7-Year-Old’s Final Cry in Hurricane Helene Floodwaters: ‘Jesus, I Hear You’...
A 7-year-old boy called out to Jesus to save him before Hurricane Helene flood waters carried him away earlier this week. Micah Drye’s lifeless body was later found about a quarter-mile away from his home in Asheville, North Carolina. But his mother thinks he was saved nonetheless. “You know, I’m so proud of my son, because in his last moments...
Mothers and Swiss Army Knives: Seeing the Difference...
Few of us reach for our Swiss army knife when we simply want to cut something. Aristotle asserts that nature is not like the Delphic smiths, makers of the original Swiss army knife, “a single knife for all kinds of use,” a knife with which, clearly, he was not impressed. Rather, nature crafts things such that the primary ordination of the thing is not obscured or hindered by other tasks or purposes.
Yes and No, Picking a Wife, and Still Dead to Me...
I cannot be the first father to view their kid as the most beautiful puzzle box ever fashioned by the Divine craftsman, surely. But it doesn’t stop me feeling like the experience of trying to figure this gorgeous little girl out is unique to me. She had a recent birthday, which was lovely and exhausting for all of us in equal measure...
What God Has Joined: A Reflection on the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time...
In today’s Gospel, the Pharisees try to trap Jesus with a trick question. The “lawfulness” of divorce in Israel was never an issue. Moses had long ago allowed it (see Deuteronomy 24:1–4). But Jesus points His enemies back before Moses, to “the beginning,” interpreting the text we hear in today’s First Reading. Divorce violates the order of creation, He says. Moses permitted it only as a concession...
Is Satan the Ruler of This World?
Until Christ’s second coming, this world remains at least partially under Satan’s authority because it remains enmeshed in sin. As 1 John 3:8 reminds us, “He who commits sin is of the devil.” For this reason the New Testament describes Satan variously as “the ruler of this world,” “the god of this world,” and “the prince of the power of the air.” Nevertheless, believers have nothing to fear, since Jesus assures us...
4 Saints Who Saw Their Guardian Angels...
We might not see our guardian angels as a handful of saints did, but the Oct. 2 Memorial of the Guardian Angels spurs us on to be close to them and call upon their help. Our Lord Jesus said: “See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father” (Matthew 18:10). And the Catechism reminds us...
Who Should Be the Patron Saint of Baseball?
Did the renegade Arlington Carmelites sell their own monastery?
Ohio Bishops: Springfield Falsehoods Risk Igniting a Dangerous Blaze...
Is Sen. JD Vance telling the truth about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, eating pets? If not, should a Catholic political candidate be corrected for spreading falsehoods? The Catholic bishops of Ohio have done just that, as has the Catholic Republican governor of Ohio, Mike DeWine. Former president Donald Trump repeated the claim about Haitians killing and eating pets...
The Fifth Sorrowful Mystery: The Crucifixion of Our Lord...
How ‘Vatican Watchers’ Report on the Papacy to Catholics Around the World...
‘Rex Catholicissimus’: Pope Francis Meets King and Queen of Belgium at Laeken Castle...
Do You Hear the Gospel at Mass?
Not long ago, I was invited to appear on Cross Examined, the podcast of Protestant apologist Dr. Frank Turek, to talk about issues that many Protestants misunderstand about Catholicism. I thought that today I’d follow up on one point that he raised, which is one that we sometimes hear from people who used to be Catholic and have become Evangelical. Here’s how Frank put it.
Why St. Francis of Assisi is one of my favorite people who ever lived...
St. Francis of Assisi truly changed the world with his radical poverty, love of God, and JOY. I am SO excited for this episode on one of my favorite saints! Even better, this episode was filmed over the summer in Assisi while I was leading a pilgrimage through Italy.
‘New Paradigm’: Personal Experience, Not Moral Absolutes, to Steer Synod Study on Sexuality Questions...
A study group established by Pope Francis to develop a synodal way of discerning Catholic Church teaching on so-called controversial issues, including sexual morality and life issues, has proposed what it calls a “new paradigm” that is heavy on situational ethics but minimizes moral absolutes and established Church teaching.
Hell exists. The threat of condemnation for unrepented mortal sins is real. And this includes priests, popes and cardinals...
Most pastors are familiar with the unpleasantries of patrolling parish grounds after dark. After disrupting a young couple seeking privacy in the darkness of the parking lot, a young man rolls down the car window. As he zooms away he yells, “I’ll see you in hell!” Many may not believe in God, but they believe in hell. It’s a good start. The Gospel directs our attention to the reality of hell with the words of Jesus.
The Pope’s politically-incorrect message to East Timor: Keep having babies...
If you count the flight home, Pope Francis made two shocking statements during his recent trip to Asia and Oceania: first telling an audience in Singapore that all religions are paths to God, then suggesting that Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are morally equivalent. Those two statements were of course highly questionable, and have been widely questioned.
German “Synodality” and the World Church...
In a recent interview with The Pillar, Dr. Frank Ronge, a veteran German Catholic bureaucrat who coordinates the German Synodal Path, described the Synodaler Weg’s rationale and work. Many of those deeply engaged in the Synodal Path imagine it as a model for the world Church – or at least those parts of the world Church that aren’t a bit behind the cultural curve as construed by enlightened Germans. It’s thus worth asking some questions about the German experience...
Archbishop Charles Chaput is one of the great prophets and teachers of our time...
Today’s Scriptures speak about the generosity of the Holy Spirit, bestowing gifts on those who are near the teacher, Moses and Jesus respectively, so it is fitting that all of us are gathered here in honor of one of the great teachers of our time. Each of us in our own way are beneficiaries of a grace that flowed from his ministry. Each of us is like Eldad and Medad in the Old Testament reading...
Slit throats in Africa. Missing people after Hurricane Helene. What makes a story news?
President of Jesuit-Run Gonzaga University Sits on Board of Arlington SSPX Nuns’ Non-Profit...
Luxury, Justice Delayed, and Who’s Not Coming to Dinner...
Young men are flocking into pews — but the NYTimes says they’re joining ‘bad’ churches...
Pope in Luxembourg: Service, Mission and Joy Are at the Heart of the Gospel...
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