I  grew up in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. My family’s relatives lived in a state less humid than Rio, and part of the wonder of our childhood was the number of...

A few times a year my electronic devices experience what I call “the upgrade syndrome.” Suddenly, apps and programs that once worked perfectly start to slow down. My work becomes unfruitful,...

My kitchen was clean. The pile of papers and kid toys that often rested on the table were gone. Only an unidentified sour smell remained, but I had no time to...

This has been a tough week for self-concept. We’ve begun to understand how thoroughly self-idolatry creeps into so many nooks and crannies of our identity. And perhaps most difficult is the...

This scripture offers some answers to a nagging question: How can self-idolatry ever end? Paul’s rhapsodic exultation about Christ’s love opens the window to a satisfying, lasting remedy: Replace your self-adulation...

Today’s reading is part of a longer narrative that stretches over two days of Jesus’ ministry. Right in the middle of the action we note a significant event—the people want to...

Since this psalm is attributed to David, we may wonder if he composed these lines before he ruined his and others’ lives with adultery and murder. Or did this psalm come...

Raw atheism—“there is no god”—can be an easy target for theists like us. How nice it can be to mow down opponents with verse 1’s wonderful insult! After all, who wants...

In the rite of confession—Confiteor—the admission of guilt is followed by the phrases, “Through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault.” In these words—mea culpa in Latin—the repentant...

David’s sexual dalliance or his murderous plot? There were good reasons to justify himself just like any other self-made person: “I’m in charge here, and I deserve to do what I...