Imagine you are the pope. The previous half-century has seen the rise of many radical political movements and systems of thought hostile to the Church. Major societal upheaval is well underway, disrupting the basic order of civilization that had persisted for centuries. The territory that had for a millennium been politically controlled by your predecessors [...]
Often, I wonder what an authentically Catholic, person-centered approach to evangelization looks like. So many goods, particularly sex, love, the body, and the family, have been twisted and misinterpreted by the culture. The truth is ours to reclaim. I still can feel the floor under my little carpet square. Seven years ago, I went [...]
If you are one of the 3,000,000 people who have listened to Paul Harvey’s prophetic manifestation of the devil’s activity circa 1964, then you might like this new 2012 remix. Check out the full text @ my blog. What would you do if you were the devil?
Our society is very fond of euphemisms. We like to wrap up difficult ideas and realities with words that make us feel warm and fuzzy, or at least distract us from the real meaning behind the word or phrase we are using. Phrases like pass away, friendly fire, and letting someone go, litter our vocabulary. We don’t even [...]
In our current election cycle, perhaps more than any other in the last forty years, we have two candidates for President with stark, contrasting views about the role of government in the working of society. The differences, one would think, would leave a very clear choice for Catholics to make in going to the polls. [...]
As of this writing, no deaths have been reported. No one has been hospitalized. However, many (myself included) have experienced various common symptoms due to an extremely contagious condition that overcomes our nation in the autumn of every fourth year. I speak, of course, of election fever. The most common symptom associated with election fever [...]
There are a number of states where marriage is on the ballot this fall. Some states seek to clarify the definition of marriage by adding the language that marriage is only to be legally valid between one man and one woman. Other states are seeking to legalize gay marriage by popular vote, something which has [...]
While the cultural battle rages most obviously around abortion, another threat to human dignity, euthanasia, has been in the background for decades. And while many will concede that the killing of an innocent child is morally questionable, they might disagree when it comes to euthanasia. After all, isn’t it more compassionate to allow someone to [...]
“Bless us, O Lord! and these Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty, through Christ our Lord. Amen.” If you can’t find your pet tomorrow, don’t worry. A sibling, son, or daughter has probably taken it to the Catholic school. It is not Show-n-Tell Day, rather it is the feast [...]
Support a Catholic Speaker Month is coming to a close. I am very fortunate to have Rev. Robert Sirico answer a few questions about his life, work, and human flourishing. I was eager to hear from Rev. Sirico especially in the midst of an election year and with the economy being a large piece of the discussion. I [...]
Human beings are essentially social in nature. The second theme of Catholic social teaching is the importance of social relationships and participation in society for human flourishing. Because of the importance of the family, community, and participation, I will break this principle into two posts: the family first, and community and participation second. The Family [...]
In his Last Supper discourse Jesus told his apostles, “If you know me you will also know my Father. From now on you do know him and have seen him. Philip said to him, ‘Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us’. Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you [...]
Over the past two weeks, Americans were treated to the quadrennial spectacle of the two major political parties’ national conventions. Each party graced us with an endless parade of speakers making the very clear point that their party represents all that is good and true, while the other party would heap unmitigated disaster upon the [...]
Any treatment of Catholic social teaching has to begin and end with the dignity of the human person. The first principle and foundation of all social justice and Catholic social teaching is a recognition of the inherent dignity due to human beings by virtue of their being made in the image and likeness of God. [...]
My name is Dan, and I am an abortion sidewalk counselor in New Jersey. This is my inaugural column for a series I will call On the Frontline. Yes, by the grace of God, and resulting from a lifetime of nagging by the Hound of Heaven, I have moved onto the prayer line at an [...]
Meghan’s parents were with her as she waited to check in at the airport. Her father asked her again, “Why are you doing this?” With honest simplicity, she replied, “Dad, like I’ve told you, I can’t explain it. I just know I have to do this.” What was it that Meghan felt so compelled to [...]
The only time I have ever wanted to be a missionary of any sort was when I met a Franciscan sister from Togo. She was radiant, especially because her love of Christ was obvious in every word she spoke and movement she made. I was drawn to her and as she spoke of her order’s [...]
I read a fact the other day on the internet: Eight percent of all babies in the womb who test positive for Down syndrome or a genetic anomaly survive and are born. That means 92% of all babies who test positive are aborted. Ninety two percent never get a chance. Reading that fact shook me [...]
I hadn’t thought much about Catholic education as a young adult. I attended a public school for K-12 and then chose my small, liberal arts college (which happened to be Catholic) not because it was Catholic, but because they gave me an excellent academic scholarship. Then I fell head over heels in love with God [...]
A little late to our symposium here on “mercy and killing.” The “and,” our editor informed us, was meant to keep the subject broad – and boy was it! Many commented specifically on mercy killing and euthanasia while others took a completely different approach, talking about just mercy in general, the death penalty and even [...]
This video was produced using pictures taken between 2009 and 2012 while I was a student at Ave Maria School of Law. Pictures include various events associated with Ave Maria School of Law and the Naples pro-life community. Events include: Vitae Fest, AMSL Mass, Law of Life Summit, 40 Days for Life prayer vigils, March [...]
In this culture that promotes the party lifestyle and throws morals out the window, responsibility is a word many people have forgotten. Parents have forgotten to teach it to their children, preferring to fix all of their mistakes for them; the government has decided to forgo teaching it to its citizens, instead offering anyone a share [...]
Be you therefore perfect, as also your heavenly Father is perfect. – Matthew 5:48 Perfection. We are constantly pressured to be more and more perfect. By the world’s standards, of course. Better grades, better jobs, better houses. As our peers continue to push the boundaries of how much they can accomplish, we can be whisked [...]
This is the end result. It was obvious not long ago. I was reminded of it when my wife and I sat to watch the first 30 minutes of “Sarah’s Key” which is based on the Vel’ d’Hiv Roundup. We had to turn it off. As parents of small kids, it was too much to [...]
Q. How do you pronounce “ignitum”? A. Well, you have some options. The Romans would have said ig-NEE-toom. In church, we’d say “in-YEE-toom.”
Why?
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