The American Catholic Spirt

Father Garrett Nelson, a missionary priest in the Diocese of Great Falls-Billings, Montana, offers a brief reflection on the Gospel reading for the first week of Lent. 

Afterward, listen to an interview with Father Garrett on his ministry in the wide open spaces--driving almost 1,000 miles every week to deliver the sacraments to Catholics in the vast reaches of his diocese.

Subscribe to our Lenten reflection email series.

Watch a video featuring Father Garrett Nelson.

Instead of chocolate or soda, how about giving up pessimism, anger, or gossiping? This episode offers some quick tips on making this your best Lent yet.

If you would like to receive weekly Lenten meditations via email, sign up at www.catholicextension.org/reflect

If you would like to make a Lenten offering to Catholic Extension, please visit www.catholicextension.org/give

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If you look beyond the island paradise inhabited by tourists, the U.S. Virgin Islands is the poorest area of the United States. Tim Muldoon, our director of mission education, reflects on a recent trip to survey the damage to the islands after Hurricane Maria.

Read more and consider making a gift to support the rebuilding effort.

At a time when many Catholic schools are struggling with enrollment, fighting to survive, and at times shutting their doors, an innovative program is strengthening Catholic schools and educational outcomes in some of the nation’s most impoverished communities.

The Catholic School Leadership Development Initiative, a partnership between Loyola Marymount University and Catholic Extension, seeks to develop a pipeline of educated Catholic school leaders in dioceses with limited resources and staff.

Learn more about this program and hear some of the inspiring success stories of leaders who participated.

If you would like to support the initiative, make a gift in honor of your favorite teacher at www.catholicextension.org/teacher.

As we honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King this week, we remember Florence Kaster, our first Lumen Christi Award recipient, who supported poor African-American communities in Kingstree, South Carolina and fought against prejudice and injustice for more than 30 years.

Learn more about the Lumen Christi Award and read the story of the 2017-2018 recipient.

In 1865 the English hymn writer William Chatterton Dix published “What Child Is This?" Dix paints for us a picture of the birth of Jesus in a town on the margins of ancient Rome, wondering at the mystery of why God would enter into human history in such an obscure place--"Why lies he in such mean estate?"

Dix’s question gets right at the heart of Christian meditation on the nativity of Christ: the mystery of why the Incarnation happened not in a center of power or wealth, but rather amidst poverty, forced migration, and uncertainty. Listen to this reflection from Dr. Tim Muldoon to learn more about the transformative ways that God uses the least among us.

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Pope Francis recently sent Cardinal Blase Cupich to the hurricane-battered island of Puerto Rico to express his deep concern for the people and reach out in solidarity on his behalf to those who are suffering.

Read more and see photos

Dr. Tim Muldoon, Catholic Extension's director of mission education, recently joined more than 4,000 people on a 32-mile procession to celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe in the Coachella Valley of California. Hear his reflections on the history, meaning and devotion to this Marian apparition.

Click here to see photos and videos from the procession.

In this episode, Dr. Tim Muldoon shares reflections from a recent trip to the Diocese of El Paso, including stories of immigrants fleeing violence in their home countries and finding refuge and peace in the Catholic Church. He also talks about a moving border Mass held on the Rio Grande canal on the U.S.-Mexico border.

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For many areas ravaged by the recent hurricanes, daily life is still far from being back to normal. Listen to this update from Bishop Curtis J. Guillory, Bishop Herbert A Bevard and Archbishop Roberto González Nieves from the dioceses of Beaumont, St. Thomas and San Juan to hear about the efforts of the Catholic Church to help suffering communities in these areas. There are also some inspiring stories and glimpses of hope rising from the rubble.

Click here to make a gift in support of Catholic Extension's ongoing hurricane relief efforts.