HeyJaredFather Dave Mercer
- Indexed articles, last 90 days
- 7
- Latest publication
- Sep 10, 2026
- Outlet visibility, for Aleteia — Catholic Spirituality, Lifestyle, World News, and Culture
- Top 500K sites
- Earliest in this view
- Jul 9, 2026
Latest articles
A-E-I-O-U: Simple 5-step Bible study for Sunday’s readings (opens the original)
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Here are the ABCs for a DIY Bible study, to better prepare you and your friends for the most important moment of the week. Beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to him in all the scriptures. [Luke 24:27] At Saint Patrick Church, in Carlsbad, California, my friend Sean leads a men’s Bible study that prepares for Sunday by studying the scheduled readings. I like how Sean puts it: “Studying the Sunday readings through the Old Testament, early Church Fathers
How to start a home Bible study group (opens the original)
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A simple do-it-yourself approach can make it happen, and no, you don't have to be a Scripture scholar! “In the sacred books, the Father who is in heaven comes lovingly to meet his children, and talks with them.” [Catechism of the Catholic Church, 104] When Mickey Salem of Santa Teresa Parish in San José became Catholic, he admitted to others after Sunday Mass: “I wish I understood this better.” He soon realized that others — both new and lifelong Catholics — felt the same way. When he suggested
The one-second gesture that defines your whole life (opens the original)
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Making the Sign of the Cross can be less about habit and more about choice. If we put some mental effort into it, it can be the strategy for our whole lives. He has put his seal upon us. (2 Corinthians 1:22) I make a certain mistake rather frequently. On Sundays, when I walk into church, I am easily preoccupied with final preparations for Mass. I sign myself with the Cross using holy water, and within seconds (or even as I'm doing it!) have no real memory or sense of doing so. Ouch! When I admit
Can you explain why you are Catholic? A story proposal. (opens the original)
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Here's an idea for a 30-second answer that will not only inspire, it will also fulfill a Gospel invitation. And crafting this answer will help you more than anyone else. Catholics grow up learning the seven sacraments, the Our Father, and other prayers and responses for Mass. However, we rarely learn to answer the question “Why are you a Catholic?” which leaves us to say “I grew up that way,” or “Because Jesus started the Church.” In my previous article, Can you explain why you go to Mass?, I su
Being less than perfect is perfectly acceptable (opens the original)
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We're all seasick, plus what to do with the weeds: A reflection on the Gospel for the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time. It’s an unreasonable expectation, but it’s there: We are to be perfect at what we do. Anything less risks being labeled a failure. Unfortunately, we too easily bring that attitude to religion, as if being Catholic comes with the assumption that we must be perfect, that is, we must be sinless. This Sunday’s Gospel proclamation (Matthew 13:24-43) reminds us that being less than perfe
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