Archives for April 2023

Homilies for May 2023

For the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Sundays of Easter; the Solemnity of the Ascension; and Pentecost Sunday Fifth Sunday of Easter – May 6, 2023 Readings: Acts 6:1–7 • Ps 33:1–2, 4–5, 18–19 • 1 Pt 2:4–9 • Jn 14:1–12      bible.usccb.org/bi … [Read more...]

Preaching the Saints at Universities – A Case Study

Blessed Antoine-Frederic Ozanam (1813-1853)

In his Apostolic Exhortation The Word of the Lord (2010), Pope Benedict XVI includes a section entitled “The saints and the interpretation of Scripture.” He writes: “The interpretation of Sacred Scripture would remain incomplete were it n … [Read more...]

Translating Each Other

A Rabbinic Reflection on Jewish-Catholic Understanding

Editor’s Note: Pope Benedict XVI reminded us in Verbum Domini 43, “I wish to state once more how much the Church values her dialogue with the Jews. Wherever it seems appropriate, it would be good to create opportunities for encounter and exc … [Read more...]

Sacred God, Sacred Church

The Catholic Church and the Hermeneutic of Mystery

In the religion of the Old Testament, Hebrew knowledge and experience of covenantal obligations inspired God’s people to treat his name as particularly sacred and holy, and to refer to it as the great, the only, and the glorious and t … [Read more...]

Preaching the Heart of the Gospel

Although I grew up in a nominally Catholic home, neither of my parents was particularly religious. We attended Sunday Mass occasionally as a family, but as we got older the demands of family life, sports, and other obligations quickly began … [Read more...]

Stuck in Neutral: When Parish Evangelization (Still) Fails

It has been five years since the four-day United States Convocation of Catholic Leaders on Evangelization was held in Atlanta. It has been nine years since Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium, The Joy of the Gospel, was … [Read more...]

Questions Answered – May 2023

Guilt in the Spiritual Life Question: Can you explain guilt to me? Is it good or bad for the soul? Answer: To understand the place of guilt, it is necessary to recall that every moral act involves three powers of the soul: the … [Read more...]

Book Reviews – May 2023

Joseph Ratzinger and the Healing of the Reformation-Era Divisions. Ed. by Emery De Gaál and Matthew Levering. Reviewed by M. Ciftci. (skip to review) Benedict XVI: Servant of Love. By Bénedicte Delelis. Reviewed by Christopher Siuzdak. (s … [Read more...]