Exorcist Diary: Mentally Tormented by Demons

It is becoming apparent to me that more than a few of those mentally tormented by their sins and failings of the past are actually suffering from demonic obsessions… There is a normal type of real-event OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) where a person obsessively ruminates about a real, or imagined, failing from the past. In the… Continue reading Exorcist Diary: Mentally Tormented by Demons

The Baptism of the Lord

On Sunday we celebrated Jesus’ baptism. In Catholicism, the liturgical season of “Christmas” does not even kick off until Christmas Eve, and then continues long after the world has moved on to marketing promotions for Super Bowl snacks, Valentine gifts, and TurboTax. I remember Father Jack, throughout my adolescent and teen years, quizzing the congregation,… Continue reading The Baptism of the Lord

Vanishing in Plain Sight – SpiritualDirection.com

Planes are disappearing from the skies, stocks are disappearing from the shelves, and workers are disappearing from their jobs.  It is happening all around us. Wherefore vanish these, purgatorial shadows? It happened to me just days ago.  I noticed that I vanished.  It began one quiet afternoon during a discussion with my supervisor at the… Continue reading Vanishing in Plain Sight – SpiritualDirection.com

The Word and Silence – SpiritualDirection.com

Anthony Lilles Anthony Lilles, a graduate of Franciscan University of Steubenville, completed his graduate and post-graduate studies in Rome at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas. He and his lovely wife, Agnes, are blessed with three children and live in California, where he is the Academic Dean, and Associate Professor of Theology, St. John’s Seminary,… Continue reading The Word and Silence – SpiritualDirection.com

An Unusual Christmas – SpiritualDirection.com

“Your father is recovering well,” the doctor assured us.  “He should be ready for a visit in a few minutes.” My sister and I breathed a sigh of relief.  Even though it was a routine heart procedure, our father’s declining health left both of us a bit nervous.  “Thank God”, I whispered to myself, realizing… Continue reading An Unusual Christmas – SpiritualDirection.com

St. Thérèse’s Eucharistic Poem – Dr. Kwasniewski

One of the most beloved and powerful of modern saints, St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus and of the Holy Face, is a wonderfully attractive model of a Catholic fully engaged in the liturgy without having to be a liturgical minister. She tells us why her contribution, though different from the priest’s, is no less… Continue reading St. Thérèse’s Eucharistic Poem – Dr. Kwasniewski