Many, many years ago, people who wanted to live more fully for God — to know Him more intimately in their daily lives and see themselves in His more truthful light — would often seek guidance from an Ascetic who was, more than likely, living in the desert. I find Asceticism fascinating. It was almost as […]
Most Catholics have heard about Saint Don Bosco and the order he founded based on the spirituality and charism of Saint Francis de Sales, today called the Salesians, which are divided up into Fathers, Brothers and Sisters. The idea of founding such a religious community within the Catholic Church was primarily to help young boys, […]
Jesus said “Behold, I will be with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28-20). In all the centuries since His resurrection, with the rising and the setting of the daily sun, Christ has descended to be with us, always. Every time a priest has proclaimed “This is my body…. This is […]
Andrew Sullivan was a member of Miles Jesu for 28 years, a priest for seven years and served as General Secretary of the Society of Miles Jesufor four years. Miles Jesu, a Catholic religious congregation underwent a visitation by the Vicariate of Rome in 2007 and later a Commissioner was appointed to take control and re-found […]
We are all on a journey — the journey of this life. It begins in the mystery of “not being” before we are conceived, and seems to end, humanly speaking, in the “not being” of death. From dust to dust. But faith — not precisely scientific, repeatable, experimentally verifiable knowledge, but a type of knowledge […]
In the tradition of Frenchman Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America, cross-cultural comparisons can sometimes provide insights to which we, as citizens, might be blind. A recent visitor to our parish in metropolitan Seattle, Father Kiiza Justus of Uganda, granted me an interview.[i] . Uganda — “the pearl of Africa” — has the youngest population in the […]
If you missed Part One of this interview with the Canons Regular of St. Augustine, you can find it here . In Part Two, the Canons talk about their return to the U.S. and how you can support their mission. Q: Did you think you’d ever come back to serve a parish in the U.S? […]
A couple of years ago, a pastor asked me to provide a catechetical training day for teachers in his Catholic school and CCD program. One of my first questions to him was what issues had developed that required my assistance. The Pastor voiced to me his concern over poor doctrinal formation he suspected the children […]
The Canons Regular of St. Augustine, a group of priests who live in community and serve parishes, recently landed in Long Island, New York. Their blend of community life and diocesan ministry is ancient, but a first for the U.S. The Order’s new American foundation, the Canonry of St. Leopold, offers fresh possibilities for U.S. […]
A man I know was sitting on a boardwalk bench several weeks ago watching the ocean and thinking about nothing special. Two young men, maybe 18 or 20, came up and sat down beside him. The one nearest him leaned over and said: “Excuse me, sir, do you mind if I ask you a question?” […]
There is a well-known story about a young man throwing starfish out into the ocean. An older man walked by and asked him what he was doing. The young man replied that he was throwing the starfish out into the ocean so that they would not die in the heat of the sun. At that, […]
World Youth Day 2011 will be celebrated in Madrid from August 16th to 21st, 2011. The Theme for this year is: “Planted and Built Up in Jesus Christ, Firm in the Faith”— Saint Paul What is World Youth Day? It is a great worldwide encounter with the Pope which is celebrated every three years in […]
As debate surrounding the recently published John Jay Report (Causes and Context of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Catholic Priests in the United States, 1950-2010) continues, more and more Catholics are coming to the unavoidable conclusion (contrary to “official findings”) that the overwhelming majority of abuse cases were directly related to homosexuality. One may further […]
Rome has just accepted the resignation of the embattled cardinal archbishop of Philadelphia, Justin Rigali, 76, and has announced his replacement: Archbishop Charles Chaput, 66, currently the archbishop of Denver, Colorado. Chaput is a Capuchin Franciscan whose ethnic origin is American Indian. (Here is a link to his official biography.) The Capuchins are a strictly […]
A few years ago, when the news was filled with the reports of priests who had abused youths and the bishops who had been so derelict in their handling of the predator priests and in protecting the faithful, I remember thinking, “The problem is that they don’t believe. They don’t really believe.” I found myself […]
I do not enjoy housework. Not even a little bit. Just yesterday I was telling the young lady who lives next door to me that I wished I had a magic wand that I could simply wave and have a clean house! Alas, that is not the case and I do have to put things […]
“Do not neglect hospitality, for through it some have unknowingly entertained angels (Hebrews 13:2).” Perhaps one of the greatest examples of this is Abraham rushing out to welcome three men standing near his tent (Genesis 18:1-15). He begged them to come, wash their feet, rest, and eat before continuing on their journey. In return, the […]
The Pope gave a talk today that was a profound critique of the modern scientific method. I was in the Vatican press office at noon today when Pope Benedict in the Clementine Hall inside the Apostolic Palace conferred “Ratzinger Prizes” on three European theologians for the excellence of their theological work. I was able to […]
Pope Benedict XVI, Homily, Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, Rome, June 29, 2011 Dear Brothers and Sisters, “Non iam dicam servos, sed amicos” — “I no longer call you servants, but friends” (cf. Jn 15:15). Sixty years on from the day of my priestly ordination, I hear once again deep within me these words […]
But as for you man of God, shun all this; aim at righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness. Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses (1 Tim 6:11-12). At times, there are certain […]
According to the Vatican II document Inter Mirifica (Decree on the Media of Social Communications), media organizations “should see to it that communications or presentations concerning religious matters are entrusted to worthy and experienced hands and are carried out with fitting reverence” (IM 11). This, apparently, would be news to writer Phyllis Zagano and her […]
[Second Editor’s note: We have appended the message of June 20 from SOLT.] [Editor’s note: In light of today’s news about Fr. Corapi, we are rerunning this article which originally appeared on Catholic Lane on April 4 ,2011. We have appended Fr. Corapi’s message, released today, to the end of this article, as it stunningly validates […]
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 […]
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; […]
