Welcome to the adventure!

When I was growing up, the idea that being Catholic was an "adventure" was the farthest thing from my mind. You just "were". And, pretty much, memorizing some definitions and what "rules" you had to keep in order to be "saved" completed the picture.

Then why would I entitle these challenging reflections to aid our life's journey: FREE AND HOLY WHERE YOU ARE? Perhaps because many Catholics don't feel freed by the "rules", and don't feel they will ever be truly "holy". Only for priests, sisters, or monks could "where you are" possibly promote holiness! Yet the "Daily Life of a Catholic" is exactly where we always are with Jesus as our friend and confidant, and members of his Body, the Church. Be prepared to choose a hundred thoughts or phrases you'll want to remember for the rest of your life.

"If you are one of those people who, like me, understand Roman Catholic tradition as a solid foundation meant to encourage, not discourage, intelligent critical moral thought, then this is the book for you. It will make you excited (again) to be a Roman Catholic believer."

Msgr. Robert J. Thelen

Seminary Professor and Parish Priest