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The two main characteristics of charity are to do good for one’s beloved and to live in union with him or her. Using images drawn from friendship as well as marriage, Jesus tries to tell us how closely united with us he longs to be. It was to the end of this unity that he became eternally united to us by taking a human nature. The goal of this section is to pray and reflect through the meaning of the Incarnation and the presence of the Holy Spirit—in our lives and …

Mere emotional assent to holiness will not suffice, even though that can be a part of it. Intellectual assent, although pivotal, by itself won’t suffice either. It is imperative that we rediscover personally this profound truth of the Holy Spirit’s outpouring and seek it daily. We should commit ourselves anew to:  daily invocation of the Holy Spirit, particularly in moments of decision-making, temptation, or dryness;  regular and devout sacramental participati …

St. Paul was martyred in the mid-A.D. 60s, and he wrote his letters in the 50s and 60s, making them very early sources about Jesus—much earlier, Mythicists say, than the Gospels.   Mythicists frequently state that if Jesus were a real, historical figure, St. Paul would tell us about his life; but he only speaks about Jesus as a heavenly individual. He doesn’t tell us stories about his life, give sayings of Jesus, or relate biogra …

When one traces the golden thread of salvation history, the Holy Spirit is never absent. He is there, veiled or visible, from the dawn of creation to the descent at Pentecost. It was the Spirit who hovered over the deep (Gen. 1:2); the same Spirit who inspired the prophets of Israel (Ezek. 37:1-14); the same Spirit who overshadowed Mary, bringing about the Incarnation (Luke 1:35); and the same Spirit who descended upon Jesus at his baptism, publicly marking him for the messianic missi …

We should first briefly consider some objections to the concept of miracles. Today, in the secular Western world, many are skeptical of the very possibility that miracles can occur.   This is an assumption of secular Westerners, but it is not shared by other peoples. And there is actually a great deal of evidence that miracles do occur, including in today’s world. The Catholic Church has rigorously evaluated many reported miracle …