The day before Ash Wednesday has many different names and traditions, to include Fat Tuesday and Mardi Gras. However, there is one fairly recent pre-Ash Wednesday tradition that actually takes place right here in Kansas. It began in England with the observation of Shrove Tuesday. This tradition is what we know today as the International Pancake […]
Hanukkah: It’s a Catholic Thing!?
November 28, 2013 by
A few words up front: This is in no way an attempt to hijack a religious holiday from our spiritual elder brothers and sisters; far from it. But the simple fact is: It’s in the Bible. More to the point, it’s in the part of the Bible that Catholics accept as canonical (i.e.: infallibly part […]
The End of New Years Resolutions
January 1, 2013 by
The ball has dropped, and a new year has begun here in the states. 2013 brings with it the promise that all years bring: a chance to start over, to build a new habit, stop an old one, and slowly work on becoming a better person. This tradition is a good one over all (other […]
The Ultimate Advent / Christmas / Winter Song Collection
December 11, 2012 by
On Advent, Christmas (Holiday), Christmas (Secular), and Winter Music It’s no secret: I love Advent. I find something terribly saddening when people start playing Christmas music in October (or earlier), and then cease playing it on December 26th, thereby messing up the entire Advent season and Christmas season. Not because I dislike any of these songs, but […]
All Hallow’s Eve: A Halloween Manifesto
October 31, 2012 by
There have been a few divisive camps among Catholics as to how best to celebrate Halloween. Some let their kids dress up as ghouls and ghosts, seeing no harm in it. Some view it as a way to “laugh at the devil” and the power of death. We have a desire to encounter the frightening, but in […]