By Michael Patrick O’Brien– Autumn 2026 brought me a once-in-a-lifetime sight. For the first time in almost one hundred years, the small fake but loved lake near my boyhood hometown…

By Michael Patrick O’Brien– Some might question why—in a city Brigham Young founded—there are several streets, a Latter-day Saint ward, and even a whole neighborhood honoring a Catholic saint named…

By Michael Patrick O’Brien– I just wrote half a million words. It was not a goal, but it feels like an accomplishment. In 2016, after our youngest child graduated from…

By Michael Patrick O’Brien– Catholics arrived here 250 years ago in 1776. Back then, there was no Utah, no United States of America, and the land beneath my Salt Lake…

Michael Patrick O’Brien– During a recent visit to San Francisco, my wife and I ate at a century-old restaurant that serves good food but also symbolizes the amazing resilience of…

By Michael Patrick O’Brien– In addition to iconic sights like the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman’s Wharf, and Chinatown, a half dozen historic Spanish Catholic missions also surround and accentuate San…

By Michael Patrick O’Brien– A few years ago, my wife Vicki and I decided to visit all the historic Spanish missions in California. Our already interesting pilgrimage grew more intriguing…

By Michael Patrick O’Brien– Trappist monk Fr. Benedict Chao, the oldest Trappist monk in the world, has died in Hong Kong at age 108. His life/spiritual journey is remarkable and…

By Michael Patrick O’Brien– It’s taken almost my entire lifetime to learn how to embrace the simple gift of being broken. It seems counter intuitive, doesn’t it? Our natural inclination…

By Michael Patrick O’Brien– Catholic and Spanish history in Utah runs deeper than most people suspect. In the Summer of 1776, as a new nation was born on the American…