The Victor's Crown

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Who Was There? Yesterday, we looked at the exchange between Pilate and Jesus and Pilate's misunderstanding—or lack of understanding. But I keep coming back to this: How do we even know that this took place? Jesus is sent into the praetorium. The Jews don't follow Him because they'd be uncl...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Do You Understand? Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, "Are you the King of the Jews?" Jesus answered, "Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?" Pilate replied, "I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have ha...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Don't Be Judas Of course, there are many heartbreaking aspects of Holy Week. One that is painful to watch is Judas. Starting with complaining about wasting the expensive oil, to betraying our Lord, trying to undo it, to committing suicide. It's like watching a train wreck and not being abl...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Let your soul be stirred Holy Week is a powerful week for a variety of reasons. But one that stands out to me is that the stories we hear from the Gospels are so vivid we can imagine ourselves there. Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. Cleansing of the temple. The Last Supper. Our Lord’s passion,...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Healing the Wound "It is not enough to remove the arrow from the body. We also have to heal the wound caused by the arrow. It is the same with the soul. After we have received forgiveness for our sins, we have to heal the wound that remains through penance." — Saint John Chrysostom Yesterd...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- The Disparity It's around that time in Lent when many parishes will be having penance services or nights where multiple priests come in to hear confessions. I encourage you to take advantage of it. Because as I've been reflecting on the sacrament, this image came to mind: The incredible di...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Shadowboxing Do you not know that the runners in the stadium all run in the race, but only one wins the prize? Run so as to win. Every athlete exercises discipline in every way. They do it to win a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one. Thus I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight as...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- The Forty Over the weekend, we celebrated a feast day that's not super well-known in the Catholic world, but it's an important one—personally and for this publication. The Feast of the Holy Forty Martyrs of Sebaste. This is where the name "The Victor's Crown" comes from. Here's the story....

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- The Forty Over the weekend, we celebrated a feast day that's not super well-known in the Catholic world, but it's an important one—personally and for this publication. The Feast of the Holy Forty Martyrs of Sebaste. This is where the name "The Victor's Crown" comes from. Here's the story....

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- The Particulars of the Cross “We need to suffer patiently, not only in the burden of being ill, but of being ill with the particular illness that God wants for us, among the people that He wants us to be with, and with the discomforts that He permits us to experience.” — Saint Francis de S...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- The Good Guys Always Win When our family watches movies or reads stories, sometimes the kids will get a little anxious. It's exciting. You don't know what's going to happen. There's peril. There's danger. Is the hero going to make it? When that anxiety is starting to creep in and it's not...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- The Weight of the Stone I was doing research recently for a project and came across Saint John Paul II's homily from the Easter Vigil in 1979. He draws attention to the stone rolled in front of Christ's tomb. This is what was on the women’s minds as they came to the tomb but it also symbol...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Unhurried We live in a world that prizes speed. Efficiency. Optimization. Getting the most done in the least amount of time. But that pace is exhausting. It’s relentless. And I don’t think it’s how we were meant to live. There are some things that move at a natural pace. A natural rhythm....

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- As Planned This Lent has been harder than I expected. And certainly not for the reasons I would have expected. But I feel like that’s usually how Lent goes. You come up with a plan. And then, as Mike Tyson famously said, that plan gets thrown out the window as soon as you get hit in the mo...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Self Improvement There are things that we do as Catholics that the wider world might also do—but not for spiritual reasons. You can cut out social media to be more productive. You can fast to lose weight. You can give money to feel good about yourself. There’s a bit of a trap here for us d...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- See “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.” Isaiah 5:20-21 Depending on how much you get sucked into the news, or politics, or the wider world at large, I think this is what we see. T...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Thirst Now “If God ever causes you to suffer from thirst as He guides you through this life, it is because He will give you drink and plenty in the next life without any fear of it ever failing you.” — Saint Teresa of Ávila Lent can be a time of hunger and thirst in quite a literal way. Bu...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Sanctify Your Work "Sanctity, for the vast majority of men, implies sanctifying their work, sanctifying themselves in it, and sanctifying others through it. Thus, they can encounter God in the course of their daily lives." — Saint Josemaría Escrivá For the vast majority of us, our faith, o...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- The High Price “For highly valued things are not obtained except at a high price.” — Saint John Chrysostom Saint John Chrysostom was reflecting on a passage from the Gospel of Matthew. James and John’s mother comes to Jesus and asks that her sons be seated at His right and left in the king...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Want to Be Great Over the weekend, we had a bit of warm weather that, at least for the Northeast, made it feel like spring was just around the corner. I was able to get outside with my kids and play catch. My son is particularly excited about this season, asking questions like: "Dad, do yo...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Fight Bravely Lent is not a warm, fuzzy time. It’s challenging—physically, emotionally, spiritually. Self-reflective in a way that can be uncomfortable. Especially when we reflect on our sinfulness. But the opportunity in Lent is this: from that sinfulness, we can return to the Lord. Follo...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Active and Passive I recently came across a helpful distinction when we talk about mortifications. We think of mortifications as the disciplines or the things we give up—the way we embrace sacrifices during Lent. But there are actually two kinds: active and passive. Active mortifications a...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Keep the Cross in Lent “If anyone wants to possess Christ, never let him seek him without the cross.” — Saint John of the Cross This quote is such a good reminder for us in Lent. Think back a couple months ago to Christmas. Christmas is a joyful season. It’s so idealized in a sense—even th...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Look at the Altar During the season of Lent, we offer up prayers, fasting, and almsgiving to God. If we want to know how to make that offering, we can look at the Mass. We can look at the altar. And it’s pretty simple: we offer God our best. Look at the tabernacle. The candles. The chalice...

 Get the written version in your email inbox every morning by subscribing for free at TheVictorsCrown.com --- Hollow At Mass yesterday, a thought hit me: our prayers can be empty. Hollow. What I mean is this: you can be kneeling, head down, eyes closed, mouth moving, saying the prayers—but if your heart is not in the prayer, it’s empty. I won’t say it’s meaningless. I don’t think that’s my place t...