Suppose your priest or pastor. . . preaches homilies or teaches in ways that reject or repudiate Church dogma or doctrine (CCC 2037*); approves, supports, or helps to finance organizations or causes which deny or distort Church teaching; lives in a manner that gives scandal (CCC 2284) to parishioners; tolerates parish school faculty or staff … Read more
Apart from The Comedy of Errors, Macbeth, a tragedy of errors, is the shortest of Shakespeare’s plays. At only 2,107 lines it is barely half the length of Hamlet, with which it is often compared. The date of its composition is not certain, but several clues within the text suggest strongly that it was first … Read more
Slight squeamishness settles about the minds of a certain kind of Catholic this Sunday. “Reimagined Catholics,” that is: Catholics more at home with America magazine and the National Catholic Reporter than The Baltimore Catechism and the unredacted Lives of the Saints. You know, those Catholics quite comfortable with Mr. Biden warmly received at our altar … Read more
I ducked into the church for a weekday Mass taking place in the late afternoon. I was a visitor to the parish and have, since then, had no opportunity to return. The low ceilings and darkness were suffocating, and the slices of sun that shot through the oblong, rectangular windows did little but draw one’s … Read more
On October 30th, Fr. James Jackson, FSSP, a well-known traditional Catholic priest, was arrested on charges of possession of child pornography and erotica. Jackson, author of a popular book on the traditional Latin Mass titled Nothing Superfluous, was a pastor for years at a Colorado FSSP (Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter) parish before being transferred … Read more
The other night, Glenn Youngkin was on Tucker Carlson (which has long been my drug of choice) talking about his recent, stunning upset of Terry McAuliffe in the race to become Virginia’s next Governor. Here is a guy who, despite being 6’ 7” tall, had hardly been noticed by anyone until he decided to enter … Read more
I read with keen interest a talk delivered by Cardinal Willem Jacobus Eijk on October 23 in Rome, during a conference organized by Voice of the Family, a lay-run Catholic pro-life, pro-family organization. Entitled “Ethical questions concerning Covid-19 vaccines,” the talk very ably covered the moral reasoning involved in evaluating the moral liceity of the … Read more
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” There is a great difference between being materially poor and being poor in spirit. All people, both rich and poor, are called to be poor in spirit. For rich and poor alike, the question of how to exercise this virtue concretely is … Read more
Roe v. Wade and so-called “abortion rights” are facing challenges unlike any time before, especially via the Texas heartbeat bill. The chances of abortion being sent back to the states are higher than ever. As that prospect looms, faithful Catholics are being treated to a tragic spectacle: “pro-choice” Catholic leaders stepping forward to do everything … Read more
“Ye shall be as gods,” said the serpent. Whitaker Chambers called it the second oldest religion in the world. It has always proved popular. In his time, it took the form of communism. But the tempter is not so stupid as to appear in the same guise always; even human beings eventually get the idea … Read more
The future of contemplative orders in the Catholic Church is under siege, not by the oft-bemoaned vocations crisis, but by Archbishop Josè Rodrìguez Carballo, the secretary for the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. In 2018, Carballo released Cor Orans, a series of regulations on women’s monastic orders. Cor Orans … Read more
“‘My country, right or wrong,’ is a thing that no patriot would think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying, ‘My mother, drunk or sober.’ No doubt if a decent man’s mother took to drink he would share her troubles to the last; but to talk as if he would be … Read more
For those who missed it, October 17th was National Black Poetry Day, a day where Americans can presumably celebrate their favorite black poets like Phillis Wheatley, Langston Hughes, or Maya Angelou. This is not to be confused with National Poetry Day celebrated on October 1st in the U.K., World Poetry Day on March 21st, or … Read more
It’s a book! It’s a game! It’s got a sticker, and a token, and a secret message! There’s a map of a very special island! BRAVE Books’ new release Fame, Blame, and the Raft of Shame, by U.S. Congressman Dan Crenshaw, packs in all of that and more—promising hours of pure fun along with moments … Read more
A friend of mine says, “Of course, the NeverTrumpers were right after all. Trump had so alienated suburban women by his personal behavior, he couldn’t possibly have won a second term.” This person was Trump-resistant but voted for him nonetheless and was pleasantly surprised at all he accomplished. In the end, however, after he lost, … Read more
The gender revolution is fundamentally Marxist. Whether people are consciously aware of it or not, the root of gender ideology is Marxist, and its gambit is the construction of the egalitarian society through the obliteration of the division of gender. And the gender revolution is another prong in the full-throated attack on the family. Most … Read more
By the late 1980’s, Evangelicals and Fundamentalists in this country had cornered the market on the Bible—it was simply assumed by most people that Catholics didn’t really use the Bible. Being a “Bible Christian” meant being a Protestant of some sort. Catholic leaders of the time didn’t help. They were embarrassed to engage in apologetics, … Read more
The Second Book of Maccabees presents us with the incredible story of Eleazar, “one of the scribes in high position, a man now advanced in age and of noble presence.” The Greek conquerors told the Israelites: eat swine or go to the rack. Given the choice between violating the commandments of God or death, Eleazar … Read more
Cardinal Blase Cupich recently furthered The Big Lie of our times. This Lie of surpassing Bigness is not the systematic cover-up of decades of sexual abuse by ecclesiastical authorities, although this can certainly be laid at their feet. Neither is it the strange eagerness of many bishops to promote illegal immigration, resettlement, and the mass … Read more
I was giving a talk for adult education in the faith at a parish not my own, and the subject of cooperation in abortion was discussed. In the small group session, a young lady said to me that she was upset to feel criticized because she had accompanied a friend to an abortion clinic. “I … Read more