When I was a little girl, Holy Week helped make sense of things, as we all allowed ourselves to be moved along with the liturgical cycle toward Easter Sunday and to find some new hope that everything would somehow be better: "Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum" had a meaning beyond the historical. 

Today I'm not so sure. I don't feel moved by the liturgical cycle the way I did as a child, and I'm not at all sure the Church knows where it left its beacon of hope. It all seems so much nostalgia now. My son's generation stares into their computers for hours on end, oblivious to the kinds of themes Michael mentions here. Our news is filled with stories that ignore -- or worse, dismiss -- core beliefs and values.

Is there still a Christian faith if the people don't "feel" it in their hearts?