear war involving North Korea and the United States. Looks like Russia and China are dangling their fingers in the situation as well.

That’s a very simplistic summary of what’s going on in the world arena, but it’s enough for the purposes of this post. I write about spirituality, not politics. My concern here isn’t what’s going on inside of government offices but rather what’s going on inside of our hearts – and what’s coming out of our mouths as a result.

According to pious tradition, the Rosary was given to Saint Dominic in an apparition of the Virgin Mary in the year 1214. In the 15th century, it was promoted by Alanus de Rupe (St. Alan of the Rock), a Dominican priest and theologian, who established the "fifteen rosary promises" and started many rosary confraternities.

The best way for a good night's sleep is to reclaim your inner peace and rest with a heart united to God

My dear God in heaven,
O Creator,
O One who loved me into being…

Now that the voices are silenced
and the crowded world of projects
and overwhelming noise is hushed,
here, at my bed, I seek your consolation.