I know my purpose here on earth is to love and serve God so that I can spend eternity with Him in Heaven… But at my age, even having some of the answers to life’s bigger questions doesn’t mean there still aren’t a few things I wonder about… For instance, I was recently watching a […]
I quit. I just can’t do it anymore. I give up. I surrender. I call “Uncle.” For years, I’ve stood at the intersection of parenting and politics, trying to point out the myriad ways in which we are letting our culture change our children, only to anticipate with certain alarm the impact those changes will […]
Recently, Pope Benedict XVI, now Pope Emeritus, criticized the media for it’s continued misrepresenting of Vatican II. In response, NET (New Evangelization Television) debuted a 10-part weekly series called Vatican II: Inside the Vatican Council, on Thursday, February 21 at 8:30 PM ET. CNA/EWTN reported that “Pope Benedict XVI said that many of the misinterpretations of the Second […]
If you’re a parent living in one of the 38 states that require an abortionist to notify you or obtain your consent prior to his performing an abortion on your minor daughter, you may think that your rights to know what happens to your pregnant child are protected. Think again. In the other twelve states, […]
Benedict XVI has given his final papal blessing, the doors of Castelgandolfo have been sealed, and the Swiss Guard has hung their halberds because there is no pope for them to guard. Now, the Church waits in prayerful anticipation of the upcoming conclave and the installation of a new pope who will lead the Catholic […]
On February 26, 2013, the Denver Post ran an article that contained the following: Colorado parents of transgender 1st-grader file complaint over restroom ban The parents of a transgender 6-year-old have filed a complaint with the Colorado Civil Rights Division because Eagleside Elementary School in Fountain banned the first-grader from using the girls’ restroom. The […]
It’s Lent and time to take into consideration what we can do to strengthen our relationship with God and grow more deeply in our faith. Lord only knows how badly our world needs stronger faithful people! What better way to do that than adding extra time with the sacraments of confession and the Eucharist? Christ […]
Most religions in the ancient world were local or national cults. The Egyptians worshiped Isis and Osiris. Athens was named after the goddess Athena. Ephesus was the center of the cult of Artemis. But when the Church was born on Pentecost Sunday, it was comprised of people from every nation under heaven, all of whom […]
The Sequesters — John and Jane — have been married for eight years. They aren’t Hollywood Stars, professional athletes, or nightly-news anchors, so they’re not exactly multi-millionaires. John does have a good job, though. His employer’s business in recent years has been growing, and John has gotten an eight- or ten-percent raise every year for […]
For medical reasons, some members of the Fenelon Clan are unable to precisely follow the Church’s precept to fast during Lent. Because of our conditions, we could receive dispensation from fasting altogether, but to us, that seems like the easy way out. We almost feel as if we’re cheating. So, we fast to the measure […]
For the last several weeks I’ve been teaching an online course about the role of the Catholic laity. We’d just gotten to the subject of personal vocation when the startling news came through: Benedict XVI was stepping down as pope. Posting a question that Monday morning to get my students’ discussion rolling for the week, […]
The Second Vatican Council taught us that the Eucharist is the “Source and Summit” of the Christian life. Yet we must keep in mind that the same council makes clear that the Eucharist is not the sum total of the Christian life. In fact, the Eucharist and all the other sacraments are memorials of a […]
It was a surprising announcement indeed that Pope Benedict made this week. Of course, a Pope has the authority to say he will no longer be the Pope. But this will certainly be a new experience for the Church in our day. Having worked in the Vatican, it also raises some interesting protocol questions in […]
Liberals are apoplectic over remarks by Dr. Ben Carson at the National Prayer Breakfast. Carson, a prominent pediatric surgeon from Johns Hopkins University, dared to weigh in on healthcare—something he knows something about. In the liberal mind, Carson committed a grave transgression; he disagreed with President Obama on healthcare at a faith venue, and in […]
My kids already know what I’m going to say. I can just picture them mouthing the words as I speak them, “Don’t forget to think about what you’re going to do for Lent, and make sure you do something positive, too.” There, I said it. And, I meant it. Of course I advocate the Church’s […]
Monday’s announcement by Pope Benedict XVI that he will resign the papacy at the end of this month because of his increasingly frail health has revealed what we practicing Catholics in America have long understood: Our faith remains a mystery. No time has been wasted stirring up a frenzy of speculation about what will happen […]
Pope Benedict XVI has tendered his resignation effective 28 February, 2013. In making this stunning announcement before the College of Cardinals, the Holy Father cited “advanced age” and a lack of “strength of mind and body” as the factors that led him to conclude that he is incapable of “adequately fulfilling” the Petrine ministry. At […]
Would America’s 16th president be a 21st-century Democrat?
Last summer, I had a conversation on the topic of religious liberty with a dear priest friend who is a very accomplished moral theologian and seminary professor. He’s one of very few people I know whose rock-solid orthodoxy, knowledge and insight make him a reliable guide in all matters Catholic. That being the case, I […]
Why is it that Ash Wednesday and Lent remain relatively popular even in highly secularized times like these? It’s a serious question that touches on matters deeper than might at first be supposed. The popularity I speak of can be seen year after year on Ash Wednesday, when people–some of them perhaps not all that […]
5th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C Peter. Paul. Isaiah. Frodo Baggins. They have more in common than meets the eye. Of course, there are differences, too. Peter is a small business man, wringing a living for his family out of a lake in Hicksville. No one expected much from Galilee. Its inhabitants had a […]
Oftentimes the seasons of Lent and Advent are filled with our good intentions about what we will do, what we will read, and the changes we will make in our daily lives. The weeks stretch out ahead of us and we begin with great plans and an eagerness to experience the holy season in a […]
It’s hard to decide whether this story should be filed under “The Lord works in mysterious ways” or “Be careful what you wish for; you may get it.” A woman who goes by Pastor Alois Bell of Truth in the Word Deliverance Ministries, a storefront ministry in downtown St. Louis, claims she uses social media […]
