Names can be powerful. Consider the names of places which but for their prominence in military annals would be unknown to most of us, names like Thermopylae, Milvian Bridge, Lepanto, and Waterloo. We hear the names of these locations and are ennobled by the recollection…
Author: Dana Robinson
Christocentric
A remark made thirty years ago by a professional colleague of mine at the time still sticks in my mind. The religious roots of his family tree had long ago atrophied and he was a member of what today would be called the “nones”. However,…
Polarizing forces?
“The opposite of love is not hate, it is fear”. This helpful advice offered in a recent parish homily invites further reflection. Do opposites exist at all? Isn’t antonymy simply the absence of a designated quality in one entity as compared to another? Why is…
Caritas Internationalis
Just over a week following the outbreak of war in Ukraine, the UNHCR has reported over 1,045,459 people have fled to neighboring countries, including Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Moldova, Romania as well as Bulgaria, with the hope of finding safety for themselves and their loved ones…
Truth, its consolation
When we experience a setback how many times do we hear a friend who’s found something positive in the situation say: “At least one consolation is…..”? Consolation – such a lovely word. Its Latin roots are con (with) and solacium (soothing relief or comfort in…
Philanthropy and social vibrancy
‘Eternal vibrancy’. Since coming across it recently I’ve been pondering this phrase. We are all familiar with the terms ‘eternal life’ or ‘life after death’ and more than likely give little thought to them other than a hope that such will be our destiny. But,…
Eternity, or the future?
“Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth – in a word, to know himself – so that, by knowing and…
Project STELLA
DISPARITIES IN CANCER CARE: AN URGENT GLOBAL NEED When it is detected early and treated effectively, cervical cancer-the fourth most common cancer in women-is one of the most highly curable cancers. In the United States (U.S.}, the rate of infection and death from cervical cancer…
AVSI-USA
Some years ago this column highlighted the inspiring work AVSI-USA is assisting in Oaxaca, Mexico. From its website www.avsi-usa.org we are pleased to reprint the following letter from Ms. Jackie Aldrette reporting on the program’s encouraging progress. On Friday, October 26th, Ezio and I were…
Cognitive dissonance
Those of you who are advisors on our donor advised funds may have received an attractive, ecologically friendly shopping bag over the Christmas holiday, a thoughtful gift from Edward H. Robinson, NCCF’s President. The bags bear the slogan “Faith working through philanthropy”. What, you might wonder,…