For September 7, September 14 (Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross), September 21, and September 28 Twenty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time – September 7, 2025 Readings: Wisdom 9:13–18b • Psalm 90:3–4, 5–6, 12–13, 14 and 17 • Philemon 9–10 … [Read more...]
Archives for 2025
Evangelizing in the Workplace
Doing It Respectfully, Well, and Within Key Parameters
A major area of common ground among all of us is work. After all, after collecting statistical data about lifespan, expected retirement, hours of work per day, number of work weeks in a year, and number of hours people in the U.S. sleep, … [Read more...]
Patristic Pastoral Theology: Gregory of Nazianzus and Augustine of Hippo
For you I am a bishop; but with you I am a Christian. – St. Augustine of Hippo[1. Augustine of Hippo, quoted in Lumen Gentium, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Vatican website (21 November 1964), available at: h … [Read more...]
The Sacerdotal Canons of Trent, Their Foundations, and Their Persistence
The Council of Trent provided for the Catholic Church and her adversaries a foundational structure for much of her teachings across a great many areas of theology, including the basis for her teachings on Original Sin, Justification, and — m … [Read more...]
Disciplining Priests: A Synodal Moment?
In the past few decades, the Catholic Church has faced major challenges ranging from the sexual abuse crisis to financial collapse of numerous dioceses. One area that receives little attention is the deepening malaise of morale among … [Read more...]
Strengthening the Priesthood in the United States
Practically speaking, the contemporary Church has made a strategic error in its renewal efforts: attempting a new evangelization without revitalizing its priests. I say “practically speaking” because, while there have been high-level eff … [Read more...]
Questions Answered – September 2025
The “Great Schism”: What Happened and Why? Question: Dear Father Cush, why did the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church split? What does the Catholic Church teach about receiving the Sacraments in the Orthodox Churches? Answer: The … [Read more...]
Book Reviews – September 2025
Preaching to a Divided Nation: A Seven-Step Model for Promoting Reconciliation and Unity. By Matthew Kim and Paul Hoffman. Reviewed by Randall Woodard. (skip to review) A Concise Introduction to Bernard Lonergan, S.J. By Rev. John P. C … [Read more...]
Homilies for August 2025
For August 3, August 10, August 17, August 24, and August 31, as well as August 15 (the Solemnity of the Assumption) Homilies for Sundays by Fr. Edward Pelrine Homily for Our Lady’s Assumption by Rev. John P. Cush Eighteenth Sunday in O … [Read more...]
Faith and Reason: How the College General Education Curriculum Is Fundamental for a Catholic Renewal
At last I went to the artisans, for I was conscious that I knew nothing at all, as I may say, and I was sure that they knew many fine things; and in this I was not mistaken, for they did know many things of which I was ignorant, and in this … [Read more...]
A Decade of Connection: Laudato Si’ and the Broader Vision of Pope Francis
Ten years ago, Pope Francis signed Laudato Si’ (henceforth LS), his first “solo” encyclical letter (most of Lumen Fidei had been composed by Pope Benedict XVI). The bulk of its public reception revolved around questions of whether his asses … [Read more...]
Eucharistic Adoration, Spiritual Communion, and the Practice of the Presence of God Online
The National Eucharistic Revival continues to be a divine invitation to the Church to be united once again around the source and summit of our faith in the celebration of the Eucharist. During its third year, Catholics are being invited to … [Read more...]
Principles of Neuroscience Embedded in the Spirituality of St. Francis de Sales
A Pastoral Approach to Addictive Behaviors
Before the advent of modern neurobiology, neuroanatomy and neurochemistry, the intricate mechanisms of brain functions were poorly understood. Many theories were advanced as attempts to comprehend the connection between the brain and human … [Read more...]
Video Gaming: A Catholic Moral Theological Perspective
Without a doubt, video games have become a major formative influence on modern-day culture, particularly among the youth. According to the latest 2024 figures, the global video game industry is projected to pocket a revenue of U.S. $455.27 … [Read more...]
Questions Answered – August 2025
What Is a Resurrected Body Like? Question: What does Saint Thomas Aquinas teach us about the nature of the resurrected body of Jesus? What does he teach us about our own resurrected bodies at the end of time? Answer: Saint Thomas … [Read more...]
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