The world is a dark place these days. Just watching the news or skimming the headlines can leave you with a queasy feeling in your stomach and a sense of hopelessness. The darkness reaches into every corner of society, and this past year, it's become painfully clear that it has poisoned organizations and relationships that…
Since today is the Feast of the Queenship of Mary, it seems like a fitting time to follow up on my "Do Women Rule?" blog post. In that post, I explored the Catholic Church's teaching on women and authority and concluded that, while the ministerial priesthood is reserved for men, the Church encourages women to…
I've heard it a million times: "Catholics don't think women can have authority." I've heard it from Catholics and non-Catholics, people who agree with this supposed position and those who don't. There are a million variations on the same theme. And I get it--Catholics often don't do a great job of explaining why the priesthood…
Frankly, I don't remember how I happened upon this life hack. Maybe someone recommended it to me or I read about it somewhere. Maybe the Holy Spirit whispered it into my ear. However I discovered it, though, this little tip has had a huge impact on my life. A couple years ago, I did the…
Continue reading ➞ Have You Prayed Today? Love, Your Smartphone
Sitting down to write a blog post in honor of St. Joan of Arc's feast day is a somewhat daunting task, I've discovered. Part of me is tempted to forgo it altogether. There are plenty of excuses standing between me and my keyboard: I've written a post on her before, there is so much literature…
One of my all-time favorite quotes, from one of my all-time favorite saints. Edith Stein (her religious name was Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, but she is still called by her birth name more often than not) is an incredible saint, and if you don't know her story, I strongly suggest you learn more about…
"Dream big." How many times have we seen this phrase blazoned across an inspirational poster or repeated ad nauseam by a coach or teacher? Yet how many of us have really taken the time to stop and think about what this means? Depending on the context, it can seem like a trite and meaningless phrase.…
Around this time every year, our minds turn to those who are less fortunate. In the spirit of Christmas, we renew our commitment to helping the poor, the oppressed, and the lonely. Plus, on a practical level, the end of the year is a great time to take stock of our finances and figure out…
Continue reading ➞ The New Feminist’s Guide to End-of-Year Giving
Happy Feast of Sts. Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, Archangels...wow, that's a mouthful! No wonder it used to be known as just "Michaelmas." While I have a strong devotion to St. Michael, and there are some lovely traditions that go along with Michaelmas, it seems a shame that St. Michael should get most of the attention.…
Continue reading ➞ The Single Girl’s Guide to the Archangels
By now, we are all used to hearing the phrase "women's empowerment." It has become almost synonymous with the notion of feminism. In some ways, this is a positive development. For most of history, women were kept on the sidelines and prevented from holding positions of authority simply because they were not men. In the…
The New Feminist 