Welcome to the Easter Triduum. As we enter the holiest days of our Church, it is good to reflect on our world and how we can have an impact. Using the power of the happiness effect, I encourage you to continue your Lenten sacrifice, especially if it has made you a better Christian. The happiness effect is research by psychologists that claim if you want to rewire your brain to do something, you need to continue that practice for at least 21 days in a row. After that, your brain is rewired to the new habit. With all of the negativity we see on the daily news (both video and print) is it any wonder that negativity reigns supreme on earth? In order to change that paradigm, you need to replace the negative with the positive. Try it yourself. Pledge to send someone close to you a daily text for the next 21 days. In that text you need to say at least two things you are thankful for that day. Have the other person repeat the process to you. See what kind of difference this can have in your life. If it works (and it will), pay it forward. Have a happy and blessed Easter!
The twelve apostles chosen by Jesus formed the bedrock of the early Church , and their Catholic identity is deeply rooted in their direct relationship with Christ and the mission He entrusted to them. The Catechism of the Catholic Church highlights this foundational role, stating that Jesus "instituted the Twelve as 'the seeds of the new Israel and the beginning of the sacred hierarchy'" ( CCC 860 ). These men were not simply followers; they were handpicked by Jesus, lived intimately with Him, witnessed His miracles and teachings firsthand, and were specifically commissioned to preach the Gospel to all nations ( Matthew 28:19-20 ). Their unique position as eyewitnesses to the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, and their reception of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, established them as the authoritative leaders of the nascent Church, a reality echoed in the writings of early Church Fathers like Ignatius of Antioch, who emphasized the apostles' authority as repre...