Emmaus Blog

Monday, June 9, 2026: 'We cannot get beyond our racial, tragic past without a confrontation with our history. We can't get over something that we've never acknowledged.' -  Fr. Bryan Massingale Descendants of slaves once owned and sold by the Jesuits are among those welcoming Pope Leo XIV's formal apology for the Catholic Church's historical involvement in slavery. The move has been largely praised by Black Catholic leaders, scholars and descendant communities as it renews debate over how fully the church has reckoned with its past. The apology appears in Magnifica Humanitas, Leo's first encyclical. While the document primarily focuses on artificial intelligence and human dignity in the modern world, one paragraph drew immediate attention for addressing slavery and the church's complicity in it. In paragraph 176, Leo acknowledged that ecclesiastical institutions owned slaves in antiquity and the Middle Ages and that the Apostolic See had "interven...

 Saturday, June 6, 2026:  Someone said grief is like glitter. Dear Sisters and Brothers of Emmaus:  (Corey Patin in Italy) I'm sorry I haven't written for the past couple of weeks. We found out on Friday, May 22nd that our beloved nephew Corey passed away in his sleep during the early hours of that day. It was hard to believe that terrible news and at first I thought someone might have sent us a text by mistake. Sadly, that afternoon my sister Tina, Corey's mother, and his sister Kara confirmed his death for us.  Corey never missed a day of work in 12 years and when he didn't show up his work colleagues grew suspicious. They called Corey's best friend who went to his apartment and found his body. He was only 41 years old.  We had just shared a house with Corey and other family members in Salt Lake City -- a celebration of our niece's PhD graduation. We spend three days retelling family stories, listening to Corey's jokes which he loved telling (he laughed he...

 Thursday, May 21, 2026:  So why not be ravished by the Holy Spirit? Be overcome, overpowered, transported, delighted, entranced, enchanted, stunned, enraptured into a beguiling dance. More than a dove, the Holy Spirit can be glimpsed in a kaleidoscope of forms by Art Blumberg in NCR I've been told that I must trust in the Holy Spirit, for the Holy Spirit trusts in me. I say this not with pride but humility, and more than a touch of trembling. So far beyond me, yet so near. In all the Spirit's forms and manifestations, how it appears when most needed or when least expected. Keeping my eyes and ears, body, mind and soul open. I believe, yes, the Spirit does dwell within me. Yes, the Spirit does surround and envelop me. As it does for everyone, for everything. Yet in what form will we find it? So often when we think of the Holy Spirit, it's as a dove. A soft trilling coo, comfort and peace and harmony But the Holy Spirit can be wild and tempestuous, coming where and when it w...

Wednesday, May 20, 2026:  We celebrate this gift of the Spirit as it deeply affects our own lives today. To my brothers and sisters of our Beloved Emmaus Community,  Our next liturgy on May 22nd will be a celebration of Pentecost the culmination of the Easter season and the Paschal Mystery  - a journey that takes us from The Passover, to Jesus’ trial, crucifixion, death, resurrection, accompaniment with the disciples, ascension and visitation of the Spirit on Pentecost. Pentecost comes fifty days after Jesus’ resurrection and celebrates God’s gift of the Holy Spirit to the Apostles. In this feats, the disciples receive the the grace and courage to leave their hiding place and take the message of the Resurrected Christ into their communities – “unto the ends of the earth..”  Many consider Pentecost the birthday of the Church. We celebrate this gift of the Spirit as it deeply affects our own lives today. We will explore this more in our shared homily. The Resurrected C...

Monday, May 18, 2026:  when God started laughing and dancing and throwing small stones in the air, I melted “God,” I said. “Blogging with you is like trying to shovel water out of a fast moving river.”  God said nothing.   This is one of God’s favorite responses. Even though I’m used to it, I don’t like it. My motivation wanes and I assess the strength of my arms, the shape of the morning, the level of courage left after the terrors of the night. It isn’t easy to let go and make contact with something that vibrates like God. My brittle convictions are always in danger of breaking. My perch is precarious and I don’t look down for very long. “Down is the wrong direction,” God says, the voice rising from the frost on the windows. This time, I give God a taste of her own medicine. I say nothing . God: “Down is the wrong direction, and anyway, the only real escape is breakage. Don’t be afraid. I work best with colorful fragments, contrite hearts, and brave, belligerent foolish...

Friday, May 15, 2026:  "The homeland is the heart, the pulse, the artery, and the eyes. We are its sacrifice. Palestine." My great-grandfather, uncle, and aunt in Palestine. In 1938, my grandfather was born in a land called Palestine. Ten years later, unmarked soldiers would come into his village, break down doors, and steal his neighbors’ homes and lands. Suddenly, the radio wasn't calling the land Palestine anymore, marking the beginning of the Nakba (The Catastrophe), which is commemorated today. Some of his neighbors were killed, some of them were taken as prisoners to work in labor camps, and some had to move far away, confined to crumbling refugee camps in surrounding countries like Jordan and Lebanon. My great-grandmother in Palestine.  30 years later, in 1968, my grandfather's dad was shot in the head by an Israeli settler. Not only were my grandfather and his siblings having to confront the fact that their land looked and felt different now, but also that thi...

Thursday, May 14, 2026: “FOR THREE HOURS, NOBODY KNEW WHERE POPE LEO XIV HAD GONE…” —  Nυrses Iпside A Childreп’s Hospital Witпessed A Momeпt They Say They Will Never Forget May 12, 2026 at 11:04 AM For most of the world, Pope Leo XIV is seeп as oпe of the most recogпized spiritυal figυres oп Earth.  A maп sυrroυпded by ceremoпies, global aυdieпces, secυrity teams, aпd eпdless respoпsibilities carried oп behalf of millioпs of Catholics across the world. Bυt this week, a qυiet story emergiпg from a childreп’s hospital may have chaпged how maпy people see him forever. Accordiпg to soυrces close to the sitυatioп, a 7-year-old girl sυfferiпg from termiпal braiп caпcer had oпe fiпal wish dυriпg the last stage of her illпess. She waпted to meet Pope Leo XIV. The reqυest reportedly came from the child’s family after doctors privately warпed them that her coпditioп had become iпcreasiпgly fragile followiпg moпths of aggressive treatmeпt. At first, пobody expected aпythiпg extraordiпar...