To Whom Shall We Go?

by Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman ©LPi  |  08/25/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

A friend of mine, who is a far better Christian than I can ever hope to be, once shared with me that her family sneers at her belief system and lifestyle. She believes in fairy tales they tell her. She’s looking for simple solutions from a kind-faced man in the sky because she doesn’t want to grapple with complicated answers to complicated problems.

Religion, they argue, is the easy way out. As she spoke about this, her voice became unsteady. Not with anger, but with emotion. “I would never call this life easy,” she said. “If I was looking for something that was easy, I wouldn’t choose Catholicism.”

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Not by Faith Alone

by © LPi Fr. John Muir  |  08/18/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

A priest I know was asked by a door-to-door evangelist, “Do you believe in Jesus?” He answered, “Yes, I do. But if I may ask you,” he continued, “Where do you experience Jesus’ body and blood?” His interlocutor responded somewhat confusedly, “I don’t. I just believe in him. That’s all that is needed.” Later my priest friend would relate to me, “The more I thought about it, that response struck me as totally inadequate. As human beings, we need to encounter Jesus’ body and blood, not just hear about him and mentally believe. Otherwise, Jesus is just a ghost.”

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Believe

by © LPi Fr. John Muir  |  08/11/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

This week we hear Jesus say, “He that believes in me, has eternal life” (John 6:47). These straightforward words, uttered by human lips, sound — how to put this? — insane. Who could possibly say such a thing? Jesus says things that are so high, so demanding, so beyond our capacity to fathom, we hardly know what to do with them and (if you’re like me), they usually go in one ear and out the other. So, let us ask: how can believing in him lead to eternal life?

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Hunger and Thirst for God

by © LPi Fr. John Muir  |  08/04/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

Since my college days I’ve loved a song called “Dance with You” by the rock band Live. It touches on the deep mystical hunger of our heart: “I’ve tasted all the wines/ a half a billion times/ came sickened to your shore/ you showed me what this life is for.” These lines resonate with anyone who has feasted on the good things of this world only to be left spiritually hungover and unsatisfied.

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Coraggio — Take More

by © LPi Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman  |  07/28/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

It doesn’t matter what time of day we visit my mother-in-law – she always has food to offer. If we take two helpings, she will encourage us to take three. If we take three helpings, she will say, “Coraggio — take more.” (She’s Italian, in case you couldn’t tell from the food-pushing and the language.)

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Rest in the Generosity of God

by © LPi Fr. John Muir  |  07/21/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

Burnout. Recent studies suggest that roughly two-thirds of doctors and nurses have signs of it. You probably know what burnout is: long-term stress leading to emotional exhaustion and a lack of a sense of personal accomplishment. Burnout can threaten anyone who tries to seriously serve and love others. How does our faith inform this challenging experience, and how do we find refreshment?

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Shake Off the Dust

by © LPi Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman  |  07/14/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

Our kitchen floor is at least 35 years old, and it’s the ugliest color to come out of the ‘80s. But it’s a good, durable floor, and my husband, bless his heart, guards it like it was a finely finished hardwood imported from Brazil. Every time the kids track mud and sand across its vinyl surface, he immediately gets down on his hands and knees and lovingly wipes the mess away. I’m too impatient to do this myself — we have kids, so we’re going to have a dirty floor, is my attitude. But this is the hill upon which my husband dies.

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A Prophet and His Native Place

by © LPi Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman  |  07/07/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

“A prophet is not without honor except in his native place.” It could be the slogan of high school reunions everywhere.

I speak from experience — I didn’t go to my high school reunion, but I do live in the same area in which I grew up. Ghosts from the past lurk in every grocery aisle and gas station. Former classmates fill my prescriptions at the pharmacy. I am always sure to see an old teacher or two at the Fourth of July parade.

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The Touch of Christ

by © LPi Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman  |  06/30/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

For a long time, I didn’t understand why the virtual Masses of the pandemic were so wearisome to me. Theoretically, shouldn’t it be a tired mother’s dream, fulfilling her Sunday obligation from the couch, not having to worry how much noise the kids are making?

But it wasn’t. Seeing Mass without experiencing it left me hungry. It left me starving.

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The Perfect Storm

by © LPi Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman  |  06/23/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

I am writing this on a Saturday morning. Saturdays are my writing days, when my husband takes over the kids and the house and I disappear into the office with an enormous cup of coffee and noise-canceling headphones. Saturdays are sacred — if work can be called sacred.

But Saturday morning is also the only time I’m able to consistently get to confession. Every other time the sacrament is offered in my area during the week, I seem to have unavoidable commitments — but on Saturday morning, all I have is work, and how can I let work come before a sacrament, as much as I might secretly want to?

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Listen with Faith

by © LPi Fr. John Muir  |  06/16/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

My mother and father fell in love with each other rather quickly. It was only a span of two months between their first meeting and quiet betrothal. They waited for a significant period of time before going public with the happy news. It simply wasn’t time. Love’s strength and speed can sprout scandal in public. Until the big reveal, they gave the outside world only little hints, gestures, and riddles.

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In the Family Way

by © LPi Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman  |  06/09/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

Look here: there is no one more family-oriented than me. I drive a minivan. I wear mom jeans. I wipe unidentified gunk off of kids’ faces without a second thought.

I’m all about family, but I’m not always a fan of what “family” has come to mean in the modern lexicon. Family values. Family-friendly. Family-oriented. It’s usually a synonym for “non-offensive.” Soft. Moderate. Nice.

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This Is My Body

by © LPi Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman  |  06/02/2024  |  Weekly Reflection

A friend in high school once asked me why I wore a Crucifix around my neck. She was a Christian and very devout, so I was surprised at her confusion. “To remember Jesus’ sacrifice,” I said.

Her upper lip curled in disgust. “The cross is a sign of Jesus’ sacrifice,” she said. “He’s not on the cross anymore. It’s really weird that you wear his dead body.”

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