For August 4, August 11, The Assumption, August 18, and August 25. 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time – August 4, 2019 Readings: Ecc 1:2; 2:21–23 • Ps 90:3–6, 12–14, 17 • Col 3:1–5, 9–11 • Lk 12:13–21 usccb.org/bible/readin … [Read more...]
Archives for 2019
Who Was Hubert Jedin?
July 26, 2019 by Fr. Brian Van Hove, SJ
In November, 1991, the Homiletic and Pastoral Review published a memorandum of Hubert Jedin written in 1968. But many in the English-speaking world were quite unaware of who this man was and what his contribution to the Church consisted of. … [Read more...]
A Sweet Remedy for Our Troubled Times
The Practice of Confession According to St. Francis De Sales
July 26, 2019 by Br. John Paul Puschautz, CSJ
In these tumultuous times in the world and in the Church, we need more than ever to plunge into the mystery of God’s infinite mercy in the Sacrament of Reconciliation and to be inspired by the witness of the saints. What better place to s … [Read more...]
Parochial Solipsism
July 26, 2019 by Fr. John Nepil
It is not excessive to suggest that three quarters of the life of the American pastor is consumed with administrative governance. He is, for all intents and purposes, the head of a small business. He hires and fires, reviews budgets, … [Read more...]
Alternate Views on the Root Causes of the Bishops’ Clergy Sex-Abuse Cover-Up
July 26, 2019 by Rev. Martin R. Tripole, SJ
The Church is now in the throes of the second wave of the clergy sex-abuse crisis, which began June 20, 2018, with the exposé of former cardinal archbishop of Washington Theodore E. McCarrick’s abuse of minors and seminarians. Since then, at … [Read more...]
Father de Caussade and the Abandonment to Divine Providence
July 26, 2019 by Fr. Jeffrey Kirby
Existentially Bored Currently, we are witnessing a widespread cultural shift away from the Christian faith and an odd movement in many hearts toward various Eastern philosophies and spiritualities. As Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI once … [Read more...]
Questions Answered – July 2019
July 26, 2019 by Fr. Brian Mullady, OP
Good Friday, the Cross, and Foot Washing Question: Does Good Friday veneration of the Cross involve only a crucifix, or can a simple wooden cross be used? Is it appropriate, when reading the Gospel on Holy Thursday, for the laity, … [Read more...]
Book Reviews – July 2019
July 26, 2019 by Book Reviews
A Concise Guide to Catholic Social Teaching By Kevin E. McKenna. Reviewed by Christopher Siuzdak. (skip to review) The Abolition of Women: How Radical Feminism Is Betraying Women By Fiorella Nash. Reviewed by Marcus Benedict Peter. … [Read more...]
Homilies for July 2019
July 5, 2019 by Fr. Benjamin Roberts
For July 7, July 14, July 21, and July 28. 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time – July 7, 2019 Readings: Is 66:10–14c • Ps 66:1–7, 16, 20 • Gal 6:14–18 • Lk 10:1–12, 17–20 (or Lk 10:1–9) usccb.org/bible/readings/070719.cfm Every year bef … [Read more...]
Our Lady of Good Help, the New Evangelization, and the Priest
June 30, 2019 by Fr. Frederick L. Miller, STD
Allow me to begin by making two confessions: I arrived at the Monastery of the Holy Name of Jesus in Denmark, Wisconsin, on Friday afternoon. I am an old friend of the nuns and try to visit them at least once a year. Two of the nuns, … [Read more...]
Inverting the Relevance of the Gospel
June 30, 2019 by Steve Morrisson
We hear much these days about relevance and the need to be relevant in all we do. The admonition applies to politicians, parents, teachers and especially pastors who are exhorted to make Scripture relevant to their congregations. What can … [Read more...]
God Isn’t Your College Professor
June 30, 2019 by David B. Wester
It’s the end of another semester. Final exams need to be marked and grades need to be assigned to a group of students anxious to learn “what they got” for the course. There’s so much in all of this that begs for the usual justification. T … [Read more...]
Parental and Spousal Alienation in Catholic Marriages
June 30, 2019 by Dr. Richard P. Fitzgibbons, MD
Marital separation and divorce in Catholic couples can result in intense levels of stress and sadness, particularly in the majority of spouses who report, while this is occurring, being happily married, committed to the marriage, and … [Read more...]
Circumcision and the Crucifixion
June 30, 2019 by Maggie Willson
When God Almighty called to that man Abram, inviting him to live in a covenant with the Lord, He asked Abram to do a very curious thing to himself, to his people, and to his descendants as a sign of that covenant: to circumcise the flesh of … [Read more...]
Joseph and the Epic Battle of Humility over Pride in Spiritual Direction
June 30, 2019 by Fr. William Dillard
From the lessons of the great protagonists of Judaism many valuable spiritual lessons are to be learned. What is at the core of the lives, and in particular the life of Joseph, is how the Lord’s plan is accomplished in cooperation with h … [Read more...]
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