A conversation between Rocky and his manager in Rocky II: Gazo: How’s about investing in condominiums? It’s safe. Rocky: Condominiums? Gazo: Yeah, condominiums. …Rocky: I never use ’em. Just had a conversation with a friend of mine who’s familiar with the new interview book with the Pope, and we were laughing (albeit dryly) about the fact that there’s a whole lot more in Light of the World than condoms and it’s all far more interesting. Some fun personal stuff: –... Read more
The great thing about this new book, Light of the World, is that it makes clear to the world that Pope Benedict is not afraid to address difficult issues, even if people will disagree with him. In fact he expects disagreement: “If there had been nothing but approval, I would have had to ask myself seriously whether I was really proclaiming the whole Gospel.” So who can forget the Regensburg address? As interviewer Peter Seewald notes, this lecture given on... Read more
Now that I’ve got your attention, please buy a copy of the new book Light of the World, an interview of B16 by Peter Seewald, and find out for yourself. In addition to the question of condoms, you’ll also find that Benedict is an incredibly interesting and deep leader. So, here’s the scoop. L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper (where I once worked), broke the embargo on the book and published some excerpts. Of course, if there’s something to do with... Read more
Perhaps I’m a bit naive, but I don’t think terms like “liberal” and “conservative” are all that helpful in the Catholic Church. Earlier this week, when I began to witness the discussion surrounding the elections of Archbishop Dolan and Archbishop Kurtz as president and vice-president respectively of the USCCB, I started thinking about how useless these terms are. (more…) Read more
My grandfather served in both World Wars. His birthday was November 11 and he frequently told his family that the end of World War I was the best birthday gift he ever got. He may have had a point, you know. Yesterday, I happened to chat with a lovely British woman who knows so much more about today’s commemoration than I. In the UK, people wear poppy buttons (sometimes seen in the US) in remembrance of those who fell in... Read more
The elections are over and most of the ballots have been counted (hopefully, only once). But the work isn’t over. And it’s going to take a lot more than elections to change society for the better. It’s a combination of many factors in society, not least of which are the family and education. We can elect our preferred politicians, but nothing will change without personal change and involvement. (more…) Read more
I have to say that I’m rather glad to see at least a couple of mainstream articles questioning the mass marketing impulses behind Breast Cancer Awareness Month, aka October. The marketing hype reminds me a little of the “Think Pink” musical sequence from the movie Funny Face, with Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn. If you can take the scene (which doesn’t feature either star), here you go: (more…) Read more
Kathyrn Lopez has an interesting piece on Stephen Colbert and his Catholic identity. I have to say that I find it refreshing because it’s not political. I wish we could find more Catholic discourse in this vein. Lopez links to Colbert’s recent appearance on “The View” Barbara Walters brings up his Catholic faith and his family. Rattling off the names of his siblings earns him an applause. Upon which he comments, “I hope that applause is for my mother’s womb.”... Read more
So Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Ohio) voted for the health care legislation and says that he’s pro-life even though the legislation includes taxpayer funded abortion. Pro-life groups did a good job of spreading awareness about the problematic aspects of the legislation before the final vote; so its content, at least on major pro-life issues, is no secret. And no one took the executive order seriously since it has no binding power. Driehaus isthreatening the president of the Susan B. Anthony List,... Read more
This week Iwrote about Katy Perry’s new song, “Teenage Dream.” While not wanting to attribute any ill intent to Perry, I think the song’s lyrics say a lot about how we tend to view relationships and marriage as reflected by our current divorce trends and cohabitation practices. Seems to me that a lot of us have bought into the teenage fantasy of escapism and running from problems rather than facing them. I don’t fault anyone for having that feeling of... Read more
Pia de Solenni
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