“Blessed are the sorrowing: they shall be consoled.” “’Women, there is your son;’ then he said to the disciple, ‘There is your mother’” (Matthew 5:5; John 19:26). The Lord will console anyone who grieves because of the wretchedness of this earthly exile, or who mourns for his own or his brothers’ sins. Even close to his own death, Christ did not forget his mother, but consoled her with the words: “Woman, there is your son.” The consolation of the Lord... Read more
From Peter Lombard, The Sentences. Book IV. Distinction IV. Chapter 4.1-5.[1] 1.CONCERNING THOSE WHO RECEIVE THE THING, BUT NOT THE SACRAMENT. There are also others, as we said earlier, who receive the thing but not the sacrament. We are in the middle of a discussion of the sacrament of baptism, and so we must understand that Peter Lombard is saying that there are those who receive the grace of the sacrament (the thing) without actually being baptized with water in... Read more
Please pray for justice. Read more
For punishment, I sometimes read what Republican partisans actually believe about economics. The level of hyper-ignorance is shocking. Here is a statement from somebody called Ed Morrissey: “The Left has demonized the Bush tax cuts as the Source of All Deficits for years, even though tax revenues increased after the cuts as the economy began booming again.’ Do these people really believe stuff like this? Isn’t he aware of the difference between the tax rate and the tax base, and... Read more
Today we are blessed with another guest post from David Cruz-Uribe, SFO. We thank him for taking the time for writing this. Over at America Magazine, Nicholas Lash, Norris-Hulse Professor of Divinity at Cambridge University, has an article on the Magisterium, framed as a discussion of the difference between “teaching” and “commanding”. He has many good points, but he raises two I want to throw out for discussion. The first is on how to characterize people—priest, theologians, laity—who disagree with... Read more
It is difficult to avoid Santa Claus at this time of year. Our two small boys are regularly asked by perfect strangers whether or not Santa is going to come to their house. But for those of us who insist that Christmas is really about the birth of Jesus Christ, this cultural emphasis on Santa and presents can be tough to navigate. This year, for the first time, Flannery and I tried something we’ve heard from other Catholic families: we... Read more
Part X With Christ ascended, the Spirit has been sent: The Church is established, history has been anchored By love, a love which can never be dent By sin: it has all been taken in by the Lord. What is outside, is to be brought in, What is in, attracts those without: Love is victorious, even over sin; Of this, the resurrection leaves no doubt. After Christ ascended, the Holy Spirit descended upon the world. The Spirit, the Comforter, was... Read more
1. Move car forward 5 inches, then stop. 2. Get out of car, cross street to Caesar’s Palace, enter lobby, ask concierge where the buffet is. 3. Ask buffet people when dinner starts. 4. Stop by bar, order and drink a scotch. 5. Go back out to car, start, and move forward 5 inches, to keep up with the “movement” of traffic. 6. Go over to the Venetian, and play a few hands of blackjack. 7. Ask the pit boss... Read more
Fr. Kubick, S.J. made this video two years ago for the feast of St John of Damascus: Troparion of St John of Damascus Tone 3 Thou wast a holy instrument/ and a tuneful harp of godliness./ Thy teachings shone forth to the ends of the world,/ O righteous John,/ entreat Christ our God to grant us His great mercy. Kontakion of St John of Damascus Tone 4 Let us praise the illustrious hymnographer John,/ teacher of the Church and champion... Read more
Sometimes we choose easy arguments over better arguments for the very reason that they are easy. Unfortunately, given enough time we start forgetting the better arguments. Or in other cases, the easy argument is no longer convincing. An example of the latter would be the distastefulness of homosexual relations; today people predominantly do not think a rational person would find homosexual acts disgusting. An example of the former would be offering the free speech card whenever someone demagogues a person... Read more
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