Religions and Spirituality
By JOHN MOONEY
March 17, 2023
NATIONAL -- During a typical year (meaning pre-pandemic), more than 52% of Americans plan some type of celebration of St. Patrick's Day, and more than 82% of celebrants will wear green, according to WalletHub. Overall, billions of dollars typically are spent on clothing, flags, green carnations, ...
HOLMDEL, NJ: Enjoy international cuisine, entertainment, The festival of Purim commemorates the salvation of the Jewish people in ancient Persia from Haman’s plot “to destroy, kill and annihilate all the Jews, young and old, infants and women, in a single day.” It is celebrated with Megillah ...
HOLMDEL, NJ: A message from CHABAD JEWISH CENTER OF HOLMDEL: We are excited to present to you The BAT MITZVAH CLUB, for ALL Jewish girls 11-13 years old. This club will allow your daughter to gain inspiration and knowledge about becoming a Bat Mitzvah in a creative and meaningful way. She will ...
A few months ago a friend went for a walk and noticed a young woman nearby. She was wearing a jacket partially open in the front. It revealed a shirt with the word “ego” on it. My friend was intrigued by someone having this word on her shirt, so she asked the young woman what led her to display ...
Sensing a Vast Unity As I stand in my own small space of the planet reveling in the power and beauty of the heavens, I feel a great unity with all beings. I know that somewhere there is a herdsman in the Sahara Desert who is also gazing at the stars of our common universe. I ...
Although Hanukkah, "The Festival of Lights," is considered a “minor” Jewish holiday, it is a popular celebration among Jewish families across America. According to ReformJudaism.org, when the Maccabees entered the Temple in Jerusalem to reclaim it from the Greeks, they immediately relit ...
HOLMDEL AND COLTS NECK, NJ: FOX Nation will debut a two-part special entitled The Life of Jesus hosted by FOX & Friends Weekend co-host, Holmdel resident, Pete Hegseth. Part one of the series, God with Us, will debut, December 15 (streaming on Fox Nation), just in time as Christians around the ...
An amazing thing happened on the first Sunday of Advent. During the previous week I was reflecting on what to share in this newsletter, to encourage you to engage wholeheartedly in this sacred season. A lantern aglow with light kept coming to ...
MONMOUTH COUNTY, NJ: As most of the community is aware, Aaron Van Trease, a Saint John Vianney student, suffered a very serious injury at a recent football game. The community will be gathering on November 15, 2022, at St. Denis Church, to stop in and say a prayer for Aaron Van Trease and his ...
A story has been singing in my heart all month. I found this account in The Way of Love, a book with selections on the topic collected by editors Michael Leach, Doris Goodnough, and Maria Angelini.The experience described in “I Am Wherever There Is Love” took place in 2006. Joy Scribner tells ...
MIDDLETOWN, NJ —Twenty-five years ago, parishioners at the Parish of Saint Mary took on what seemed like a Herculean task: Manning a continuous, 24-hour prayer vigil before the Holy Eucharist indefinitely. A quarter century later, the Eucharistic Adoration Chapel at Saint Mary has been ...
JUNE REFLECTION 2022 Several weeks ago my dental hygienist chatted with me while I was there for my regular appointment. My acquaintance with her is limited to an every-six-months visit, so I was startled when she calmly revealed she’d had a double breast mastectomy just two months earlier. I ...
Happy Easter! Today marks the end of Holy week for millions of Catholics/Christians around the world who are celebrating renewal of their Christian faith on Easter. The Easter celebration arrives at the culmination of Holy Week, which began in 2022, on April 10, Palm Sunday. This weekend also ...
Passover began Friday evening, April 15 - when the first Seder night took place - and lasts eight days, ending on the evening of Saturday, April 23. The festival always starts on the 15th day of Nisan in the Jewish calendar which means that the date in the Gregorian calendar changes every ...
AROUND THE WORLD: It is hard to believe, but this Sunday, April 10, (April 17 in the Eastern Church) we celebrate Palm Sunday. You may ask "What is Palm Sunday?" No longer in American society should we assume that all know the significance of the Holy Day on the Christian Calendar. Palm Sunday ...
