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Current Issue
Welcome to the latest edition of Parable! Click on the image on the left to see the full edition. See the links below to read individual articles.
The Kingdom of Heaven is like ...
Jesus, Son of God and Mary; Jesus fully divine and fully human; Jesus who came down from Heaven and became man so that man could be taught first-hand by God! Jesus, how beautiful is that name and how simple is His teaching.
Jesus used the method of many others who taught by telling stories that people could identify with and would evoke sentiments like: “Oh, that happened to me!” “That’s always the way it goes, isn’t it?” or “I never thought of it that way – but now that I hear it, it makes sense.”
How It All Began
Reflecting on the Start of Parable and Its First 100 Issues
By Gary Bouchard
Photos by Jeff Dachowski
I never drive past the Airport Diner on Brown Avenue in Manchester without thinking, “It all started there.”
That’s where Father John Grace first shared with me his vision for a publication for the Diocese of Manchester that would tell stories the way Jesus had told parables. He spoke of a magazine that would offer positive, well-written content on a range of issues and feature engaging photography; a magazine that would inspire and encourage Catholics in their faith, even if, and especially if, they were rarely attending Mass. By the time I was finished with my eggs and toast that morning, I was in.
Jesus: The only true Christmas Gift
Dear Father Kerper, As I get older, I have less and less interest in exchanging gifts at Christmas. I know this traditional Christian practice reminds us of God’s gift of His Son to us, but I wish we could somehow move away from gift-giving at Christmas, which has become the center of everything. Am I wrong to question this long-standing Christian tradition?
At the risk of being called Scrooge, I dare say that your question and comments about the proper celebration of Christmas deserve careful attention.
You used the phrase “traditional Christian practice.” The word “traditional” usually refers to some practice, object or style that has existed for a long time. But what’s a long time? A year? A century? Or thousands of years?
Parents: Embrace Your Influence With a Family Prayer Corner
By Derek McDonald
All the experts agree: Our children are likely to stay Catholic if we show them, by word and example, that the faith is important to us.
The question then becomes, how do we do this? Apart from the essentials of Catholic living, how can parents make the most of their potential to positively affect their children’s faith lives?
One small way is to create a family prayer space in your home. Here are five simple steps to get started.
Experience Dorothy Day Through Her Own Voice in By Little and By Little
In my teaching at Saint Anselm, I often talk to students about the “faith/reason synthesis,” the idea that human knowledge of God comes from the cooperation of our faith and our intellect. Rather than choose between them, we use them both, understanding that they are both gifts from God.
Don’t Strive for One Day of Perfection — Remember There’s a Season to Celebrate
Are you looking at your calendar and realizing there’s no way you can celebrate a family Christmas on Christmas Day this year? Or maybe that’s the case every year. While everyone else you know is caroling, jingling, opening presents under the tree and merrily carving up a turkey or ham on Dec. 25, things at your house will look very different because your family looks different.
Learn From the Extraordinary Life of St. Padre Pio
In a broken world, the lives of the saints remind us that holiness is achievable in this lifetime. Through their actions and writings, these men and women reveal to us the face of God. Indeed, “to understand the Church, we need to be acquainted with the saints who are her most eloquent sign, her sweetest fruit. To contemplate the face of Christ in the changing, diversified situations of the modern world, we must look at the saints,” said Cardinal José Saraiva Martins in Lives of Saints Show the World the Divine in the Human.
Sacred Spaces
The Special Role of Catholic Cemeteries
By Tara Bishop
Did you ever notice that when visiting a cemetery, we tend to speak softly — or even whisper? That sense of reverence while we move among those who have passed from this life to the next is all-encompassing. We somehow, almost innately, understand that we are walking on sacred ground. In fact, Catholic churches and Catholic cemeteries are the only two places that feature this consecrated ground.
Truth Tends to Hit Nerves
I don’t remember exactly when I received the email, but I remember what it said. As a priest, responding to emails has increasingly become “part of the job.” The problem is not writing back. Rather, it is keeping up with the sheer number and complexity of requests. It can overwhelm one during an already busy day.
