Restoration

Written by Madonna House staff, Restoration is an essential part of our witness to the Gospel. Here we share our personal stories and reflections on the Gospel challenges of today, along with writings from Catherine Doherty and the Catholic Church.

Posted May 16, 2012:

Stones That Breathe

by Fr. Eddie Doherty.

Dear God,

Until the day I picked up that stone from the dust in the road, I thought I had lived a long, long time and must consider myself almost middle-aged. But when I examined that small piece of Your world, I realized I had scarce begun to live.

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Posted May 10, 2012:

Letter to My Father

by Derek Pinto.

A few months after writing this letter, it occurred to Derek to submit it to Restoration. We think you’ll be glad he did.

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Posted May 08, 2012 in New Millennium:

Those Shining Moments

by Fr. David May.

My mother was the first to introduce me to them—those shining moments of simple faith in God.

I remember being about six or seven. It was a very stressful time in our little family, consisting at that time of my mother, my little sister, and me. It was around 1957 or 1958, and we lived in a drab Detroit suburb.

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Posted May 02, 2012:

Surprised by Joy

by Irma Zaleski.

When I was a child in Poland before the Second World War, we used to spend nearly every summer at my grandmother’s house in the mountains.

My grandmother was brilliant and wise, although bitter at times. She had lived through a world war, revolutions, a bad marriage, and the death of two children.

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Posted April 29, 2012 in One Man's Scrap:

One Man’s Scrap, Another Man’s Gold (April 2012)

Greetings in the Risen Lord! Let us open wide our hearts to let in the joy of Easter. We share with you our love and joy because he has freed us from our bondage to sin and bestowed on us new life. Alleluia!

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Posted April 26, 2012:

Do You Believe in the Resurrection?

by Fr. Bob Wild.

Resurrection means that life is stronger than death, that grace has more power than sin. Do we really believe this?

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Posted April 25, 2012 in Milestones:

Milestones (April 2012)

Deaths: Sandy Brewers’ mother, Elizabeth; associate deacon Nick Mammi’s wife, Ginny.

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Posted April 24, 2012 in Combermere Diary:

Combermere Diary (April 2012)

by Paulette Curran.

Spring comes late in this part of the world, and as I write this column in early March, the ground is still covered with snow. But Lent has begun, days are getting longer, and though we have had a lot of new snow just this week, spring is not far off.

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Posted April 22, 2012 in Memorials:

My Conversation with Paul

by Andorra Howard.

Though Paul Holland was a man of few words, he had a light within him and an infectious joyful countenance. He was a mystery to me, and I felt drawn to him and wanted to communicate with him—somehow. But I never quite knew how to do it.

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Posted April 19, 2012 in New Millennium:

The Lion and the Lamb

by Fr. David May.

It was late April or early May 1971. The dogwood trees in our city were in full bloom, the sunlight magnified a million times by the white blossoms in all the perfection of a brilliant spring day in Maryland. It was getting harder and harder to concentrate on my courses at Salisbury State.

"I think she used to be a nun," my friend Jim whispered to me during our creative writing class.

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Posted April 17, 2012 in Memorials:

A Faithful Servant

by the editor.

Paul, the second of five children, grew up in Toronto. His father had a horse-drawn taxi business; his best customer was the bishop of the diocese.

Then came the stock market crash of 1929, and the taxi business was lost. Paul was seven years old.

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