In recent years it has become commonplace to turn funerals into casual canonizations. “Bob is in a better place,” we’re told, which, if taken literally, can only mean Heaven, as neither Hell nor Purgatory are better places than earth. Never mind the fact that Bob wasn‘t very generous with his time or money, drank too […]
My name is Dr. Kevin Kikta, and I was one of two emergency room doctors who were on duty at St. John’s Regional Medical Center in Joplin, MO on Sunday, May 22, 2011. You never know that it will be the most important day of your life until the day is over. The day started […]
As we approach the celebration of Pentecost we pause to consider the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, the Holy Spirit. The first person of the Trinity is God the Father. Known as the Creator of the universe, he is awesome. And then there is Jesus the Son, the second person of the Trinity. Jesus, […]
Far too often man seeks God in prayer merely to improve his future standing with the kingdom of heaven or in the present kingdom of man. Recognizing his own sins, man seeks forgiveness from God in order to regain God’s favor. Continually afflicted as he is by the wretchedness in others, man seeks God’s help […]
He wore steel rimmed glasses and had hair to the middle of his back. The fringe on his buck-skinned jacket bounced as he walked. At least that was the way I was accustomed to seeing Mike as he bopped around town. It was just a few years after Woodstock, and we were all taken with […]
The other day, I learned that British author Donal Foley has written on the subject of “The Lady of All Nations.”[i] Foley is the original English translator of the Vatican document Normae Congregationis (NC), on the norms for discernment of apparitions. Knowing Foley’s work in private revelation, I was interested to read his remarks on […]
Just when I thought I was home free, it hit. I caught one of those nasty Spring viruses that come racing around the corner while you’re looking in the other direction. Because the buds are beginning to swell on the trees and the first warm breezes are beginning to blow, you forget about watching out […]
Today, May 25, is Saint Padre Pio’s birthday. Francesco Forgione, who became the modern world’s most beloved Saint Padre Pio, was born 124 years ago today on 25 May 1887 to Mario Forgione and Maria Giuseppa de Nunzio Forgione in Pietrelcina, Italy. On the next day, 26 May 1887, he was baptized. Padre Pio was proclaimed […]
Our youngest son has a job walking a Weimaraner dog on weekdays. Sometimes, I go along with him, with our Lhasa-poo in tow because the dog’s home is near Lake Michigan and there are lots of beautiful places to wander and sights to see. Yesterday was one of those days, and I almost wish it […]
Bishop Matthias Ssekamanya of Lugazi warned of a rapid growth in Islamic influence in Uganda during a visit to the headquarters of the international Catholic pastoral charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). According to Bishop Ssekamanya, Arab states like Libya are investing increasingly in Uganda, and Muslims have gained key positions in a […]
On May 18, researchers from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice released their long-awaited final report, Causes and Context of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Catholic Priests in the United States, 1950-2010. The research team, led by Karen Terry, Ph.D., gathered an impressive amount of information from which they drew a number of conclusions; […]
Ralph McInerny was an interesting guy. (I use the past tense merely to conform to convention since he died January 29, 2010, even though it is incorrect, as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the God of the living. Mt 22, 32.) Perhaps McInerny’s widest popular notoriety came as creator of the Father […]
Prayer is the intimate communication between God and His creation. It is the language of heaven gifted to the kingdom of man. It is the word made flesh for our minds and hearts. It is our calling. It is our passion. It is our pain. While in the kingdom of man, the true believer innately […]
The recent murder of a Christian in the north-Iraqi town of Kirkuk has again instilled terror in the small community. Ashur lssa Yaqub, a 29 year old working class citizen, was found dead by the police on Monday morning after being kidnapped Friday night. His body was badly mutilated and his ear severed after his […]
You may have seen them in your community too. What I am talking about are these very large billboards announcing the end of the world on May 21, 2011. These billboards are promoting the teachings of Mr. Harold Camping, a radio preacher who believes that Jesus will “rapture” Christ’s true believers into heaven and resurrect […]
A few weeks ago, I went to New York to hear a friend’s daughter play the cello for her senior recital at Julliard School of Music. As I walked from the subway station to the school, at the corner of 65th Street and Broadway, a sincere-looking young woman left the place where she had been […]
Reflecting Upon Attending a Christian Concert On Friday, February 4, I attended the Rock and Worship Roadshow at the Resch Center in Green Bay, WI.[i] I went because the artist Matt Maher was playing and I hoped to have the opportunity to meet and talk with him.[ii] I am glad to say that I was […]
Last Wednesday night I had the pleasure of addressing a “Theology on Tap” gathering of young adults on the topic of how to prepare for the new English translation of the Roman Missal. During the Q&A portion of our time together I was somewhat surprised when a number of attendees wondered aloud about how the […]
Following the violent attacks on Christian churches in Cairo last weekend, the Coptic Catholic Patriarch of Alexandria, Cardinal Antonios Naguib has spoken of a “very serious situation,” but one not without hope. Last Sunday, May 9, the president of the Sunni Al Azhar University in Cairo issued a joint declaration, together with representatives of all […]
The Bard of the Yukon, Robert Service, penned the immortal lines: There are strange things done in the midnight sun, by the men who moil for gold; The Arctic trails have their secret tails, that would make your blood run cold; So began The Cremation of Sam McGee, the poem that would make […]
Laboring in the desert of the kingdom of man, the true believer finds himself bent by the weight of sin, stiffened by the pain of sorrow and stained by the sweat of fear. While he knows that God created him out of pure love, redeems Him out of pure mercy and awaits his full return […]
In the 1980 film Oh, God: Book II 11-year-old Tracy Richards believes that God is talking to her. In fact, God (played by George Burns) wants Tracy to tell everybody she knows that he is real. So she does. She drafts a slogan and message, just two words, is conclusive and clear: THINK GOD. She […]
The atheist philosopher of the 19th century, Friedrich Nietzsche, once said: “if Christians want me to believe in their redeemer, they need to look more redeemed.” He was drawing the wrong conclusion from a perceptive observation. To Nietzsche most Christians looked just as burdened, clueless and lost as everybody else. When he looked into their […]
“Introibo ad altare Dei“: Document on How to Implement Summorum Pontificum Published in Rome Today, May 13, 2011 A day of rejoicing for Catholics who love the rich, profound tradition of the old Latin liturgy. A day — May 13, 2011 — which, bracketed with July 7, 2007, when the Pope published Summorum Pontificum, will […]
