“Seized by the unconditional love of Jesus, the Christ, and allured to the mountaintop, we embrace the mystical flame of contemplation as our life’s grounding. The silence and solitude of our life of prayer immerse us in a deep communion with God that draws us into a full and willing participation in the unfolding of a new and transformed consciousness. Such radical openness to the power and meaning of this union of love calls from us nothing less than everything and propels us toward total communion with one another, with all people and species, and with the entire creation. This is the vision that we desire to live for the life of the Church and on-going emergence of humanity and our planet earth” (Carmelite Sisters of Baltimore Vision Statement).The contemplative asks this question: What is my experience of God and how do I allow that experience to inform my life? I was born and raised Catholic, went to Catholic school from kindergarten through college, and participated in the life of the Church, but I never realized that there was a deep mystical tradition within the Catholic Church. While I said my prayers and participated, on and off, in the sacraments, there is a way in which I kept God on the periphery. It was as if “my life” and “my life with God” were separate. My compartmentalization of God and my desire to help others caused me to focus my time and effort on my career, taking me from college into dental school, and subsequently into a very successful career as a dentist. At the age of 30, I owned two dental practices and in many respects I thought my life was set. And while I was very happy with the life I was living, I felt the desire for something more. As I allowed the light of Christ to infiltrate my life, I began to realize that while I had a wonderful career, it wasn’t a vocation. Vocation answers the question, who am I, not what do I do? And not just who am I, but specifically who am I in the light of Christ?
In this month of June, the Holy Father invites us to pray that the world might grow in compassion, that each one of us might find consolation in a personal relationship with Jesus, and from his Heart, learn to have compassion on the world.
Gianpaolo gives us a behind the scenes look at his upcoming Behold segment on the York University Catholic Chaplaincy.
On Sunday, June 8, 2025, Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass for the Jubilee of Movements, Associations, and New Communities and spoke about how the Holy Spirit helps the apostles overcome "their fear, shatters their inner chains, heals their wounds, anoints them with strength and grants them the courage to go out to all and to proclaim God’s mighty works."
Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass for the Jubilee of Families, Children, Grandparents, and the Elderly and referred to Pope Francis and mentioned spouses who have been beatified and canonized, like the parents of St. Therese of the Child Jesus.
Pope Leo XIV chose his name primarily to highlight his most recent namesake Leo XIII, whose "historic encyclical Rerum Novarum addressed the social question" to the challenges of his time. What concerns does the encyclical address? How does it speak to its time? And what has been its legacy 134 years later?