The Discerning Hearts Blog Archives - Discerning Hearts Catholic Podcasts

Deacon James Keating reflects on the deep reality of emotional suffering, especially loneliness, rejection, and isolation that cannot always be relieved by therapy or circumstance. He speaks of how such pain mirrors Christ’s own experiences of misunderstanding and abandonment, making it a place where intimacy with Jesus can grow. At the same time, he acknowledges the real human need for friendship, community, and belonging. Because suffering becomes crushing when endured alone, the Christian community has a serious responsibility to notice those who are quietly hurting and to bring Christ’s presence to them through real, embodied relationships rather than words alone.

One cannot truly accompany the suffering without first allowing Christ to enter one’s own wounds. Authentic ministry flows from having faced personal brokenness in the light of God’s love, not from unmet needs or abstract knowledge about God. Deacon Keating connects this to a meditation on the Passion of Christ, where God freely enters human pain out of love. By placing personal sorrow within Christ’s wounds and contemplating the Cross daily, suffering is transformed into communion, gratitude, and hope, revealing that no one is abandoned in their pain and that love, by its very nature, always involves the surrender of the self.

Deacon James Keating, Ph.D., is a professor of Spiritual Theology and serves as a spiritual director at Kenrick Glennon Seminary in St. Louis, MO.

Check out Deacon Keating’s “Discerning Heart” page

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Father Timothy Gallagher continues his explanation of St. Ignatius of Loyola’s three modes of discernment by focusing on the third mode, used when neither immediate certainty nor a clear pattern of spiritual attraction has emerged. This approach relies on a calm, prayerful use of reason to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of each good option from the standpoint of God’s greater glory. The person discerning must first understand the decision clearly, gather all relevant information, and cultivate interior freedom so the heart is not already fixed on an outcome. Prayer for light and guidance prepares the mind to evaluate the options honestly, often using a structured comparison that looks not only at the number of reasons but also their depth and significance.

The process is illustrated through extended examples, showing how discernment unfolds over time with patience, prayer, and spiritual direction. In the story of Patrick, a man invited into full-time prison ministry, the third mode gradually leads to interior clarity while also reshaping his motivations and desires. As Patrick reflects, prays with Scripture, and reviews his reasons, resistance gives way to readiness, culminating in a moment of unmistakable insight confirmed through prayer and peace. All three modes of discernment lead to the same end: a firm clarity that allows a person to move forward with confidence and trust in God’s guidance, supported by ongoing spiritual accompaniment.

From The Discernment of God’s Will in Everyday Decisions:

“Three Times in which a Sound and Good Choice May Be Made

The first time is when God Our Lord so moves and attracts the will that, without doubting or being able to doubt, the devout soul follows what is shown to it, as St. Paul and St. Matthew did in following Christ our Lord.

The second time is when sufficient clarity and understanding is received through experience of consolations and desolations, and through experience of discernment of different spirits.

The third time is one of tranquility, when one considers first for what purpose man is born, that is, to praise God our Lord and save his soul, and, desiring this, chooses as a means to this end some life or state within the bounds of the Church, so that he may be helped in the service of his Lord and the salvation of his soul. I said a tranquil time, that is, when the soul is not agitated by different spirits, and uses its natural powers freely and tranquilly.

If the choice is not made in the first or second time, two ways of making it in this third time are given below.”

Father Timothy M. Gallagher, O.M.V., was ordained in 1979 as a member of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, a religious community dedicated to retreats and spiritual formation according to the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius.  Fr. Gallagher is featured on the EWTN series “Living the Discerning Life:  The Spiritual Teachings of St. Ignatius of Loyola”. For more information on how to obtain copies of Fr. Gallaghers’s various books and audio which are available for purchase, please visit  his  website:   frtimothygallagher.org

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“On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Twelve Drummers Drumming …” sounding out the cadence of what we believe in our lives, the Twelve Points of Doctrine in the Apostle’s Creed:

1. I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

Text gratefully found at

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Msgr. John Esseff reflects on the significance of the Epiphany, a Christian feast day that celebrates the revelation of God incarnate as Jesus Christ. He begins by reflecting on the beauty of the stars and their symbolism as a guide. The Epiphany commemorates the manifestation of Jesus to the Gentiles, represented by the three kings who followed a star to find Jesus and offer gifts, fulfilling ancient prophecies.

