I grew up in a predominantly Catholic small town in Upstate New York; I share this only to say that before going to college I hadn't had anyone really question me on the finer points of Catholicism. I had people in high school ask me the "normal" teenage questions: "How do you know that God exists?" "If God exists why does he let bad things happen?" etc. But once I got to college I had people asking me things like, "Why do Catholics believe that they're actually eating Jesus' Body and Blood?" "Why do Catholics worship saints?" "Why do you have to go to confession?" "Why do you have  to go to Mass every Sunday (even if you are also going to a different church, too)?" "Why do Catholics believe you can buy your way into heaven?" "What's the deal with Mary? Why do Catholics worship her like God?"
 

My younger sister is a photographer who continually amazes me by seeing details I tend to pass right over. Recently, she visited Our Lady of Peace and I gave her a brief tour. 

Just outside of Door 4, she stopped me: “Wait!”

In the Month of November, we remember our beloved dead in a special way: by praying that they may have eternal life with Christ.

Please join us in praying for these members of our community. 

A few weeks ago when Deacon John gave a homily at Mass he shared an image of a parent and child that, for him, represented the child-like relationship that God wants us to have with him. Deacon John then encouraged us to come up with our own image. 

I have a 20-month-old toddler, so I have no shortage of images of child-parent relationships, but there is one from a year ago that has always clung to me.