Understanding Our Church
A Treasury of Arkansas Writers Discussing the Catholic Faith
Official Website of the
Catholic Diocese of Little Rock
Understanding Our Church
Explore this treasury of Arkansas writers discussing the Catholic faith on a wide variety of topics. Find what you're looking for by browsing the whole list or search by keyword or author. All articles have been reviewed for theological accuracy. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
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Through baptism all are united in the royal priesthood of Jesus Christ Msgr. Richard Oswald In an address to the clergy of Rome in February 1997, Pope John Paul II said, “To be a true help to young people and to all involved in the mission of the Church, and to live fully our own priesthood, it is essential to always to put Jesus at the center of our efforts. St. |
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Lectio Divina offers in-depth Scripture reflection, meditation Charlotte Miller Sometimes on TV we see the warning: “Do not try this at home.” Such an admonition would never be appropriate for prayer, however; we must “try it” at home, even though we sometimes feel we do not know how to pray. |
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Focus on what you can do for others rather than what you can’t Sister Mary Lou Stubbs, DC “Do not let the things you cannot do interfere with the things you can do.” I received that sage advice from a recent fortune cookie. As with many of the ordinary little things of daily life, it reminded me of a core set of scriptural lessons. |
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Psalms help us go to God as we are, not as we think we should be Judy Hoelzeman My younger brother was born when I was 15 months old. He was hale and hearty, but my mother developed a blood clot after the delivery and almost died. |
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Using Latin helps assembly experience universality of Catholic Church Father James P. West “The use of the Latin language, with due respect to particular law, is to be preserved in the Latin rites.” Sacrosanctum Concilium, 36 “Clearly, Vatican II never envisioned the loss of Latin in the Church’s liturgy, yet that is what happened in so many places.” |
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In Bible, God’s saving Word comes to us in a real and personal way Abbot Jerome Kodell, OSB Since the Second Vatican Council, the lives of many Catholics have been enriched and transformed by their reading, study and meditation of the Bible. |
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How do I know if I have a religious vocation? Sister Kimberly Prohaska, OSB How do I know if I have a religious vocation? Many young people ask this very question; in fact I asked it myself not very long ago. The answer is not something you can find and define in a simple way. It is a mystery. |
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Four evangelists’ symbols came from themes in their Gospels Charles T. Sullivan The word evangelist comes from the Greek meaning, “proclaimer of the Good News.” Certainly Jesus was an evangelist: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. |
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We experience Jesus’ touch through seven sacraments of the Church Deacon John Marschewski Catholics my age or older, for the most part, grew up with the traditional Baltimore Catechism definition of a sacrament. I believe that definition went like this: “A sacrament is an outward (visible) sign instituted by Christ to give grace.” |
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Why Catholic? helps teach us how to explain reason for our hope Father Erik Pohlmeier Catholics around the state have just completed an amazing cycle in their lives of faith: the 40 days of Lenten preparation, the celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus, the welcoming of new souls to the sacraments, and now the expectation of the coming Holy Spirit in Pentecost. |