Jesus’ birth was not only for the Jews but for all nations. This universal aspect of Jesus’ mission is highlighted by the fact that the Magi were from different nations. Msgr. Esseff relates this story to the present, asking listeners to consider how Jesus is manifested in today’s world. He suggests that each individual has the potential to reveal Christ to others through their actions and words.

Msgr. Esseff includes personal anecdotes and reflections on how various individuals, including saints and ordinary people, have radiated the light of Christ in their lives. He encourages us to be a “star” in our communities, radiating the light and love of Jesus through their actions and interactions. It’s a call for all of us to manifest Christ in their daily lives, shining as lights to the nations and continuing the work of the Epiphany in the modern world.

Rise up in splendor, Jerusalem!  Your light has come,

Then you shall be radiant at what you see,

Msgr. John A. Esseff is a Roman Catholic priest in the Diocese of Scranton.  Msgr. Esseff served as a retreat director and confessor to St. Teresa of Calcutta.    He continues to offer direction and retreats for the sisters of the Missionaries of Charity around the world.  Msgr. Esseff encountered St.  Padre Pio,  who would become a spiritual father to him.  He has lived in areas around the world,  serving in the Pontifical missions, a Catholic organization established by Pope St. John Paul II to bring the Good News to the world, especially to the poor.  He continues to serve as a retreat leader and director to bishops, priests, sisters, seminarians, and other religious leaders around the world.    

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“On the eleventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me: Eleven Pipers Piping …” symbolizing the eleven faithful apostles: Simon Peter, Andrew, James, John, Phillip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot and Judas son of James. The list does not include Judas Iscariot, the twelfth disciple who betrayed Jesus.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, Your Son Jesus called the twelve to His side, called them to leave their homes and families, just as Jesus left his to teach us to live worthily. As we are called this holy season to help the poor and needy, the weak, the inflicted and the abandoned help us to walk perseveringly in the difficult and sometimes painful paths of service to others.  Amen. 

Text gratefully found at

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On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: Ten Lords A Leaping …” the lords or rulers of our lives establish the law. The lords stand for the Ten Commandments given to Moses on Mt. Sinai, which are holy and good, by which we should live and by which we are all judged. (Gal 3:10-28)

Text gratefully found at

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Living by the Light That Has Been Given

Scripture

“Rise, take the child and his mother, and go.”
Matthew 2:13

Reflection

Epiphany reveals Christ to the world. Over these days of prayer, we have seen that God makes Himself known freely and clearly. The Light is given. The Son is revealed. The Father’s saving work is made visible in history.

The Magi do not remain where they are. Having encountered Christ, they depart by another way. Their journey does not end at the place of revelation. It continues, shaped by what they have seen.

This is how Epiphany comes to completion. God’s self-giving calls forth a response that carries into life beyond the moment of encounter. Those who have received the Light do not possess it for themselves. They live by it.

Over these days of prayer, Epiphany has unfolded as the Church herself proclaims it. Christ is revealed to the nations, acknowledged by those who seek Him, and declared by the Father as His beloved Son at the Jordan. The Baptism of the Lord belongs within this mystery because it is there that Christ is made known openly as the Son sent for the salvation of the world. Together, these moments form one saving revelation. The Son is given. The Father speaks. The Light is offered to all.

This revelation meets the world we inhabit now. Christ, the Light given by the Father, does not remain distant from our lives. Through grace, He shines within us, calling us to bear His light into the world we actually live in. Wherever we are placed, in our homes, our work, our vocations, and our daily encounters, Christ desires to make Himself known through those who belong to Him. The Light revealed in Christ is not meant to be hidden. It is given so that it may reach all we meet, in every place and circumstance.

Epiphany reminds us that Christ’s manifestation is not an event to be admired and set aside. It is a gift that reorients the heart and shapes the path ahead. The Light that has been revealed now calls to be lived.

Today I ask for the grace to live faithfully by the light Christ has given me.

O Lord Jesus Christ,
You have made Yourself known
for the salvation of the world.

Receive my life
as I place it again in Your care.

Send forth Your Holy Spirit into my heart,
that I may live according to the light
You have revealed.

Guide my steps,
strengthen my faith,
and keep me faithful to what I have received.

May my life give glory to the Father,
now and always.

Through the same Christ our Lord.
Amen.

