“War must be the last resort, because it’s always a sign of human failure.” So said the papal nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Pietro Sambi, in a recent interview with John Allen. This is a theme that I have stressed many times on this blog now, for I feel there is a major blindness among certain American Catholics who have adopted, without thinking, the theology of “liberation through military force”– a theology every bit as flawed and dangerous and its Marxist-inpired... Read more
Often the secular press is criticized for its reporting on religion issues. Compliments to the Chicago Tribune for an excellent article on Pope Benedict. Included are many quotations from Cardinal George. Papalophiles should enjoy. Also appearing on the front page of the Chicago Tribune was an article discussing the closing of a Catholic Chicago hospital. It also discusses the contentious issue of non-profit status and what that entails. While not answering the question, it also contemplates whether the charitable model... Read more
Pat Buchanan (yes, I know) had a provocative column on Friday questioning whether World War II can rightly be called “The Good War.” Here is a taste: Britain declared war on Sept. 3, 1939, to preserve Poland. For six years, Poland was occupied by Nazi and Soviet armies and SS and NKVD killers. At war’s end, the Polish dead were estimated at 6 million. A third of Poland had been torn away by Stalin, and Nazis had used the country... Read more
A few years back I attended the Tertio Millennio Seminar on the Free Society in Krakow, Poland. The purpose of the Seminar was (and is) to bring together American and Eastern European students to reflect on how to build and maintain the free society. While the Seminar focused mainly on Catholic Social Thought, and in particular on Pope John Paul II’s encyclical Centesimus Annus, we also looked at some portions of the Federalist Papers and Democracy in America for historical... Read more
Doctor Who is back – and after this season, the show will be given a rest; no, the show is not being exterminated (yet), but it will be put on hiatus. To keep its fans occupied, there will be a few specials shown in 2009 before its fifth season is shown in 2010. As has become routine, the first episode is a light morality tale, written more to bring the audience back into the mood for Doctor Who and to... Read more
Epic film legend, NRA loyalist and portrayer of Moses, Charlton Heston, has died. Read more
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Part I Part II Understanding the foundations for Joseph de Maistre’s Ultramontanism requires one to overcome simplistic interpretations of his writings. He is far too complex and diverse a thinker for the kind of simplification people often impose upon him. Certainly, as has been pointed out, his experiences helped shape what he would write, but he was capable of appreciating and learning from his opponents, and so his reaction to political theories was not completely a denial of what those theories... Read more
Today is the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. In one week we have remembered the third anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II and the fortieth anniversary of the death of MLK Jr, two people who have had a positive influence in world history. Both of them were human, and were fallible and did things which were mistakes. In remembering them this week, we might want to remember what was best of them, the myths associated with... Read more
Today is the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. In one week we have remembered the third anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II and the fortieth anniversary of the death of MLK Jr, two people who have had a positive influence in world history. Both of them were human, and were fallible and did things which were mistakes. In remembering them this week, we might want to remember what was best of them, the myths associated with... Read more
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