by Russell Shaw When Pope Francis on October 19 formally declares Pope Paul VI “Blessed,” the event will recall one of the most painful periods in the history of the Church together with the long-suffering servant pope who stood at the helm when the storm was at its worst. Pope Paul came to the papacy in 1963 in many ways superbly qualified for his daunting new role. When death took him 15 years later, he left Peter’s chair bearing an... Read more
By Very Rev. Robert Barron One of the unintended but happy consequences of the emergence of the new atheism is a renewed interest in the classical arguments for God’s existence. Eager to defend the faith that is so vigorously attacked today, Catholic apologists and evangelists have been recovering these rational demonstrations of the truth of God; and the atheists, just as eager to defend their position, have entered into the fray. In the process, these ancient arguments, long thought by... Read more
by Matt Wenke If other men’s daughters expressed an interest in the convent or the cloister, I wouldn’t have questioned it at all. I would have been respectful of their choice and genuinely happy for them. “What a noble and beautiful vocation!” or, “What a meaningful life with a holy purpose!” I no doubt would have thought. When I heard of my own daughter’s interest in the cloister, my immediate thought was, “Oh, my gosh, I hope you get a... Read more
By Very Rev. Robert Barron The attendance at our daily Mundelein Seminary on Labor Day weekend was sparse. Many of the students had gone home while others were on a special tour of Chicago churches. The celebrant and preacher for the Sunday Mass was Fr. Robert Schoenstene, our veteran Old Testament professor. Fr. Schoenstene offered the best interpretation I’ve ever heard of a particularly puzzling parable of the Lord, and I wanted to make sure his reading got a wider... Read more
by Russell Shaw Expectations and anxieties regarding next month’s assembly in Rome of the world Synod of Bishops are running exceptionally high. The subject matter alone — the crisis of marriage and family — would be reason enough for that. But there’s a lot else going on here. Pope Francis helped create this situation by hinting at the possibility of some sort of change in the Church’s practice of denying communion to divorced and remarried Catholics whose first marriages haven’t... Read more
The Cry of the Persecuted: Advocate Because You Care, Not for Political Votes by Michael J.L. La Civita, K.C.H.S. The dust has yet to settle from the Ted Cruz debacle at the “summit” of the nascent political action group, In Defense of Christians (IDC). Stones have been hurled from all sides – often with no clear target other than self-defense. “Lord have mercy,” said one clergyman who attended the summit, “everyone seems to use [this] sad event to support their... Read more
By Megan Hoyt The work of great composers will stand through the course of time because their music is so powerful, their talent and ability so rare, or because their unique personal lives so clearly inform their music. We love Rossini for his Duetto Buffo di Due Gatti (Humorous Duet for Two Cats). It’s a lighthearted tune based on his frustration with the mewling alley cats behind his house, who were so loud that he had trouble composing. I love... Read more
By Russell Shaw The 36-Hour Day is a handbook familiar to many caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. That seemingly mysterious title is no mystery to the caregivers. They know from plenty of experience that they would need not just the regular 24 hours but a solid day and a half to touch all the bases they’re called on to touch during a typical day. If this makes caregiving sound like difficult work, that’s because it... Read more
By Very Rev. Robert Barron Saint Pope John Paul II said that a priest should have the heart of Christ the Good Shepherd. Far too many saccharine paintings of effeminate Jesuses in the midst of delicate lambs have conduced toward a misconstrual of this image as something sentimental and harmless. But shepherds not only had the smell of their sheep (to use Pope Francis’s language), but they also wielded a stick, meant to bring back strays and to fend off... Read more
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In