Study up on these fun facts, then head out to celebrate St. Patrick's Day at a local bar or restaurant. According to a new survey by WalletHub, more than 52% of Americans plan some type of celebration of St. Patrick's Day, and more than 82% of celebrants will wear green. Overall, $4.6 ...
Reflection - March 2022, followed by a Lenten Prayer below: Divine revelation can come through the book of nature or the book of inner experience. …from the inspiring words or example of another person, which hold up to us a mirror in which we catch sight of our own infinite potentiality and are ...
Not long ago, I read The Book of Hope. In this inspiring resource, Douglas Abrams interviews Jane Goodall, the well-known English primatologist and naturalist who made amazing discoveries about the life of chimpanzees in the Gombe jungle. Now, at age 86, Jane continues to be a vibrant speaker and ...
HOLMDEL, NJ: First established in 1974, National Catholic Schools Week is observed annually at the end of January to celebrate the remarkable contributions and extraordinary value of Catholic education. This year’s theme, designated by the National Catholic Educational Association and the United ...
NEW JERSEY - In the end, the loudest voices for unborn children were the democrats who outvoted the republicans in the NJ Assembly and Senate on unfettered abortion. With Republican leader Jon Bramnick a surprise abstention, and Middletown's Democratic Governor Murphy twice invoking God, ...
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL WHO ARE READING THIS THAT CELEBRATE THE BIRTHDAY OF JESUS CHRIST! HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO EVERYONE! WISHING EVERYONE A VERY HAPPY AND PEACEFUL NEW YEAR! CHEERS TO 2022!
COME HOME TO SAINT MARY'S FOR CHRISTMAS: WATCH A BRIEF WELCOME MESSAGE FROM PASTOR JEFF KEGLEY: MIDDLETOWN, NJ: Saint Mary, Mother of God Church in Middletown Father Jeff Kegley, Pastor of Saint Mary, Mother of God Church announced that in addition to scheduled in-door masses, the ...
HOLMDEL, NJ: There is a new Christmas Mass Schedule at the Church of Saint Catharine in Holmdel. Please Spread the word, especially to those family and friends who may not regularly attend and missed the church announcements. Please note the following times for celebrating the birth of ...
Two events in November come together as hope-filled bookends. The month opens with a favorite feast of mine: All Saints. It closes with another: the Thanksgiving holiday. This year these two events especially capture my attention due to the disturbing travails that continue to cloud clear-seeing ...
ABERDEEN, NJ: Temple Shalom, 5 Ayrmont Lane in Aberdeen, invites the community to celebrate Rosh Hashanah (September 6, 7 and 8) and Yom Kippur (September 15 and 16). All High Holy Day services will be both in person and streamed live. Donations for High Holiday tickets, that include ...
Safe. Joyful. Meaningful. Friendly: HIGH HOLIDAYS With Chabad Jewish Center of Holmdel Join us in person for a warm, interactive and enriching experience. REGISTER & SCHEDULE CLICK HERE Rosh Hashanah: Sept. 6-7 | Yom Kippur: Sept. 15 & ...
Reflection - August 2021 In his poem “Any Morning,” William Stafford describes himself as “Just lying on the couch and being happy.” He wryly comments that the troubles of the world can go on without him for a while. He’s simply enjoying a time of contentment. In Riverwalking, Kathleen Dean ...
Reflection - July 2021 Last week I led the workshop for our new Boundless Compassion facilitators who had gathered for a week of growing in compassion. I marveled anew at the desire, dedication, and determination of people like themselves who are willing to tend to their own suffering and that ...
June 2021 Spiritual Reflection We stood before a thickly branched blue spruce that must be at least 70 feet tall. How different we were, the two of us looking out the window at the tree. A mid-80’s woman holding onto a walker for support due to a broken pelvis from a recent fall, and myself, ...
An Easter Poem Awaken Me Risen One, come, meet me in the garden of my life. Lure me into elation. Revive my silent hope. Coax my dormant dreams. Raise up my neglected gratitude. Entice my tired enthusiasm. Give life to my faltering relationships. Roll back the ...