Is there anyone out there who doesn’t agree that the Catholic priesthood has faced an onslaught of criticism in the last decade? Since 2002, when reports of clergy abuse hit the headlines en masse and the U.S. Bishops initiated a strong program of zero tolerance and healing, too often even faithful Catholic priests have been regarded with mistrust. Good priests have too often been painted with the same broad brush that is used to mark the very small percentage of priests... Read more
“I want my daughter to have the same choices I do.” What the Mom means, in a commercial supporting pro-abortion Senator Mark Udall of Colorado, is that she wants her daughter to be able to kill her child, just as this mommy could have killed her. Just as Mommy may have killed her older brother or sister. Pro-life voters will no doubt object strongly to Udall’s using a little girl to promote his abortion agenda. The ad also makes the false claim... Read more
Camping. Swimming. Mission Trips. How many places can you think of where you wouldn’t take a Bible, for fear of destroying its delicate pages? No problem, if you have the “water-proof, dirt-proof, tear-proof and virtually life-proof” Forever Bible! The creators claim that this new Bible is 24 times stronger than regular paper and “doesn’t use any trees.” (I suppose that means it’s plastic?) The company, which has launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund production of this new everything-proof Bible, explains... Read more
At one church in our archdiocese, the Sign of Peace is offered enthusiastically. Clandestine handshakes give way to effluous hugs, cheeky kisses, whispered greetings. Worshippers reach out, grasping one another’s hands during the Our Father. United in joy and praise, they raise their clasped hands high as they say, “For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours, now and forever.” These faithful Catholics welcome the opportunity to celebrate their unity and enjoy the casual friendships that are expressed... Read more
Today is the Memorial of St. John Vianney, patron of priests. Jean-Baptiste-Marie Vianney, a French parish priest, was born in 1786 and died on August 4, 1859. His parents were forced to drive great distances to attend Mass in the countryside, since it was illegal in France at the time. His education had been interrupted by the French revolution, and he twice failed the exams required before he could be ordained. As a priest, he was named pastor of a... Read more
“I looked up at the great basilica, and I had two reactions: First, I appreciated its beauty and reverence; but then I thought, ‘What corruption caused someone to spend so much on this building when people are hungry’?” * * * * * I made a new friend on the train this week. Mark described himself as a Christian but not a Catholic. As Amtrak #358 sped along the track from Chicago,... Read more
Plans are moving forward on director Martin Scorsese’s ambitious film project Silence. After several years of delays and litigation, filming is set to begin in September for the epic story about Jesuit missionaries who risked persecution and even death to bring the Gospel to Buddhists in seventeenth-century Japan. Liam Neeson (Schindler’s List, Batman Begins, Star Wars: Episode One) will play the role of Jesuit Father Ferreira. Andrew Garfield (Amazing Spider Man) will play the younger Father Rodriguez, who travels to... Read more
This week, Catholics celebrate the lives of two great founders: Thursday, July 31, is the feast of St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits). Ignatius was first a soldier of Spain; but he took a cannonball in the leg, requiring several surgeries and a lengthy recuperation. During the months when he was bedridden, Ignatius read the lives of the saints; and deeply moved by their piety and their example, he resolved to be instead a... Read more
What is the recipe for happiness? Argentine journalist Pablo Calvo asked that question of Pope Francis during an audience July 7 at the Domus Sanctae Marthae. The pope answered amiably, addressing a group of Argentine emigrants and offering ten points. I confess: I read these pointers in La Croix, the French Catholic newspaper. That means I read the Pope’s pointers in English translated from French which was translated from Spanish. To simplify all of this, I offer the pointers in... Read more
Last week I told you about the death of beloved Catholic author Stratford Caldecott of prostate cancer. I love this story out of The Tablet today: Stratford Caldecott, Catholic author and publisher, who died last week, is to be buried alongside his literary hero, J.R.R. Tolkien. Earlier this month, before his family met the undertaker, the relative of someone buried in Oxford’s Wolvercote Cemetery allegedly attacked a tree on the edge of the Tolkien plot because it encroached on their... Read more
Seasons of Grace
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