“So,” Peter tell us, we are to “put away all malice and all guile and insincerity and envy and all slander” (2Ptr. 2:1 RSV). For many of us, this can be rather difficult, not because we believe such things to be good, but because our passions often get the best of us and turn us away from the charity which we know we should follow. From time to time, anger rises up in us. Without thinking about what we are... Read more
Through both Mary (as his mother), and Joseph (as his legal guardian/father), Jesus found himself connected with a great, indeed, marvelous family line, one which was central to and at the forefront of the history of the people of Israel. In his humanity, he is the successor or son of David, and the prophecies concerning David’s heir are fulfilled in and through him. The holy ancestors of Christ, the men and women who came before him in the family lines... Read more
The trouble with ideologies is that they use some element of the truth to mislead people and turn them away from the fullness of the truth. It is the classical problem of heresy. When ideologies are put into action, they highlight some elements of the good at the expense of the fullness of the good, so that what is proper and just is ignored for the sake of that lesser good. People trapped by an ideology will use the limited... Read more
The television series Doctor Who is a science fiction television show about The Doctor, a Time Lord who travels through time and space to right wrongs. The Doctor is a special kind of pacifist, one who recognizes the need to defend those who are under threat by some would-be aggressor. This means that the Doctor, despite abhorring violence, uses it to fight off villains, if no other solution are available: “There are some corners of the universe which have bred... Read more
We often like to get in routines. Even our worship can get caught up in them. This is not to say ritual worship with its routines is wrong – there is much value to it, and it is a legitimate and indeed invaluable way to engage God. Liturgy is an important way to have communal worship of God. However, we must not think God is limited to such engagements. We must not limit the way we worship God, for God... Read more
There is a duality to Christ, even as he is one. This duality does not remove or disturb that oneness but is founded upon and finds itself fulfilled by it. This duality is related to the two natures of Christ. Jesus is God and human. The divine person of the Logos assumed human nature and became one with the whole of humanity, and with humanity, with the rest of creation. This duality is also found in the way Christ comes... Read more
Life is a sacred gift given by God. The Lord of life, God, has indicated several times that we are respect life, all life: God proclaims that he is absolute Lord of the life of man, who is formed in his image and likeness (cf. Gen 1:26-28). Human life is thus given a sacred and inviolable character, which reflects the inviolability of the Creator himself. Precisely for this reason God will severely judge every violation of the commandment “You shall... Read more
A bridge, worn down, and not safe to travel across, is closed for repairs. Those who normally use it have to find other ways to get to their destination. Many of them are greatly inconvenienced, and yet they recognize it is better to go through such an inconvenience than to travel across a bridge which is about to collapse. If a conspiracy theorist, with no engineering knowledge, claimed the bridge was safe and that the authorities are trying to prevent... Read more
Mary, the Theotokos, the Mother of God, was conceived and born with special grace in order to prepare her – and the world – for the birth of her son, Jesus Christ. In her, human perfection had been attained, not, of course, entirely on its own, but in and through the providence of God which guided and directed humanity so that Mary, predestined before all time, could come forth and bear within her the one who was God almighty. Thus,... Read more
Saint Nicholas, beloved Archbishop of Myra, more than believed in the Christian faith, he lived it out in his life. The stories told about how he gave to those in need so that they would not have to sell themselves out to the world represent the kind of charity which Christ expects of his followers. Apocryphal stories which connect Nicholas to the Council of Nicea, suggesting that he punched Arius for his denial of the divinity of Christ, must be... Read more
Select your answer to see how you score.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In