From the dawn of redemptive history, blood has signified life, binding, and atonement. In the ancient Near East, treaty oaths were ratified by the shedding of blood, signifying mutual commitment under penalty of death. In Israel, Yahweh … [Read more...]
The Daily Gift That Is Psalm 95
One of the important ways that the Church gives clergy to stay on track with religious and spiritual growth is the requirement for daily recitation of the Liturgy of the Hours. That requirement makes the practice truly a Divine Office, part … [Read more...]
The Christian Responsibility for the Poor in the Scriptures
“If you cannot find Christ in the beggar at the church door, you will not find Him in the chalice.” These words, attributed to St. John Chrysostom’s sermon on St. Matthew 25:31–46, carry in them a powerful challenge: See Christ in others … [Read more...]
The Sacerdotal Canons of Trent, Their Foundations, and Their Persistence
August 29, 2025 by Jennifer Ely
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...]
Questions Answered – May 2025
April 30, 2025 by Rev. John P. Cush, STD
In Memoriam: Fr. Brian Mullady, O.P. We at Homiletic and Pastoral Review mourn the passing of Rev. Brian Thomas Becket Mullady, O.P., STD. Fr. Brian was a noted theologian, preacher, author, and professor. For many years, Fr. Brian was … [Read more...]
Book Reviews – February 2025
January 27, 2025 by Book Reviews
Liturgical Hermeneutics of Sacred Scripture. By Marco Benini. Reviewed by Fr. Vien V. Nguyen, SCJ. (skip to review) Theology as an Ecclesial Discipline: Ressourcement and Dialogue. By Archbishop J. Augustine Di Noia, O.P. Reviewed by … [Read more...]
Priests Who Cry Wolf
November 27, 2024 by Fr. Anthony Hollowell
History shows that, when preaching about the end of the world, zealous and holy priests have not always been prudent priests. Take, for example, the preaching of Saint Gregory the Great. He lived in an era that many of his contemporaries … [Read more...]
Book Reviews – November 2024
October 24, 2024 by Book Reviews
Mere Natural Law: Originalism and the Anchoring Truths of the Constitution. By Hadley Arkes. Reviewed by Fr. Stephen Rocker. (skip to review) God Loves The Autistic Mind. By Fr. Matthew Schneider, LC. Reviewed by Fr. Mark Nolette. (skip … [Read more...]
Book Reviews – June 2023
May 26, 2023 by Book Reviews
As a Priest Thinks, So He Is. Ed. by Beth Rath McGough and Patricia Pintado-Murphy. Reviewed by M. Ross Romero, S.J. (skip to review) Pray, Think, Act: Make Better Decisions with the Desert Fathers. By Augustine J. Wetta, O.S.B. Reviewed … [Read more...]
Translating Each Other
A Rabbinic Reflection on Jewish-Catholic Understanding
April 26, 2023 by Amelia Wolf
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...]
Book Reviews – March 2023
February 24, 2023 by Book Reviews
Ponder: Contemplative Bible Study for Year C. By Mahri Leonard-Fleckman. Reviewed by Fr. Vien V. Nguyen, SCJ. (skip to review). Christopher Dawson: A Cultural Mind in the Age of the Great War. By Joseph T. Stuart. Reviewed by Thomas V. … [Read more...]
Walking Through the “Orchard” of Scripture
Encountering a Rabbinical Tradition of Biblical Reading with Christian Eyes
December 22, 2022 by Fr. Dempsey Rosales Acosta, SSL, STD
Premise: Searching for Meaning One of the basic notions that we must take into consideration when reading Scripture is the complexity of meaning(s) “words” can communicate. Why? The divine revelation manifested in the written word resides i … [Read more...]
Book Reviews – September 2022
August 30, 2022 by Book Reviews
The Light Entrusted to You: Keeping the Flame of Faith Alive. By John R. Wood. Reviewed by Aaron Martin. (skip to review) The Education of a Historian: A Strange and Wonderful Story. By John W. O’Malley. Reviewed by Christopher Siuzdak. ( … [Read more...]
The Terminal State of Unbaptized Infants
June 24, 2022 by Nate Guyear
Since the earliest centuries of the Church, Christians have debated the terminal state of unbaptized babies. (This paper will use the term “unbaptized babies/infants” to represent all who die without baptism and without the cognitive abi … [Read more...]
The Eucharist: The Prima Via of Divinization
May 27, 2022 by Fr. Matthew Gonzalez
The current state of the Church in our contemporary age, and those salient points to which she sets her vision, would suggest that the Eucharist remains at the core of all her efforts and activity.[1. Catechism of the Catholic Church (Citta … [Read more...]
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