The name Italy may suggest images of good food, gorgeous art, and romance more than thoughts of religious reformation. With its large, imposing cathedrals, frequent processions, and well-advertised pilgrimages, that “fair land” still looks like a stronghold of Roman Catholicism. That first impression seems confirmed by statistics. Out of over 60,000,000 Italian citizens, almost 58,500,000 […]

“Sometimes, when I watch, as I do now, my beloved wife Sonia and our most beloved Matteo as they sleep, I wonder, how can he grow, as a true believer, in a country like Italy, in such relentless spiritual, social, and political decline? These are the thoughts of a new daddy, which become subjects of […]

I remember sitting in church, still relatively new to Reformed theology, my mind full of the typical worries of mothers, when our pastor grabbed my attention with an interesting quotation. “The key to your own and your family’s spiritual health is remarkably simple. Though there is considerable hype to the contrary, it involves no pilgrimages […]

On the first Sunday this year, I opened with interest a small insert in our church bulletin. It was a plan for a full year of family worship. I was excited. My many years of homeschooling have left me with an instinctive appreciation of ready-made plans. I studied it carefully. On one side of the […]

If a comparison between peaceful images of Puritan families gathered around the table and your own family rushing through endless daily activities as you are juggling teething babies and sleepy teenagers makes you want to dismiss the thought of family worship, don’t despair. Pictures of Puritans families are just that—pictures. The Puritans had teething babies […]

When the editor of The Outlook first asked me to write a series of articles on parenting issues, I knew the only way I could do it was by reporting what others say and do. Even being the mother of eight children, I still don’t feel qualified to give helpful suggestions. By God’s grace and […]

I was recently tagged in a conversation on Facebook. With the recent turn of events, a mother was looking for good books to prepare her children for persecution. And that’s always a good idea, in both alarming and comfortable times. I immediately thought of Marie Durand, her family, and the èglise du désert (“church of […]