New Articles Every Monday
New Articles Every Monday
At Exile’s End
Leaving the seminary was one of the most painful moments of my life. Like ancient Israel I found it hard to sing of God's glory. I was no longer in the Promised Land; an exile now, a stranger in a strange land.
The years that followed often felt like Babylon. Not because God had abandoned me, but because I could no longer see where He was leading me. The vocation I had pursued for so long appeared to be over. Doors closed. Plans unraveled. Questions lingered unanswered.
How can we sing the Lord's song in a foreign land?
For a long time, I did not know.
Yet looking back now, I can see that God was doing His work precisely in the place I least wanted to be.
A Heart After the Sacred Heart
As our nation has once again been consecrated to the Sacred Heart, perhaps the question before each of us is simple: Does Christ reign in my own heart?
What’s the Deal with Liceity, Anyway?
In this latest article, Stephen A. Codekas breaks down the often-misunderstood distinction between validity and liceity—and why it reveals something deeper about authority, obedience, and communion in the Catholic Church.
A Path to Purity in a Confused Age
Over time, I learned that the constant spewing of unnatural behavior did nothing for me but
create blinders of insensitivity to those Christian individuals who carry same-sex attractions, yet
who simultaneously strive and struggle to live an authentically Catholic life according to
Catholic Church teachings. Through the witness of the Saints, Church writings, and newly
inspired prayers, Stephen Codekas’ Blessed are the Pure helped remove the veil, both externally
and internally.
Ite Missa Est
When the deacon or priest says, “Go forth, the Mass is ended,” many hear only an ending. Father Kevin Tran argues that we should hear a beginning. Rooted in the ancient Ite, missa est, the dismissal is not simply a signal that Mass is over—it is a commission. Having received Christ in Word and Sacrament, we are sent into the world as His Body, carrying His presence into our homes, workplaces, and communities. The Mass does not conclude with departure from the pew; it continues through the mission entrusted to every baptized believer.
Fire In a Foreign City; Pentecost and the Ordinariates
What if Pentecost is more than a past event? Through pilgrimage to the Ordinariate Vigil in Houston, Halie Chrysler-Barr explores how the Holy Spirit continues to gather, sanctify, and unite the Church through worship and sacramental life.
The Hidden Pew
Many single parents remain in what might be called the “hidden pew”—present but largely
unnoticed, faithful yet quietly burdened. They arrive, participate, and depart with minimal
recognition, carrying both responsibility and hope.
To see them is not merely an act of social awareness; it is an act of ecclesial fidelity. It is to
recognize in their lives a reflection of Christ’s own path: one marked by sacrifice, sustained by
grace, and oriented toward redemption.
The Road So Far
One year ago, CodekasWrites began as a simple act of writing. What followed was a year of consistency, growth, and unexpected direction—from reflections on Scripture to the beginnings of The Toll Booth Universe, and now the launch of Salt & Light. The road so far has been about building. The road ahead is about going deeper.
Between Reverence and Ridicule: Aquinas, Scandal, and the Moral Shape of Comedy
In an age of endless content and boundary-pushing comedy, Catholics are faced with a deeper question: not simply what is funny, but what our laughter is forming within us.
Drawing on the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas and the virtue of eutrapelia, this article explores the line between humor that refreshes the soul and humor that leads to scandal. Through the contrasting styles of Pete Holmes and Shane Gillis, it offers a compelling framework for discerning whether our comedy builds communion—or slowly erodes reverence.
Because in the end, we are not only what we eat—but what we laugh at.
Living in the In-between
In living with fibromyalgia remission, I have learned that
healing does not erase the cross; it changes its weight.
Health, like suffering, becomes a vocation — a call to live
responsibly, gratefully, and with awareness of the body’s
ongoing need for grace. Each day of remission is both gift
and task: to walk carefully, to pray honestly, and to
remember that faith endures not only in weakness, but in
the quiet aftermath of it.