Archives for May 2017

Homilies for June 2017

General Method: Read and meditate on the readings at least a week before the homily. Then decide on a main point you want to make, and an exhortation for the congregation. Then write the homily straight through in one sitting. Make sure … [Read more...]

The Ascension Today

Christianity moves. As we ponder so often in the Gospels, Christ gathers and sends out, he forms and confers a mission. The mystery of the Lord’s ascension into heaven manifests the grand vertical dynamism that comprehends all such h … [Read more...]

A Study of the “Song of Songs” in the Works of St. Bernard and St. John of the Cross

The Songs of Songs which is Solomon’s[1. Holy Bible Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2006), 517 in an introductory note to the book, “Song of Solomon,” says that this is its original title.] w … [Read more...]

Education in Chaste Love After Amoris Laetitia

Introduction After the publication of the post-synodal exhortation, Amoris Laetitia, does one still need to regard as valid the teaching of Pope Saint John Paul II in Familiaris Consortio that parents are the ones called to give their … [Read more...]

Memory, History, and the Elderly

Pope Francis’s Plan for Saving Society

Author’s note: The following article is expanded from a talk given at Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, as part of the symposium entitled: "Pope Francis’s Vision for the Renewal of the Church," November 10-12, 201 … [Read more...]

Gender Ideology Harms Children

The American College of Pediatricians urges healthcare professionals, educators and legislators to reject all policies that condition children to accept as normal a life of chemical and surgical impersonation of the opposite sex. Facts—not i … [Read more...]

Springtime Reading

  Proofs of God: Classical Arguments from Tertullian to Barth by Matthew Levering. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2016. Reviewed by Matthew K. Minerd, Ph.L. Speaking from Within: Biblical Approaches for Effective Pr … [Read more...]

Suggestions for Observing the Marian Month in a Parish

Our Catholic Church recommends a particular devotion for every month![1. A comprehensive list can be found at the website for Aquinas and More: aquinasandmore.com/catholic-articles/monthly-dedications-of-the-church-year/article/184/] For … [Read more...]

Media Technology in Preaching

A Catholic Response

Preachers in various Christian denominations use audio-visual technology in their sermons and homilies. PowerPoint, video clips, and even hologram imagery have found their way into the pulpit. To accommodate preachers who have chosen to use … [Read more...]

The Way, The Truth, and The Life

A Blueprint for Theology and Sanity

God’s divine revelation of himself to humanity is brought to its completion, and fullest realization, in the divine person of Jesus Christ, who, throughout sacred scripture and sacred tradition, reveals himself as “one in being [or essence] … [Read more...]

Divorce, Remarriage, and “Discerning the Body”

On Pope Francis’ Interpretation of 1 Cor 11:27-34 in Amoris Laetitia

Introduction Over the past year since its release, Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation, Amoris Laetitia (hereafter AL), has elicited a great deal of consternation among the faithful of the Catholic Church. The controversy surrounding the d … [Read more...]

Praise or Pretense for Catholic Schools?

It’s always nice to know the hard-earned reputation of Catholic schools—from the early struggles of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton to the 1950s, when our schools were bursting at the seams with record enrollments—still lingers today. But if we’re … [Read more...]

On the Significance of the Feast of Saint Joseph the Worker

In 1955, Pope Pius XII instituted May 1 to be the Feast of Saint Joseph the Worker. This feast, which perhaps intentionally coincided with “May Day” and “International Workers Day,” seeks to remind us of the spiritual dimension of man’s dail … [Read more...]

Questions Answered

Question:  If a couple is in the state of mortal sin because of cohabitation before marriage without confession, is the marriage still a valid sacramental marriage? If not, when does it become a sacramental marriage? Answer:  This q … [Read more...]

Homilies for May 2017

Fourth Sunday of Easter—May 7, 2017 Readings: http://usccb.org/bible/readings/042617.cfm ACTS 2:14A, 36-41; PS 23: 1-3A, 3B4, 5, 6; 1 PT 2:20B-2; JN 10:1-10 “I am the gate for the sheep.” (John 10:7). The Poverty of the Shepherd A C … [Read more...]