Catholic New York

I traveled to Seattle a few weeks ago to give a parish retreat at St. Monica’s Church on Mercer Island. Long before I boarded the plane for my first visit to the Pacific … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 12/31/19

Don’t Wait, Just Say Yes

I first got to know Sister Johanne McCarthy, C.S.J., about 18 months ago when she wrote to complain that our Albany diocesan newspaper wasn’t giving religious sisters the same treatment … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 12/4/19

The Things We Save

I returned home from work one day recently to see a For Sale sign on the lawn of our elderly neighbors, a retired Army doctor and nurse. They’ve been living on our street since the houses were … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 11/6/19

Angels and Saints

The feasts and celebrations that surround us at this time in the liturgical year can do a soul some much-needed good. It’s hard to feel like a solitary seeker when we are … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 10/9/19

The Way to Ease Is Not Easy

September always feels like the start of a new year to me, much more so than Jan. 1 ever does. It must be the perennial student in me. I can’t even resist the piles of discounted school supplies … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 9/11/19

My Daring Adventure

When I was working as a reporter for Catholic New York back in the 1980s, I had one of those quote-of-the-day calendars on the desk in my cubicle overlooking Manhattan. All these years later, after … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 8/14/19

Building Community

I went back to yoga class last month after a long break. Day by day, as I returned to my mat in a room surrounded by people— mostly strangers—of all ages, shapes and sizes, I felt the comfort and … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 7/17/19

The World Needs Beauty

I was lucky enough to visit the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris about one year ago, when I went to the City of Lights with my daughter, Olivia, on a mother-daughter trip. We stood in the highest … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 6/5/19

She Took a Chance on Me

As I get older, I become more aware of—and fascinated by—the way people arrive in our lives without warning and often change us, and the course of our life journey, without us realizing it until … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 5/8/19

Rediscovering Community

I can’t pray. I just don’t know how to do it anymore.” That’s what I told my husband, Dennis, one evening recently about midway through Lent. The parched desert had become an asphalt parking … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 4/11/19

Standing in the Desert Side by Side

Although we’re only one week into our Lenten journey, it feels like we’ve been in this desert for months. At least that’s how it feels to me. Last summer’s revelations about Theodore … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 3/13/19

Vocation of Marriage

On any given day, you’ll find me and Dennis running the gauntlet of modern family life. If … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 2/13/19

Seek Out the Light

One of my favorite things about this season of seemingly ever-present physical darkness is the occasional pocket or flash of light. Not just the leftover twinkling Christmas decorations, although … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 1/17/19

Fail Again

A willingness to be vulnerable in front of other people is probably one of my best qualities. I know that sounds like a self-deprecating put-down, and for the longest time—most of my life—I would … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 12/5/18

‘And After This, Our Exile…’

Although I have had a lifelong struggle with the Rosary—I’ve always considered myself Rosary-challenged—I started praying this prayer more frequently of late, thanks to the encouragement of … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 11/7/18

Making Room for the Divine Every Day

I stood in the parking lot of a Holiday Inn Express in Syracuse one recent Saturday morning … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 10/10/18

Sharing Our Struggles

I didn’t want to go Mass this weekend. In the spirit of full disclosure, I did not go to Mass last weekend. … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 9/12/18

Casting Light on Darkness

Woe to the shepherds who mislead and scatter the flock of my pasture, says the Lord…You have scattered my sheep and driven them away. You have not cared for them, but I will take care to punish … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 8/1/18

Knowing When to Say When, In Pottery and Life

Last Wednesday night, as I was getting ready to head out to my fourth pottery class, I felt tired, uninspired and, quite frankly, ready to grab any excuse to skip class. But, after waiting several … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 7/5/18

Feet First in a Journey to God

If eyes are the windows to the soul, I think feet may be the doorway to all understanding. That revelation came to me recently when I was in the front pew of my parish church in upstate New York. I … more

By MARY DeTURRIS POUST | 6/7/18