The continuing dissent of the Catholic left from the fundamental tenets of the Catholic Church is not a news flash, and to be clear, the dissent did not start with the campaign leading up to the 2012 election. But the campaign and election did produce a clarification as many Catholic politicians, Catholic university professors, prominent […]
I’m always on the hunt for positive news, there being such consistent media focus on the bad stuff. Most days, headlines essentially read, “Handbasket full; hell in sight.” So a recent headline caught my eye because of its positive tone: “Survey: Big drop in those who say being gay’s a sin.” According to Lifeway Research, […]
Fewer young men in the US want to get married than ever, while the desire for marriage is rising among young women, according to the Pew Research Center. Pew recently found that the number of women 18-34 saying that having a successful marriage is one of the most important things rose from 28 percent to […]
These days it seems we have a “right” to everything except the rights that are actually given to us by our Creator and enumerated in the Constitution. According to this article from the MIT Technology Review we even have a “right to consumer genetics.” What exactly is consumer genetics? Well, you can go about getting your genes […]
The turnout was overwhelming and dwarfed even the most optimistic forecasts. While official police sources, apparently under pressure from the government, sought to downplay the number of demonstrators who, despite the biting cold, came to Paris last Sunday to rally against the socialist-led government’s plans to legislate for same-sex “marriages” (including a pretended “right” for […]
In “Nightmares and Dreamscapes from the Desert,” a These Stone Walls post during Lent last year, I wrote of a recurring dream I’ve had throughout 18 years of imprisonment. The dream had multiple variations and outcomes, all of them anxiety producing, but one version in particular seemed to be an archetype for the dream’s central […]
A just-released global study demonstrates that the diseases causing most of the world’s untimely deaths and illness, especially among children, are not receiving proportionate attention within international policy-making institutions. According to the 2010 Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD 2010) published in The Lancet medical journal in December, over 1.4 million people died from diarrhea […]
I have suspected for a while now that there is little clarity in our culture regarding the goal of chastity. This is probably in part because there is little clarity regarding the difference between abstinence (which ends at marriage) and chastity (which never ends). But it is also probably in part because chastity contradicts the […]
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Isaiah 62:1-5; Psalm 96:1-3,7-10; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; John 2:1-11) Mary’s Great Faith and Trust in the Lord, A Model for Us to Follow in Prayer Do whatever he tells you. (John 2:5) Can we really change God’s mind? Well, maybe. Let’s take a look at a few […]
Anyone who has seen the latest DROID DNA smart phone ads realizes that such devices have become nearly inseparable from man’s person. As a matter of fact, the ads suggest that the phone is so much a part of the person that even his intelligence will be improved by merely using the phone. These are superb sales […]
The Faith may be ever-ancient, ever new, but calls for it to be amended or abridged are nothing new. Always there are clarion calls that the Church is dying out, and that she must adapt her teachings or face a slow death. A variety of heresies and challengers rise up in every age demanding to […]
It’s personal. It’s painful. And for the millions of people affected by infertility, it can also be very isolating. For those who have never experienced the sorrow and complexity of this condition, it’s impossible to truly comprehend the degree of suffering it causes. I had considered myself empathetic to those who couldn’t conceive, but I […]
“Sorry, No Steeple…but we do have a drive-thru” is what the clever, cool, hip billboard sign proclaims. I wasn’t exactly sure what it meant so I didn’t pay it much never-mind. Then another one popped up with something that was, to me, similarly vague: We don’t accept perfect people. Still, not paying attention. Then a […]
I recently attended a brainstorming session focusing on how to best deliver and follow up much needed care to a growing, vulnerable patient population in the community. Nothing was put on paper at the initial meeting. It was just an exchange of ideas, references, and an intention of good will and future partnership. Later, when […]
During the summer of 1998, our family faced the sudden death of our twelve-year-old son. He was perfectly healthy that morning, but during the night, his airways had a spasm and closed up. We discovered him blue and not breathing. I said “faced” because we came face to face with death; waiting for medical help, […]
In less than two weeks, our nation will mark the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decision that made abortion-on-demand the law of the land. The milestone is causing many on both sides of the aisle to take a closer look at our changing political landscape and ask, “Does legal abortion have […]
At first glance, the scene makes little sense. John’s strident call to repentance provokes an overwhelming response. People of all shapes and sizes flock to him in the wilderness. They are baptized in the Jordan as a sign of repentance and cleansing. Suddenly, out of the crowd steps John’s cousin, Jesus. Wait a minute! What […]
(Okay, so that’s really an 8-book list.) If you listen my podcast, Among Women, you know I have a passion for three things: first, to encourage women to grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ and their Catholic faith; second, to celebrate the beauty and genius of their womanhood; and third, to call women to […]
‘Come,’ Thou dost say to Angels ‘Come,’ Thou dost say to Angels, To blessed Spirits, ‘Come’: ‘Come,’ to the lambs of Thine own flock, Thy little ones, ‘Come home.’ ‘Come,’ from the many-mansioned house The gracious word is sent; ‘Come,’ from the ivory palaces Unto the Penitent. O Lord, restore us deaf and blind, Unclose […]
The doctor performing the ultrasound had a strange look on his face. The newly married couple braced themselves for what they were sure would be terrible news. “Now, don’t scream,” he said in measured tones. “One. Two. Three…Triplets!” Jason and Marie Taylor, both in their 30s, had married only four months ago, in May 2012. […]
The U.S. Supreme Court announced Monday the dates it will begin to hear oral arguments on two pivotal cases on the issue of same-sex “marriage.” On March 26, the Supreme Court will hear Hollingsworth v. Perry, on the issue of the constitutionality of California’s Proposition 8 – the voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage that was […]
Every once in a while, a book lands in your hands at the perfect time. For me, that happened this month when I received my lovely review copy of Cravings: A Catholic Wrestles with Food, Self-Image, and God by my friend and fellow writer Mary DeTurris Poust. The book arrived just in time for me […]
