We often think of Lent as being 40 days long, but if you were to count the days from Ash Wednesday through Holy Saturday, you arrive at 46 days instead… What's that about?

Mass practically begins with a “penitential act.” It’s the first order of business, right after the Sign of the Cross and a basic greeting. It says, “first things first”—let’s acknowledge our sins. We should not discount that immediacy. The Penitential Act signals an indispensable element of right worship and liturgy: man’s moral standing before his God. God is holy; man is not. That dissonance is the barrier to right worship because it is the barrier to the divine-human relationship.

“The main current of Lent must flow through the interior man, through hearts and consciences. The essential effort of repentance consists in this. In this effort, the human determination to be converted to God is invested with the predisposing grace of conversion and, at the same time, of forgiveness and of spiritual liberation.”

While a bit of a dry topic, it can be helpful for Catholics to know some basic information about how the Church handles legal matters, especially in regards to the administration of the Sacraments.

There are few facts known about St. Blaise except that he was a fourth-century bishop in the city of Sebaste, Western Armenia, and died as a martyr. A physician, he was regarded as a righteous man and, at an early age, elected bishop by the citizens of Sebaste. He was martyred by beheading in the year 316. Beyond those few facts, much of what we know of Blaise comes from legends. He became, during the Middle Ages, one of the most popular of all the saints and today remains highly esteemed.

Two weeks ago, Pope Leo XIV proclaimed the year 2026 as a Franciscan Jubilee Year, commemorating the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis. Through this Jubilee, and until January 10 of next year, the faithful can obtain the special grace of a Plenary Indulgence under the usual conditions — sacramental confession, Communion, and prayer for the intentions of the Pope — by making a pilgrimage to any Franciscan conventual church or place of worship dedicated to St. Francis anywhere in the world. In light of this, I wish to offer a brief excerpt of a reflection on the liturgical contributions of St. Francis and the Franciscans to the Church.

A couple of weeks ago, Pope Leo XIV convened an Extraordinary Consistory, that is, a special 2 day meeting with all the Cardinals of the world. A Cardinal has two distinct roles in the life of the Church: 1) To elect new popes, and 2) To discuss with and advise the Pope on important matters of the Church.

Merry Christmas! Today, on the last day of the Christmas season, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, commemorating the occasion of St. John the Baptist baptizing our Lord in the Jordan River.

Merry Christmas! In two days, Pope Leo XIV will close the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica, officially bringing to a close the 2025 Jubilee. This Jubilee has been a blessing to me, as I had the privilege and joy to take three pilgrimages to Rome during the Jubilee, passed through all four Holy Doors, attended the Funeral Mass of Pope Francis, and attended the Canonization Mass of St. Pier Giorgio Frassati and St. Carlo Acutis. The Jubilee year called the entire church to journey (even if only spiritually) together to renew ourselves as pilgrims of hope, bearing in mind always that Hope [in Christ] does not disappoint.

Merry Christmas! Today, on this, the fourth day of the Octave of Christmas, Holy Church celebrates the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. The family: child, mother, and father, forms the basic unit of the church and is the root through which the tree of life and salvation grows, as evidenced by the Holy Family.

This year, holy Church celebrates the 1,700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea, held from May to August in the year 325 in the modern-day city of İznik, Turkey. One of the main topics of discussion at the council was who Jesus is metaphysically, especially in relation to God the Father.

“Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near.”

Today, the Church celebrates Gaudete Sunday, the Third Sunday of Advent. The name of this Sunday comes from the first word of the above Entrance Antiphon, sung at the start of the Mass today, which in Latin is Gaudete.

The nativity scene or crèche arose out of ancient piety and the medieval theater. Christians were honoring the cave in Bethlehem where Jesus Christ is believed to have been born even before St. Helen built the Basilica of the Nativity over it around A.D. 330. Medieval mystery plays later reenacted the Nativity, but when they got out of hand, Pope Honorius suppressed them.