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One of the most memorable of the long list of impressive honorary degree recipients at Harvard was the Russian writer and exiled former prisoner of the Soviet state, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. In 1978, he gave what has become possibly the most famous graduation address in the history of American higher education. Its lessons reverberate today.

Children bring life to a street in more ways than they could imagine as they remind us of our own carefree summer days. But they also help us to recall the words of Jesus, both in this weekend’s Gospel as well as throughout the New Testament, that children hold a special place in His heart and in the Father’s Kingdom. We would do well to have child-like hearts.

The public works of Blessed Pier Georgio Frassati were well known. But many of those who attended his funeral were drawn to him by stories of private acts of charity and concern. As we approach this Fourth of July, his vision of social action that brings the world to Christ is worthy of our consideration.

It is essential that parents see Jesus in each of their children, during every stage of life from conception onward. In addition, parents, in the raising of their children, are called to find their lives by losing them for the sake of Jesus. Read a reflection on this weekend's Gospel reading written by Theology teacher Tom Healey '77.

On Monday of this week a dual feast day came and went with the lack of fanfare that one would expect from what the Church designates an “optional memorial.” But the two men honored on June 22nd are among the most important for the 21st Century Church, and especially today for Catholics in America.

God inspired Jeremiah to stay true to his vocation. The words of Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel – “Fear no one…And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul” – were surely placed in the heart of Jeremiah during such difficult moments. In all our trials, you see, the love of God is what can temper our many fears.

World War II began shortly before Pope Pius XII ascended to the throne of St. Peter. In his first encyclical, the new pope enabled those engaged in the struggle for progress to see their efforts through a very different, and ultimately Christ-centered, lens. The lessons from that letter still apply to our world today.

While studying in Paris, St. Thomas Aquinas received the nickname “Dumb Ox” because of his corpulence and his shy and quiet demeanor. But his life, his work and his faith showed that even from a young age his concern was not for earthly glory, but for union with the Cross of Christ.