For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, Plans to give you a hope and a future. –Jeremiah 29:11 Why do women who find themselves in an unplanned pregnancy choose abortion? They feel they have no alternative, because they need to work. Their boyfriends/husbands will not support them if they continue their pregnancy. Their parents will be angry. They fear the disapproval of people at their church.... Read more
Yesterday, I told you a little about Orvieto, the quaint Umbrian city that overlooks the Italian vineyards, like a diamond solitaire atop a precious ring. But I wasn’t done being effusive! Orvieto is, in a way, a caricature of central Italy, a Disney-esque impression of an Italian city that’s more… well, more Italian than the pope. Here are some of the things I neglected to share yesterday: the city’s narrow, cobblestoned streets, the open air shopping. The dank tunnels in the Orvieto... Read more
The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. –Psalm 19:1 Lonely planet: It’s not a plaintive 1950s love song. “Lonely planet” is the name given by scientists to a newly discovered type of planet which floats freely in the dark, without a star to go around. A team of astronomers led by David Bennett of Notre Dame, using a 5.9-foot telescope in New Zealand, reported this week in the... Read more
Over at his website, “Father Z” posted this picture of a new, 16-foot-high bronze statue of Blessed John Paul II. The statue was unveiled on March 19 at Stazione Termini, Rome’s main train station. I don’t know the artist’s intent in creating the cavernous belly, but I imagine future generations of pilgrims posing for pictures, shielded beneath our beloved pope’s generous heart. * * * * * I was reminded of another statue which stands outside... Read more
First, a little laugh at my expense. I used to do conference and event planning. Our guests were accustomed to finer things, and so we set out to give them “the best”—whatever that was. Perhaps it meant that we had a special treat delivered to their rooms each day, when they were at the conference events. One day it might be a chocolate bar in the shape of the corporate logo. Next day, a crystal picture frame. Then, an autographed... Read more
At his weekly audience on May 18, Pope Benedict XVI spoke about the efficacy of intercessory prayer. He used the biblical patriarch Abraham as an example—reminding us of how Abraham prayed to God for the people of Sodom and Gomorrah. “Not so!” cry about a half dozen people I know. They buttress their argument by quoting 1 Timothy 2:5, “There is one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus.” These devout and well-meaning friends believe, wrongly I think,... Read more
I spotted the announcement this morning: Over on Facebook, Fr. Antonio Spadaro, S.J.—one of the organizers of the Vatican Blogfest—reported enthusiastically that tomorrow is Chesterton Day at La Civilta Cattolica, the College of Catholic Writers of Civilization. So I looked it up. The panelists! The topics! And it’s free!! Now all I need to do is buy another ticket to Rome, head to the Via di Porta Pinciana…. * * * * * Well, that’s just silly. Funny how, when... Read more
The Rapture will occur at 6:00 p.m. May 21, 2011. Five months later—on October 11, 2011—the world will end with a cataclysmic earthquake. So says talk radio mogul and self-published author Harold Camping. [Spoiler: I don’t believe this stuff.] Camping is president of Family Radio, a California-based religious broadcasting network that broadcasts on more than 150 outlets in the United States, and of the millennialist website www.familyradio.com. A civil engineer by trade, he has employed complex mathematical formulae to interpret the... Read more
Today’s reading from the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 8:26-40) recounts the story of the Ethiopian eunuch. This guy was a powerful officer in the court of the queen, in charge of her entire treasury. He was riding along through the desert in his chariot, reading the prophet Isaiah, when Philip—who had been prompted by an angel to catch up with the chariot—strode up alongside the eunuch and asked, “Do you understand what you’re reading?” “How can I understand,” asked... Read more
That was the week that was. Five days of inspiring encounters, amazing introductions, challenging conversations. Attending the Beatification of Pope John Paul II, I met so many really interesting people from around the world. From college students to backpacking nuns…. Polish families with young children to an elderly Slovakian couple…. Writers and reporters and editors and publishers…. So many people from so many places, unified in their love for Pope John Paul II and for the Church. By 2:30 in... Read more
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