Across the Pacific, people are picking up the bones of their ancestors like shells on the beach. Burial grounds are being washed away by rising tides. Communities are shoring up seawalls with old tyres. I was raised on the beautiful island of Tonga. When I was a child, my parents and grandparents would come out Read more
A favourite millennium joke concerns a tableau staged in Heaven to celebrate 2000 years since the birth of Christ Jesus. As I remember it, it goes like this: It was a great celebration. The angels were in fine voice, and Jesus consented to be a baby again. He lay in Mary’s arms while Joseph sat Read more
Whatever we say about suffering will be largely subjective. It will come from our life experience and our beliefs. My brokenness will relate to the brokenness out there. Some will call that projection. Others will call it empathy. My own journeys through crucifixions and resurrections will prompt me to help others find the freedom of Read more
We all know what it is to feel pain and loss. Whether from the loss of a loved one, a cancer diagnosis, or a natural disaster, everyone experiences suffering. According to Robin Ryan, an associate professor of systematic theology at Catholic Theological Union and a Passionist priest, the presence of suffering is the one thing Read more
Pope Francis has said that if he is assassinated or attacked, he has asked God to spare him physical pain. In an interview with Buenos Aires favela publication La Carcova News, the Pope said he had asked the Lord to take care of him. “But if your will is that I die or that they Read more