Blessing of Throats for Catholics  The feast of St. Blaise is celebrated on February 3 with the blessing of throats. This is done to ask God to protect the faithful from diseases of

Incense for Catholics Incense is a gum or powder that produces a pleasant fragrance when burned. In ancient times, incense was burned to purify objects so that they could be offered as worthy

Freedom lies at the heart of the gift-giving meaning of the body. Before the fall, Adam and Eve were free from the constraints of sin. Naked and unashamed, they weren’t

If creation is a gift for man, we have to ask: did Adam live as though the world was a gift? Was he grateful to the Creator? When God first created

Adam and Eve were naked before they realized they were naked. In the state of original innocence, they looked upon each other in wonder and gratitude. In this way, they

Shame is a very complex experience. With shame, a person experiences fear for one’s self in the presence of another self (for example, a woman before a man). Shame reveals

Genesis 2:25 says, “The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.” At first glance, this detail seems superfluous—far less important, say, than the previous verse

If we want to know anything about man, first we have to notice that he exists as a dual being, male and female. We have to start with the idea

In the Book of Genesis, the creation of man is only complete when he is created as male and female—two beings sharing one human nature, one life, but distinguished by

The words of Genesis 2:18, “It is not good for the man to be alone,” are a prelude to the creation of woman. In the narrative of Eve’s creation, the

Through the ages, many philosophers have spoken of man as though he were divided into two distinct parts: soul and body. This isn’t the biblical view, though. In Genesis, the

In just a few verses, the Book of Genesis paints a profound picture of man. He’s set above all the other animals; he possesses the power of language; he’s a

Once again, it seems like we have reached a conclusion. It’s tempting to say that now we understand what Christ meant when he referred to the beginning. But let’s take