© 2026 Discerning Hearts ®. All rights reserved. This reflection may not be reproduced or distributed without permission, except for personal prayer and noncommercial use with attribution.

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Dr. Matthew Bunson reflects on the life and mission of St. Gregory of Nazianzus, portraying him as a man marked by a lifelong tension between a desire for solitude and a call to serve publicly as priest and bishop. Drawn to prayer, contemplation, and ascetic discipline, St. Gregory repeatedly accepted responsibilities he did not seek, including ordination and episcopal leadership, out of obedience and love for the Church. Formed by a superb education in rhetoric and philosophy in Caesarea, Alexandria, and Athens—where he developed a deep friendship with Basil—he lived during a period when the Arian controversy threatened the heart of Christian teaching. His personal sacrifices, strained friendships, and repeated withdrawals from public life reveal a figure who carried the cross of leadership while longing for silence and communion with God.

St. Gregory if often referred to as “the Theologian” because his reflections on the Trinity arose from prayer, holiness, and lived fidelity rather than abstract speculation. His writings and orations clarified the Church’s language about the Son and the Holy Spirit, defending the Nicene faith and helping articulate terms such as procession and consubstantiality during a time of confusion and political pressure. His ministry in Constantinople, beginning from the small Church of the Anastasis, helped restore orthodox teaching through preaching rather than force. Dr. Bunson highlights how St. Gregory’s vision of Christ’s full divinity and full humanity grounds salvation, unity within the Church, devotion to Mary as Mother of God, and the call to transformation in Christ, offering enduring guidance for confronting doctrinal error in every age.

Dr. Matthew E. Bunson is a Register senior editor and senior contributor to EWTN News. For the past 20 years, he has been active in the area of Catholic social communications and education, including writing, editing, and teaching on a variety of topics related to Church history, the papacy, the saints, and Catholic culture. He is faculty chair at Catholic Distance University, a senior fellow of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology, and the author or co-author of over 50 books including The Encyclopedia of Catholic History, The Pope Encyclopedia, We Have a Pope! Benedict XVI, The Saints Encyclopedia and best-selling biographies of St. Damien of Molokai and St. Kateri Tekakwitha.

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Dr. Matthew Bunson presents St. Basil the Great as a towering figure of the early Church whose influence shaped doctrine, worship, and Christian life. Living in the fourth century, St. Basil helped clarify the Church’s teaching during the Arian controversy by articulating the eternal divinity of Christ and the full personhood of the Holy Spirit. His theological work, especially On the Holy Spirit, offered clear language drawn from Scripture and liturgical practice, such as the baptismal formula, to explain the unity and distinction within the Trinity. Through vivid images like the rainbow, St. Basil provided ways for ordinary Christians and catechumens to grasp profound mysteries that remain central to Christian faith today.

Beyond doctrine, St. Basil’s pastoral leadership revealed a deep commitment to human dignity and charity. As bishop of Caesarea, he organized extensive care for the poor, founded hospitals and shelters known collectively as the Basiliad, and used his own inheritance to relieve suffering during famine. He also shaped Eastern monasticism through practical and spiritual rules centered on community, prayer, humility, and shared responsibility, influencing later figures such as Benedict of Nursia. Rooted in a remarkably holy family that included saints and bishops, St. Basil stands as both a theologian and a shepherd whose life united prayer, service, and intellectual clarity into a single witness.

Dr. Matthew E. Bunson is a Register senior editor and senior contributor to EWTN News. For the past 20 years, he has been active in the area of Catholic social communications and education, including writing, editing, and teaching on a variety of topics related to Church history, the papacy, the saints, and Catholic culture. He is faculty chair at Catholic Distance University, a senior fellow of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology, and the author or co-author of over 50 books including The Encyclopedia of Catholic History, The Pope Encyclopedia, We Have a Pope! Benedict XVI, The Saints Encyclopedia and best-selling biographies of St. Damien of Molokai and St. Kateri Tekakwitha.

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“On the ninth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: Nine Ladies Dancing …”

Prayer: Holy Spirit abide in me, let my life be abundant with Your fruit that I may bring peace and love to a hurting world. I pray that during this season of excess that the greatest of all will be the harvest of Your fruits in my life, for without an abundant harvest of Your fruits, I have nothing to give. Amen. 

Text gratefully found at

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