It’s a story about how freedom is all. I speak of the Little Sisters of the Poor, an international congregation of Roman Catholic nuns who have devoted their lives to caring for the elderly poor. I am lucky to know more about this remarkable organization than many. In 2007, I wrote a column about Gorman […]
Life is not easy for Christians in Egypt, and the strain is taking its toll. Beyond the reports of churches burned and homes attacked, there is also a more subtle hardship affecting ordinary families. While not universal, mistreatment and discrimination are unfortunately all too common. “Every day we leave our house, not knowing what will […]
During a recent coffee meeting with a friend, he said, “You seem to have your act together on the fatherhood front. What’s your secret?” I was taken aback because I don’t think I have my act together at all. I don’t mean that out of false humility. I pray every day to be a better husband and father […]
Man lives in constant delusion. There is a world of difference between one sitting on a hill and looking at a beautiful sunrise and a man so enthralled with that very same sunrise that he forgets himself and becomes absorbed in the scene. In the first instance the man is egocentric; he is in delusion […]
Two news reports this week give us pause to ask the same simple question: When a woman is pregnant, does she and/or her family have a moral obligation to care? The sense one receives from reading these reports is that the answer is no, never. The first report discusses a young expectant mother, Marlise Munoz, who suffered […]
On the Feast of the Holy Family, December 29, 2013, Pope Francis invited all Catholics to pray for families as the Church prepares for an Extraordinary Synod to examine the troubling disconnect between Church teaching and the reality of modern family life. In his Angelus address given to the crowds in St. Peter’s Square, Pope […]
“We’re on a mission from God.” In the 1980 movie The Blues Brothers, outlaw musicians Jake and Elwood Blues receive a divine commission to save the orphanage where they grew up by playing a one-night-only charity concert. Though Jake and Elwood could “use some churching up,” they are convinced that their plan will succeed because they saw […]
Who are you Sir? Do I know You? Who are you Sir? Do I know you? May I come by from time to time? To sit and listen to the wind As you read? Am I in your book? Am I a subject that delights your mind? Do I have a chance of a place […]
This week the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released its annual report,Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance 2012, to whining among journalists that the reason for the documented continued rise in syphilis (primarily affecting homosexuals) has more to do with homophobia than anything else. Consider the following from Bloomberg News: Gonorrhea and syphilis are on the […]
When Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” This […]
Those concerned with the preservation of religious liberty in America are keeping a keen eye on the Supreme Court in 2014. The august body of jurists that comprise America’s highest court will be reviewing some cases that speak to the very heart of our nation’s political and civil heritage. Namely, are a person’s religious beliefs […]
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’s […]
The National Defense Authorization Act is probably something you never heard of before the last few weeks of 2011, even though some iteration or other of this federal law has been enacted every year for the past 49 years. Right as Advent 2011 was starting, the Act (full name: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, hereinafter […]
Have you heard the argument against the existence of God based on the size of the universe? You might find it strange that an argument against God would be constructed based on the enormity of space — something that elicits awe and wonder. But it is, and it goes like this: You see how big the […]
President Obama didn’t attend religious services this past Christmas.
These days, it seems we all know young couples who are living together— a friend, perhaps, or even a son or daughter. With cohabitation so common, living together hardly causes “scandal” anymore. In fact, when a government study found last year that 48% of young women cohabited with a partner as a first union, one […]
Ever since the dawn of embryonic stem cell research, the media has rarely gotten the facts straight. Either the reporter is unaware of the scientific and moral differences between adult and embryonic stem cells or he has an agenda to push. Some news outlets were so bold as to call embryonic stem cells “early” stem […]
In a reply filed with the U.S. Supreme Court, the Obama administration is arguing that a group of nuns that has objected to the HHS birth control and abortifacient mandate has no grounds to challenge the mandate since they are already exempt from it as a religious organization. However, lawyers for the nuns have pointed […]
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is, of course, Part Two in a three-part cinematic extravaganza of Tolkien’s beloved book: The Hobbit. How did Peter Jackson and Co. get three movies out of it? By drawing on The Silmarillion and other background information. Perhaps some Tolkien purists are not happy with this amalgam, but for the […]
Tamil women continue to die at the hands of the Sri Lankan government, which is intent upon eradicating the minority population. A woman named Manjula Satheeskumar and her father are the most recent casualties. On August 31st, 2013, more than 50 women and their children were told their children were going to get check-ups and […]
The Baptism of the Lord Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Isaiah 42:1-4,6-7; Psalm 29:1-4,9-10; Acts 10:34-38; Matthew 3:13-17) View NAB Reading at USCCB.org At Jesus’ Baptism, The Sinless One is One With Us esus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan. (Matthew 3:13) It’s a big day! After thirty hidden years […]
*Editor Note: Starting this month we will be introducing a new series at Catholic Lane. Known as The Bad Evangelist Club, we will be providing an examination of conscience so to speak for Catholic efforts at Evangelization and Apologetics. We will do so by reflecting on the bad arguments being made (often by the writers […]
According to a local Catholic leader, Nigeria’s well-being holds the key to the fate of the African continent: “If Nigeria falls to Islamic extremists, all of Africa will be at risk.” Bishop Hyacinth Egbebo is the administrator of the Apostolic Vicariate of Bomadi, in Nigeria’s Niger Delta, in the heart of the country’s oil-rich but […]
In a shock to homosexual activists, the Supreme Court halted all same-sex “marriages” in Utah on Monday morning. The state began handing out marriage licenses to same-sex couples last month after Judge Robert Shelby’s ruling that Utah’s voter-approved constitutional amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman violates the U.S. Constitution. However, last week, […]
