Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always to the end of the world. Jesus Christ Evangelii Gaudium is a call to you and me and every other Catholic on this planet to step out of our petty personal piety and evangelize the world. There is a... Read more
Fellow Patheosi, Tony Jones, who blogs at Theoblogy, published one of those slap-in-the-face posts last week that really get people humming. Tony called for a schism in Christendom, or at least in Christianity. He wants to part company with those Christian communions who don’t allow women to “preach and hold positions of ecclesial authority, support complimentarity, or that do not affirm women as leaders, speakers, teachers.” Since that sounds like he’s describing my Church, the Catholic Church, I was interested.... Read more
Patheos has been running a debate among high-profile thinkers about Christian engagement in politics. I am not in the league of the intellectual/social/pundit gravitas of the writers who have addressed this. Also, nobody has asked my opinion. But that doesn’t stop me from giving it. Let me begin by saying that political Christianity as it has been practiced in America for the past four decades is heresy. It is based on the totally incorrect but implicit teaching from a lot of wing-nut... Read more
Patheos has been running a debate among high-profile thinkers about Christian engagement in politics. I do not hold a candle to the intellectual/social/pundit gravitas to the writers who have addressed this. Also, nobody has asked my opinion. But as usual, that doesn’t stop me from giving it. Let me begin by saying that political Christianity as it has been practiced in America for the past four decades is heresy. It is based on the totally incorrect but implicit teaching from... Read more
Rush Limbaugh, who is nobody’s nominee for Nice Person of the Year, says that “somebody’s either written this for him … or gotten to” Pope Francis. According to Mr Limbaugh, the Holy Father’s recent document, Evangelii Gaudium, is “pure Marxism.” I’m going to write about Evanelii Gaudium in detail next week when we aren’t digesting turkey, spending time with our families and watching football. In the meantime, I want to toss this little bit of bile from Mr Limbaugh out... Read more
Five former American Ambassadors to the Holy See, who were appointed by both Democratic and Republican presidents, are unanimous in their condemnation of the closure of the American Embassy at the Vatican. I made no comment about this embassy closure at first because I didn’t know what it was about. I changed my mind when I read these former ambassadors’ statements. I take the unanimous opinion of five former ambassadors seriously. Here are a couple of things I don’t take... Read more
Thanksgiving weekend is an annual opportunity to kick back and enjoy the people who matter most. Robert Frost said, “Home is where, when you go there, they have to take you in.” The same could be said for family. Just for today, let’s not trot out the laundry list of “bad” families and family dysfunctions and remember instead that when, as we say in these parts, push comes to shove, your family members are the only people who will stick... Read more
Pope Francis announced that 2015 will be dedicated to consecrated life. His message to consecrated people is consistent with the message he has been delivering since his papacy began. He called them to “go out to frontiers, working first and foremost with people excluded from society … to avoid hypocrisy and clericalism and to develop a tender heart.” This message is not just for the consecrated, but for all of us. It is a call to convert the world... Read more
I’m skipping Black Friday shopping. I never go to these sales. But for those of you who do, here are a few facts. Read more
Happy Thanksgiving! Read more
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