If you are on Long Island on September 13, consider swinging by the beautiful Seminary of the Immaculate Conception — which gave us Father Michael Duffy — and saying “hi!” I will be there discussing Strange Gods, Unmasking the Idols in Everyday Life (now with study guide!) and sharing some ideas, and chatting. If time allows, I might also do a first-ever reading of an excerpt of my new book, Little Sins Mean a Lot, which comes out next spring.... Read more
I like this piece by Mary DeTurris Poust, on the effect of Adoration on parishes and individuals: Despite the mystery — or maybe precisely because of it — adoration is growing in popularity and practice among American Catholics. Perhaps that’s because daily life, for so many, has become chaotic that there is a desperate search for a place and practice that can become the calm amid the storm: Eucharistic adoration can become that place. Too right! I also like what... Read more
UPDATE: As we wait to discover the name of St. Joseph Monastery’s newest Novice, (Sister Frances Marie of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus) here is a report from the Diocese of Fort Wayne, Indiana, where they witnessed the ancient rite of the Consecration of a Virgin. I usually do my big annual round-up in the Autumn, but they are piling up, so here goes: Do you recall, last year, reading here at Patheos a father’s admission that “Sure, we need... Read more
Regular readers know I rarely ask for prayers for myself, but I find that I need all I can get as I deal with a stubborn infection and a physician’s command to remain “flat on your back, leg elevated over your heart.” My head says, “yay, bedrest, I can catch up on my reading.” Somehow, I can’t seem to concentrate on that very much, though, and I end up alternately binge-watching “Bob’s Burgers”, reading my Magnificat and dozing off in... Read more
It is always a happy day when we can announce a new blogger to our extensive roster of exceptional Catholic blogs, so when we can introduce two new writers at once — both of them strong apologists — we become downright giddy. Please make welcome two very gentlemanly (and prolific) new contributors, Dave Armstrong of Biblical Evidence for Catholicism and Albert Little of The Cordial Catholic. So, who is Dave Armstrong and why should you read him?? Having written, edited,... Read more
Are you, like me, just sick of it, yet? I am so blastedly sick of the mindset that says, “because this person doesn’t agree with my thoughts on this issue and that issue, absolutely nothing he/she has to say can possibly be worth hearing; nothing this person says could possibly be credible, legitimate or valuable, or speak to any part of my world, or the world of any reasonable person.” That’s the sort of reaction I am seeing in social... Read more
Found this scrawled, uncharacteristically for me, in the back of a book* — When we meet God face-to-face, it is always a moment of grace, but too it is a moment of judgment for us. Judgment day, then, can be any day, any time, any particular moment of an hour. And so our death can happen many times, a process of conversion, a process of turning to. We die to ourselves, die to a particular sin or attachment, and begin... Read more
By Russell Shaw (Guest post) It’s an accident of history that the present debate on the six-nation nuclear agreement with Iran overlaps the 70th anniversary of the first uses of atomic weapons in war. Religious believers rightly consider ‘accidents’ like this to be just as much elements of God’s providential plan as anything else (they also concede that it’s foolish to claim to read God’s plan with certainty in the flux of contemporary events). Granting the truth of all that,... Read more
That’s what I told Konrad Aderer when he interviewed me via Skype for Currents NY Nightly News program, which is part of the extensive programming via the Diocese of Brooklyn. The taping was a little early for me; with only one cup of coffee in me, I had some trouble finding the word “ideologies”. Also proselytizing. I have to remember to keep to one-syllable words when it’s in the A.M. Anyway, you can watch the rest here: Read more
In just a few hours, you and I — from wherever we are, on the planet — have the opportunity to meet each other in the Holy Eucharist, and to together plead before the most Merciful Christ Jesus, for all of those who have been touched by the Culture of Death, throughout the world. This is a privilege of spirit and mystery. In her capacity as a member of the cardinal’s pro-life commission, Kathryn Jean Lopez has managed to very... Read more
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