Longtime residents of St. Blogs may remember the days of the Crescat. Katrina Ebersole is a talented writer, but lately I’ve been watching her take off with painting. Totally different, and the speed with which she’s gone from hobbyist to pro is astonishing. She takes orders for custom artwork (your pet, your parish . . . whatever you’d like), and she offers tutorial videos for her patreon subscribers. So here was my trouble as a would-be supporter: I don’t need... Read more
Here’s an article on a fantastic initiative in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, in which dedicated missionaries are truly evangelizing, brother-to-brother, the homeless near the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption. Read it and take notes. This is what evangelization should be. (Happy feast day, Mother Theresa!) *** Now catch one detail: Father Boric has plans to recruit a couple more missionaries. While FOCUS missionaries generally must raise about $30,000 a year to cover their expenses, he wants to be... Read more
Your story is important. How important? Way back when the Internet first got going, what exploded on the scene was the listserv. Pick a topic, any topic, and there was a group you could join to meet other people who wanted to talk about that thing. The more personal the more likely it flourished. It was revolutionary: You who felt so alone with your rare disease or your arcane hobby or your intractable problem suddenly discovered, “I’m not the only one!” ... Read more
I need your help with getting a door unlocked. I’m a parishioner (and at last check parish council member) at a large and historically-significant parish. Thanks to renovations over the years, there are three wheelchair-accessible entrances feeding the parish church. Unfortunately, since November of 2017 all three of those doors have been locked. The only way to get into the building during Sunday Mass or Saturday Confession is to either walk up a short flight of stairs (seven if I... Read more
Dear Young Person I’ve Watched Grow Up, I want to tell you today about a thing that happened before you were born. Way back when I was your age, I was pretty much anti-abortion. Many of my friends, like you, were pro-choice. Sometimes we’d debate, because teens and college students like to discuss important issues and take a stand. One time early in college, a friend asked me to drop her off downtown for an appointment, which was a normal... Read more
In the aftermath of the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, several wealthy donors have stepped forward to fund a sizable portion of the rebuilding project. While this generosity is inspiring for some and consoling for others, it has also spurred harsh criticism: If you really loved Jesus, you’d spend that money on the poor. How can anyone in good conscience devote so much wealth to such a vain pursuit? It is a valid question, and one I’d... Read more
I’ve been reading about your plight in the New York Times. So let’s go ahead and clear something up right now: Most Catholics don’t give a rip who it is you’re not having sex with. We know that abstinence is hard. Those of us practicing NFP probably don’t have a ton of sympathy for you, because at least you aren’t obliged to spend all night lying in bed next to the person you’re not having sex with, but when we can get... Read more
Some things that happened this summer: (1) We discovered our bishops cannot be trusted with even the smallest things, like the health and moral formation of seminarians. (2) My son went to France with the clear instruction that in exchange for my part in making his trip possible, he was to stop at Gibert Joseph and pick us up some good used books to share. He brought me home Dans le Secret des Borgia. All things old are new again. (3) I... Read more
In all the excitement of every bishop in the world’s credibility imploding in one fell swoop, I haven’t gotten in on the death penalty conversation. I’m going to the leave the theology at this: I believe in the hermeneutic of continuity. We read the new in light of the old, and therefore a valid reading will take into count the compendium of centuries of thinking on this topic. Nothing to be afraid of here. But of course the Catechism is meant... Read more
Happy August! For our entertainment, the USCCB has issued a fresh statement on the terrible, no-good, very-bad ex-Cardinal McCarrick. Below is Cardinal DiNardo’s statement in full, annotated. Let’s see how things are coming: “The accusations against Archbishop Theodore McCarrick reveal a grievous moral failure within the Church. They cause bishops anger, sadness, and shame; I know they do in me. Wonderful. We have to start somewhere. They compel bishops to ask, as I do, what more could have been done... Read more
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