In Pope Francis' encyclical On Faith (Lumen Fidei) there is probably enough material to keep me writing for weeks. Obviously I read it with my psychology lenses on.

The introduction to the encyclical reminds us that Christ says, “I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.” It is this distinction between the light and the dark that I want to elaborate on.

What we first have to realize is that Christ entered a dark world. What was...

It’s really interesting how many people are curious about therapy over Skype and how many questions I get about it. Admittedly, it was tough at first to decide whether or not to offer video-based counseling. I had many of the same questions myself. After 8 months of providing therapy over Skype, I want to offer some of my (developing) thoughts.

First of all, the most obvious question concerns the lack of personal connection. This question goes much deeper into an issue about technology...

As many of you know (and can read about in my bio section) I used to be a Franciscan friar. The friar’s life is one marked by living in vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, revolving around a schedule of work, play, and prayer. I happened to live this radically different lifestyle in the same city I now work as a “normal” married man (normal enough at least to no longer sport a shaved head, long beard, and gray monk-looking outfit). There are some pretty obvious...

Everyone get ready for another Kermit Gosnell article. I know, I know, that’s so long time ago.

Let me first say – of course I think infanticide is atrocious and deserves news coverage. Jesus said very clearly what should be done with people like Gosnell; something about a boulder, a rope, and a boat. But what did he say to us? What are we to do if not just tweet? The answer lies within (your television).

After years of trying to hold off, I finally got hooked on the show The...

Integrating the field of psychology into a Catholic framework is not an easy task when the founder of the field (Freud) wrote, “Much will be gained if we succeed in transforming hysterical misery into common unhappiness.” Catholicism is concerned with becoming human – fully human – and therefore fully alive. The end of Catholicism is happiness beyond our wildest dreams, not just “common unhappiness.” While this ultimate joy is not experienced until we reach...

Sex sells. Marketing in our culture is almost exclusively based on sex. We have known this for years, and although we think we are stronger than corporate marketing strategies, we (men) still fall easy prey to GoDaddy super bowl ads and Victoria’s Secret ceiling-high mall pinups. When I say “easy prey,” I don’t mean we all necessarily go home lusting after these pictures and falling into sin, but somehow there is a movement of something in us. And I say, rightly so!...

Before I transferred to Franciscan University, I was a freshman at Boston College. My good friend Colin was in seminary next door at St. John’s, and we used to exercise together at BC’s workout facility called the Plex. That was the Jubilee year and a time of deep conversion for me. Colin and I encouraged each other in becoming better men of God in many ways that year. Along with our workouts, one of our most important exercises in virtue also took place at the gym.

The weight...

It’s pretty obvious to anyone with a pulse over the age of 12 that there is a major difference between infatuation and love. The words, “I love you” though, seem to still get thrown around in a lot of different ways, especially in the movies with relationships developing in less than two hours. The phrase there doesn’t carry the same weight as the couple that says it to each other after 50 years of marriage. Although it is wrong to think of infatuation as love, it is...

As a freshman in college, I was excited about my new-found freedom. I had an innate sense that this was my time, the year I could start to be my own person and choose my own life. Above all else, like everyone else, I wanted to be happy. For a while, I tried joining my friends in their pursuits of happiness – in typical college fashion. I noticed pretty quickly, however, that even if a freshman did make his way into the best senior party with the best looking girls, he was still...

You may have read in the news that Chris Brown was brought to court because he allegedly did not complete his community service hours; the punishment he received after beating Rihanna four years ago.  Rihanna, having 2 weeks prior publically announced she was back together with the singer, was in the courtroom to support her “man.”

Picking up garbage from the side of the highway doesn’t seem just retribution for bruising and bloodying a woman by punching her in the...