When searching for big ideas, a Hollywood screenwriter can’t dig any deeper than “The Epic of Gilgamesh.” This collection of Sumerian legends is at least 4,000 years old and is among the world’s earliest known stories. Yet this Urak king wrestles with questions that haunt heroes today. Am I free? Am I doomed? Can I fight my fate? At a key moment, the “woman of the vine” tells the king: “You will never find that life for which you are... Read more
For generations, Catholics carried these simple leaflets inside their handbags or wallets, short texts topped with titles such as “A Guide For Confession” or “A Personal Examination of the Conscience.” The believer would be reminded: “Be truly sorry for your sins. The essential act of penance, on the part of the penitent, is contrition, a clear and decisive rejection of the sin committed, together with a resolution not to commit it again, out of the love one has for God... Read more
The last thing the White House needed was another TV preacher questioning the sincerity of President Barack Obama’s Christian faith. But there was a twist. This time it was HBO’s Bill Maher — sermonizing against religion has become his life’s work — who claimed that Obama is hiding a deep, dark secret. During the Feb. 11 episode of his “Real Time” talk show, Maher said he knows an unbeliever when he sees one and that Obama is probably an agnostic.... Read more
Anyone who explores academic hallways on American campuses will find lots of cartoons posted on professors’ office doors and bulletin boards. But what if the cartoons included the Prophet Muhammad? In one famous case, a professor at Century College in Minnesota dared to post the Muhammad cartoons that were published in a Danish newspaper. Facing fierce criticism, she put the images behind a curtain so that anyone passing her bulletin board would not see them unless they chose to do... Read more
The ill-fated “Feed Your Flock” ad is, without a doubt, the most famous 30 seconds of video that no one will see during Super Bowl XLV. For the few who didn’t catch it online, the ad features a worried pastor — in a clerical collar — who has empty pews and too many unpaid bills. Thus, he prays for inspiration and God responds with the sound of crunching chips and fizzing soda. Soon hungry souls — Jewish, Amish and Hare... Read more
If someone truly wants to understand R. Sargent Shriver, all they need to do is reflect on his last public appearance three months before his death at age 95. Although weakened by his long struggle with Alzheimer’s disease, the founder of the Peace Corps and other projects for the needy attended the first Archdiocese of Washington “White Mass” for children and adults with disabilities. One last time, he stood with those touched by the Special Olympics and the work of... Read more
Sister Marie Simon-Pierre was a soft-spoken nurse in the south of France when her life was changed by what the Vatican has decided was an answered prayer. She was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2001 and, with other nuns in France and Africa, immediately began prayed for healing. However, her symptoms worsened after the death of Pope John Paul II in April of 2005. That was when Simon-Pierre and her supporters began seeking the help of the pope, who suffered... Read more
As a regular part of his ministry, Archbishop Edwin O’Brien of Baltimore says Masses on behalf of Catholics who have left the church. The unique element of these rites is that he offers his prayers for anyone he has — during his 45 years as a priest, with or without knowing it — driven away from Catholic pews and altars. This isn’t the kind of ecclesiastical issue that makes headlines. Nevertheless, this is a quiet kind of crisis that priests... Read more
For those keeping score, let it be noted that the White House transcript from the National Christmas Tree lighting ceremony says that President Barack Obama shouted “Merry Christmas” before adding “Happy holidays.” In fact, Obama said “Christmas” eight times, twice as often as he mentioned “holidays.” With his family at his side, the president also used an even more controversial word — “Christian.” “Each year we’ve come together to celebrate a story that has endured for two millennia,” he said.... Read more
This is the time of year when many pastors sit in their offices muttering, “It happened again.” The Rev. Rick Lance knows all about that. He has long been one of the true believers who battle the waves of “Happy Holidays” messages that define one of their faith’s holiest seasons as the civic tsunami between Halloween and the inevitable wrapping-paper wreckage on Christmas morning. The problem is that whining doesn’t work. Thus, Lance has grown tired of preaching his all-to-familiar... Read more
Terry Mattingly
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