Perspective

Hundreds of priests processed into the March 25 Installation Mass of Archbishop James Golka. (Photo by Grant Whitty/Denver Catholic) I could not attend Archbishop Golka’s Installation Mass in person, but I did tune in to the livestream for as long as I could. As I watched the lengthy procession of priests from across our archdiocese, I unexpectedly felt warm tears of gratitude roll down my cheeks. Many of the faces I recognized, and I was deeply moved by the sight of our clergy moving in...

Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich in November 2018. (Photo by Olivier LPB via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0). Your Eminence:   In an article recently published by a major German Catholic website, you suggested that the question of whether the Church can ordain women has not been definitively settled: “I cannot imagine how a Church can continue to exist in the long run if half of God’s people suffer because they have no access to ordained ministry.” Putting aside for a moment the questions of...

Celebrating Lent is straightforward: penance, fasting, prayer, almsgiving. But how should a Catholic celebrate Easter? (Photo: Lightstock)   Easter is the feast of all feasts, and its fifty-day season stands atop the liturgical year as its climax. While we might recognize this reality, the Easter season can seem like a letdown. While the goal of Lent appears to be clear-cut — fight against sin, do penance, increase prayer and give alms — what about Easter? What are we supposed to do for fifty...

Pope Leo XIV greets visitors and pilgrims from the popemobile while riding around St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican before his weekly general audience March 18, 2026. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez) On March 21, the Wall Street Journal published a lengthy profile of the Pope as its “Saturday Essay.” The subtitle — “Pope Leo XIV pushes back against President Trump. Can the pontiff from Chicago make a difference in an era of power politics?” — gave the game away from the git-go: the Pope is to be...

Kiss of Judas by Giotto, c. 1304–1306, Scrovegni Chapel, Padua, Italy. (Photo: Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons) “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.” Hebrews 4:15   The comfort of a familiar embrace. The closeness of being gathered into another’s cloak. The quiet affection of being near enough to share a kiss. In Giotto’s fresco, Judas not only betrays Jesus with a...

"Christ Falling on the Way to Calvary" by Raphael, c. 1516. (Photo: Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons) The Way of the Cross — and the third, seventh, and ninth stations in particular — has been an especially appropriate Lenten devotion this year. Every day, it seems, some new craziness erupts in the world, the country, or the Church. Every time we think we see rays of hope and possibility, we take another fall. So it’s good to remember this Holy Week, with Hans Urs von Balthasar, that we...

"Christ in Limbo" painting in Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ Church in Bischheim, France. (Photo: Ralph Hammann via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0) Do you feel stuck in the spiritual life, like something is holding you back? Did Lent fall short of bringing about deeper conversion?   Holy Week, as the culmination of Lent, seeks to resolve these dangling tensions, as we celebrate the Paschal Mystery, the new Passover initiated by Jesus. It’s about experiencing liberation, the freedom that comes...

(Photo by André Escaleira, Jr./Denver Catholic) When I began my time in the Diocese of Colorado Springs, I said I was fascinated by Jesus Christ, and I have been for much of my life. What was true then, and what was true in the Scriptures, is only truer today. I am fascinated by the way that Jesus makes himself present in our world today. I am fascinated by Jesus’ words, which echo through the centuries and in your heart and mine. I am fascinated by the way that he loved all those he...

St. Augustine Arguing with Donatists by Charles André van Loo, c. 1753. (Photo: Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons) My Lenten reading has included an interesting, if somewhat odd, book about the greatest of the Latin Fathers of the Church: Augustine the African by Catherine Conybeare, a philologist currently teaching at Bryn Mawr. The interesting part of the book reframes Augustine as a North African provincial who sees the world differently — and thus thinks differently and more creatively...

A Catholic call to contrition, confession and change. The Confession by Giuseppe Molteni (1838). Oil on canvas, 173.5 x 141 cm (68.3 x 55.5 in). Cariplo Collection, Gallerie di Piazza Scala, Milan. (Photo: Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons) For those struggling to get out of habits of mortal sin, frequent Confession is a necessity. But since venial sins are not required to be confessed, I set out to be convinced of the benefits of frequent Confession. The Catholic Church teaches that...

Part Four: To evangelize well, we must first be good and holy friends. (Photo: Lightstock) Editor's Note: This column is part of a yearlong series on evangelization, breaking down what often feels like a tall order into real, practical, actionable steps towards intentional accompaniment. Part One: A Practical Guide for Everyday Catholics Part Two: Be A Disciple First Part Three: Discern Who to Accompany It’s been fifteen grueling months, but my dog is finally  obedient. Kind of. Sometimes....

From a challenging homily to pilgrimage in France, one local priest reflects on the mission of spiritual fatherhood in an apostolic age.   Father Trevor Lontine says Mass at the tomb of St. John Vianney in Ars, France, during a recent pilgrimage. (Photo provided) By Father Trevor Lontine  A Priestly Challenge at the Start of My Priesthood  On May 15, 2022, Father Dan Barron, OMV, stood at the pulpit in St. Joseph Parish in Denver and asked a simple question. There are so many bad and abusive...