For Mary, Mother of God, both the Epiphany and Baptism of the Lord, January 19, and January 26. Mary, the Mother of God – January 1, 2020 Readings: Num 6:22–27 • Gal 4:4–7 • Ps 67:2–3, 5–6, 8 • Lk 2:16–21 usccb.org/bible/rea … [Read more...]
Archives for 2019
The Eucharist as Source and Summit of Evangelization in the Recent Magisterium
December 28, 2019 by Fr. Charles Fox
“Yes, if only I am lifted up from the earth, I will attract all men to myself.”[1. Jn 12:32. All Scriptural quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from the Knox Translation of the Bible.] In recent decades, the Church’s Magisterium has rep … [Read more...]
Understanding the Vatican’s Document on Gender Theory and Education
December 28, 2019 by Stephen G. Adubato
I’ve been trying to keep up with the diverse array of responses to the release of “Man and Woman He Created Them,” the Vatican’s new document addressing gender theory and education. Predictably, liberal Catholic news outlets have criticized … [Read more...]
Boredom, Ordinary Time, and God’s Gift of Himself
December 28, 2019 by Deacon James Keating
It is routine to hear people good-heartedly mock the reasonableness of the Church’s liturgical calendar “celebrating” “Ordinary Time.” To celebrate ordinariness is a true curiosity within Western culture, because its members routinely seek e … [Read more...]
Suicide Prevention in Youth
December 28, 2019 by Dr. Richard P. Fitzgibbons, MD
The severity of the mental health crisis in American youth has been clearly documented again by the shocking research reported in the Wall Street Journal that over the ten year period 2007 to 2017 the suicide rate among people ages 10 to 24 … [Read more...]
Review: Pope Francis: The Legacy of Vatican II
December 28, 2019 by Dr. Monica Miller
Pope Francis: The Legacy of Vatican II (Revised and Expanded Edition) by Dr. Eduardo J. Echeverria (Hobe Sound, FL: Lectio Publishers, 2019) 456 pages No one who has paid even the least amount of attention could fail to conclude that, … [Read more...]
No-Fault Divorce, Standing for Justice
December 28, 2019 by Bai Macfarlane
Parish Priests and Divorce If a devastated woman approaches her pastor because she learned her husband committed adultery, the pastor might advise that she should hire a good divorce lawyer. When a faithful husband with four children tells … [Read more...]
Questions Answered for December 2019
December 28, 2019 by Fr. Brian Mullady, OP
What Are Cardinals? Question: There has been a lot of controversy in the Church in the last year about how Theodore McCarrick could have risen to the rank of cardinal. What is the function of the College of Cardinals? Answer: Though … [Read more...]
Book Reviews – December 2019
December 28, 2019 by Book Reviews
The Girl Who Learned How to Kneel: The Story of Etty Hillesum By Patricia McCarthy. Reviewed by Magdalena Randal. (skip to review) The Bible and the Gospel: The Meaning of Scripture — From the God Who Speaks to the God Made Man By L … [Read more...]
Homilies for December 2019
November 30, 2019 by Fr. Louis Philip Masi
For December 1, December 8, Immaculate Conception, December 15, December 22, Christmas, and Holy Family. 1st Sunday of Advent – December 1, 2019 Readings: Is 2:1–5 • Ps 122:1–9 • Rom 12:11–14 • Mt 24:37–44 usccb.org/bible/r … [Read more...]
Canon Law, Civil Law, and the Current Crisis in the Church
Reflections of a Civil Lawyer Studying Canon Law in Rome
November 25, 2019 by Michael J. Mazza
Last fall I left my job as a corporate lawyer and began studying canon law in Rome. Explaining my rationale to my colleagues wasn’t as difficult as I had imagined. Whether they were practicing Catholics, fallen-away Catholics, not-yet C … [Read more...]
Human and Divine Fatherhood in The Violent Bear It Away and Gilead
November 25, 2019 by Sr. Mary John Kramer, OP
The Violent Bear It Away and Gilead show the role of prophet as a preacher of the Lord as a genetic vocation growing out of ‘blood’ and family bonds, but responded to in varying degrees and manifestations. While Marilynne Robinson paints a p … [Read more...]
John of the Cross and Exercising Charisms for Evangelization
A Response to Elizabeth Salas
November 25, 2019 by Fr. Mathias D. Thelen, STL
Once in a while I run into statements like: “Catholics shouldn’t seek to exercise the charisms of the Spirit because St. John of the Cross cautioned against them.” Such concerns come in different forms and are usually raised by people who si … [Read more...]
Review: The Devil’s Redemption
November 25, 2019 by Dr. Ralph Martin, STD
McClymond, Michael J. The Devil’s Redemption: A New History and Interpretation of Christian Universalism. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2018. This is a very important book. In two large and carefully documented volumes Dr. McClymond, a p … [Read more...]
The “Female Diaconate” after the Amazon Synod
The Mystery of Human Sexuality in the Woman at the Well and the Vital Sacrament of Apostolic Succession
November 25, 2019 by Scott Pauline
In light of the recent Amazon Synod, the question of the female diaconate has once again been raised. It is more than obvious that novelty and change are today’s signs of progress. In the twentieth century, for example, scientific a … [Read more...]
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