The celebration of the feast of the Ascension of Our Lord has been transferred to the following Sunday in many dioceses, but the 40th day after the resurrection remains a Holy Day of Obligation. This allowance to transfer the celebration has confused many Catholics, and so it seems worthwhile to examine this phenomenon. On Facebook [...]
While writing her opinions of several C.S. Lewis books she had recently finished, a friend of mine remarked: “The more I learn, the more I want to love.” This sentence resonated with me because it reflected such an honest and beautiful desire of the soul to continue to learn more about her Divine Spouse. Here she [...]
The day after Thanksgiving our neighbor had her Christmas wreath hanging on her front door. Before New Year’s the Christmas wreath had been exchanged for a generic winter one, which was up for a few weeks before making way for a Valentine decoration. By February 16th that red heart was gone for a shamrock and [...]
Modesty gives no quarter to our fallen nature, and it brings the full splendor of the other person into sharp relief.
I should clarify; I love the Internet. Given this personal sweet-tooth for the World Wide Web though, I’ve reflected for some time about the properly Catholic stance toward the Internet. Clearly, we need to use it to evangelize. However, what is it about Web 2.0, the age of comboxes, social media, and hyper-connectedness that strikes [...]
The new pope seems like a humble man. His motto is “Lowly but Chosen”. Jorge Mario Bergoglio was the Archbishop of Bueno Aires. He is a man who rejected his luxurious residence next to the Bueno Aires Cathedral in favour of an apartment, where he nursed a fellow bishop who was old and sickly. He cooked for them [...]
The Strange World of European Post-Christian Christianity
To pursue, or to be pursued? That is the question. ‘Tis nobler in the mind to date until your breath is taken, or heart is broken… Dating – in the man-meets-woman, man-asks-woman-out way**- may sound outdated to those more liberated in their feelings. Instead, people get to know each other by hanging out and never [...]
“We shall notice that pious persons are disturbed most, because they have their own respectable way of hearing Mass, and they will feel shaken out of their usual thoughts and obliged to follow those of others.” -Paul VI, General Audience of November 26, 1969
Call me crazy, but there is a part of me that is happy that our beloved Pope Benedict XVI is retiring. I’ve been a huge fan of his leadership, his wonderful and profound writings, and his great wisdom in leading the Catholic Church. As I came to work in the Church he led it with [...]
No, really. Can we? A few months ago, my husband and I were invited to give a talk on sex and marriage at a retreat for engaged couples. Now and then , we observe how sometimes, there can be a lot of theological talking around issues of sexuality, yet not a whole lot of actually diving into them. We [...]
There are as many paths to God as there are people, said Pope Benedict XVI in his 1999 interview with German journalist Peter Seewald. That being said, the then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger continued, all paths lead to Christ Jesus, who is the way, the Truth, and the light. When living out one’s vocation, one must think of [...]
Update: After receiving some fraternal counsel on this post, I have decided to remove its content and consider contacting my bishop directly with the criticisms I made (albeit anonymously) of a particular parish in our diocese. Thanks for understanding.
I live in Christchurch, New Zealand. A city that over the past few years has been struck by several large earthquakes. As a result our city doesn’t have that many buildings left standing. Most of our churches are gone. Masses are celebrated in halls or parish centres. Whole parishes themselves don’t exist and our city is [...]
So you wanted to be a monk, or a nun, but God called you to married life. Not to worry! The next best thing to being a monk or nun, is living next to a monastery or convent. The benefits of living in close proximity to religious are numerous. Imagine, waking up in the morning to the [...]
It all began on an average day at work. Morning schedule and then mass. I am blessed to work at a place where mass is available to the employees daily. Today was different though. In the back of the chapel was a young man I had never seen before praying. At first I thought he [...]
In a recent blog post, I said we should “flee to the fields,” quoting the eponymous book of essays by the founders of the Catholic Land Movement. Many understandably took that to mean: isolate ourselves from the “evil’ society, bunker down, hoard guns and food stores, and prepare from the Parousia. But I did not [...]
“We may never be faced with the big decision for or against Christ, but we are faced fifty times a day with the little decisions for or against Him.” – Dr. Kevin Hughes Recently I was talking to a friend and we were lamenting the appearance of brochures in parishes that are “Voting Guides for [...]
If you travel in Catholic circles for long enough, you’ll encounter those people at some point. You know, the aunt who only goes to Mass on Easter and Christmas. The couple who loudly dare the old man in Rome to try and enter their bedroom. Doesn’t he know most Catholics use birth control? The aging feminist [...]
Chances are that if you are a woman you’ve probably, at one point or another, heard about the “Proverbs 31″ woman. If you haven’t, read it here before you read on (specifically verses 10-31). In some translations of the Bible this passage is referred to as “Poem on the Woman of Worth” and in others [...]
Scott Hahn in his book “First Comes Love” cites the monumental work of Harvard University Professor, Carle C. Zimmerman’s entitled “Family and Civilization” which citation, I paraphrase in this article. Zimmerman studied families in different societies throughout history. He classified families in these societies into three categories: the trustee family, the domestic family, and the atomistic [...]
Earlier this month, my husband and I moved across state lines to start anew in North Carolina. Everything about the move was exciting – well, except for the packing and the driving. But otherwise, I love moving. I love being in new places, meeting new people, trying new things. That goes for finding a new church [...]
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?
If you are interested in contributing at IGNITUM TODAY, and you are a young adult between the ages of 14-39 who is faithful to the Magisterium, please tell us a little about yourself.
Click here.
Connect
Connect with us on the following social media platforms.