Author: Virginia Lieto

You can find Virginia blogging about the virtues at virginialieto.com. Virginia has a Master of Arts Degree in Pastoral Theology. She is an adjunct professor of Theology at Saint Joseph’s College of Maine. Virginia is the author of a children's book titled, "Adventures of Faith, Hope and Charity - Finding Patience." Virginia is also a public speaker on the Catholic faith. She lives in Harrisburg, NC with her husband Nick.

Kindness is Contagious! Catch It!

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

“Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.”  ~Mark Twain

As Mark Twain so aptly infers, everyone comprehends when an act of kindness has been bestowed upon them, because they are outward signs of graciousness towards others. Acts of kindness produce good ripples; they can be contagious! Smile at someone and you put a smile on their face, which in turn puts a smile on someone else’s face. Hold a door open for someone and it alleviates their stress, which in turn puts them in a good mood, as they engage with others. Serve food in a soup kitchen and you help someone live for another day, which in turn helps them to move with God’s grace to be of assistance to someone else. Whatever the act of kindness, it evokes a positive response. Sometimes it’s gratitude (another virtue), and sometimes it leads to something even more wonderful. Read more…

Family Love: The Glue of Life

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

Family Love – the love between siblings and cousins, the love for grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews. You can choose your friends, but not your family – how true! Many of us have relatives that if given a choice, might not be our “friend.” Nonetheless, they are a part of our family. It is that family bond that keeps us together in the good times and in the bad – we are there for each other, especially in those bad times, when “friends” run in the opposite direction.

What we show to our friends is our good side for the most part, with the not-so-good stuff kept buried in our past. However, it is the family members who have seen it all and in spite of that are by our side when needed most. Why? Read more…

Unconditional Love: Parental Love

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

Have you experienced the unconditional love of a parent? How about from God, the Father? Read more to learn about the connection between the two…

Unconditional Love – I was blessed to have two wonderful parents, who were married for 54 years prior to my father’s passing in 1999. My mother died 28 weeks later. (The photo was taken at my First Communion in 1965, at age 8). For the first 42 years of my life, they were living examples of parental love to me. They loved me unconditionally, as all parents do so well.

I did not come from a wealthy family. My father worked in a printer’s shop, and my mother was a stay-at-home mom, until I turned 10 years of age. Read more…

Enduring Marital Love: The Secret?

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

Want to know the secret to an enduring marital love after 35+ years of marriage? How can you have such a love?

With 35+ years of marriage to the same wonderful man, of this I can speak from experience. Many people ask me, “What’s your secret?”  Let’s face the truth – in this day and age, at least in the United States, we don’t see one-time marriages with longevity much anymore. When we do see them, we see a consistent theme: an enduring love that has weathered the storms of life. So, you ask, what is the secret to maintaining that enduring love?

Read more…

Embrace Courtesy with Gusto!

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

Why should we embrace courtesy? How can we navigate through such an unkind world and survive? Might expressions of courtesy be the answer?

We embrace courtesy to acknowledge dignity towards another, created in the image and likeness of God. In essence, we give the person the respect (courtesy) due to a child of God; we treat the person as we would want to be treated. Father Romano Guardini speaks of this in his book, Learning the Virtues That Lead Us to God:

“…man must be honored in relation to Him who created man in His image and who requires us to honor this image” (p.142).

Yet, how often do we actually embrace courtesy? Read more…

Courtesy: A Forgotten Virtue?

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

Is courtesy a forgotten virtue? Has chivalry died? Are manners no longer important? If so, then it is time to dust off “Courtesy” and bring it to the forefront once again. Father Romano Guardini provides an excellent definition on the virtue of courtesy in his book, Learning the Virtues That Lead Us to God:
“Courtesy gives the other person a free space and protects him from oppressive closeness; it gives him air. It recognizes the good in others and lets them feel that…Read more…

Inner Peace – Within Your Grasp

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

How is inner peace within your grasp? How does Jesus work within us to spread His peace?

Embracing inner peace is the embracing of the Divine Indwelling, because Jesus is our Peace (Eph. 2:14). That reason alone is reason enough for me to want to embrace inner peace. When we allow Jesus to work within us to free us from worry, anxiety, care and concern, we illuminate to others a sense of inner peace – Christ’s Peace. People look at us, and want what we have, because everyone continually searches for peace. Read more…

Finding Peace in Today’s World

Posted: by Virginia Lieto

Peace seems difficult to find these days, doesn’t it? With violence, abuse, conflicts and wars raging all around us, we often ask “Where is God? Where is His Peace?” More than just the absence of war, Peace “describes the condition of the heart and mind- within our very soul and spirit – when renewed in Christ. Such peace is deeper than our affections or intellect… [Peace is] “life in friendship with God.” 1 We all want that feeling; that friendship with God. So then, where is God in such troubling times? Why do we feel so alone and forgotten, separated from this friendship with Him? Read more…