Dignitas Migrantis: On the Morality of Deportation

As we approach federal government elections, it is commonplace to address the issues surrounding the growing phenomena of large-scale immigration and its peripheral subjects, such as deportation. It is significant to note that among various … [Read more...]

Book Reviews – September 2024

The Passion of Love in the Summa Theologiae of Thomas Aquinas. By Daniel Joseph Gordon. Reviewed by David Zettel. (skip to review) Nothing But You, Lord: Reflections on the Priesthood and Priestly Formation through the Lens of Bishop … [Read more...]

Adoration and the Struggle of Prayer

Surely one sign of hope of Eucharistic revival is the ever-increasing interest among U.S. Catholics in the practice and theology of Eucharistic adoration.[1. For the historical context of the practice of Eucharistic adoration outside of … [Read more...]

Are AI-Generated Homilies Suitable for the Edification and Flourishing of the Catholic Faithful?

Approach to the Subject Of late, many ethicists, computer scientists, and media experts have highlighted the emergence of data processing systems known as Generative Artificial Intelligence (Generative AI) not only because they promise a … [Read more...]

“The Wind Blows Where It Wills”: Understanding the Gifts of the Holy Spirit

The Second Vatican Council, in its document Gaudium et Spes, teaches us that only in the mystery of the Incarnate Word does the mystery of man take on light, that Christ fully reveals man to himself. The goal of this article is to shed more … [Read more...]

Is the Universal Call to Holiness a New Teaching?

It is not uncommon to find the opinion that the Church has introduced a new understanding of what it means to be holy and who is called to it through Lumen Gentium’s teaching on the universal call to holiness. Oftentimes, this claim of n … [Read more...]

On Moral Perfection

All humans struggle with moral perfection, and temptations to sin are ever-present. Jesus tells us, “Temptations to sin are sure to come . . .” (Lk 17:1; RSV-CE). Yet Jesus, the Catholic Church, and Sacred Scripture call us to moral per … [Read more...]

Book Reviews – October 2023

Aquinas on Scripture: A Primer. By John F. Boyle. Reviewed by D.M. Walker. (skip to review) Remembering Why We Preach: A Retreat to Renew Your Spirit and Skill. By Karla J. Bellinger and Michael E. Connors, CSC. Reviewed by Deacon … [Read more...]

“I am the Truth”: Brief Catholic Ponderings on Truth

In a well-known passage, Jesus proclaims, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” (Jn 14:6a) As with all the seven “I am” sayings recorded in John’s Gospel, Jesus here is making a claim regarding His divinity. Indeed, three individual c … [Read more...]

Questions Answered – August 2023

Question: Does an erroneous conscience bind a person to act since it does not correspond to reality? The most difficult problem in contemporary morals is not the doubtful conscience, but—given the tendency in the subjectivism of the p … [Read more...]

Questions Answered – July 2023

When Conscience Is Mistaken Question: Much has been made of the primacy of conscience today in morals. Even some bishops have claimed that as long as a subject is following their conscience, the Church must support their decision no matter … [Read more...]

Aristotelianism in Eucharistic Theology

Father Thomas Reese and Transubstantiation

This article has been reworked from a paper entitled “They Must Fall into Being: The Son’s Power as Quasi-Subject of the Accidents of Bread and Wine in the Sacrament of the Eucharist” which I delivered on Feb. 4, 2023, at The Holiness of God … [Read more...]

Why Doesn’t Holy Communion Always Seem to “Work”?

St. Thomas Aquinas and Ronald Knox on Objective Grace and Subjective Dispositions at Work in the Reception of the Sacrament

For anyone with more than a passing acquaintance with Holy Communion, questions emerge about its efficacy that do not admit of easy answers. The Eucharist is immensely powerful, so why does it not seem to make more of a difference in every … [Read more...]

Book Reviews – April 2023

The Order and Division of Divine Truth: St. Thomas Aquinas as Scholastic Master of the Sacred Page. By John F. Boyle. Reviewed by Sr. Mary Micaela Hoffmann, RSM. (skip to review) Twelve Great Books: Going Deeper into Classic Literature. … [Read more...]

The Spirit of Truth

The Holy Spirit’s Role in a Deeper Understanding of Revelation

Jesus, who identified himself as the truth (Jn 14:6), indicated that it was “to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counselor will not come to you” (Jn 16:7). Indeed, Christ promised to pray to the Father to send ano … [Read more...]