This has been getting passed around the past week or two, and I only just got to watch it today. If you haven’t seen it, it’s a brilliant little stage performance by a group of students posing as silent monks who have devised a clever way to perform Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus without uttering a peep… … Read more
Self. And this is never more evident to me than when I’m driving on the highway. Almost every time, I can count on there being at least one jackass…er… brother in Christ driving WAY over the speed limit who insists on tailgating the car in front of him until that poor schlep moves over and makes … Read more
A South Carolina priest has been making headlines lately for the unusual way he’s raising money for his parish — namely, by playing in a national poker tournament. With the blessing of his bishop, Father Andrew Trapp has already won $100,000 in the “PokerStars.net Million Dollar Challenge”; he recently taped an episode that could win … Read more
A recent headline from Zenit announces, “Scholars Aim to Disprove Darwin.” Â My thought: “Good luck with that.” I’m highly skeptical that guys like Hugh Owen, who believe in a young earth and the coexistence of dinosaurs and humans, are going to land any punches that overthrow the basic arguments for stuff like an old … Read more
A friend wrote me about a school principal, a religious sister, speaking to a parent and requesting school funds. The gentleman was described as an “ultra-Catholic.” My friend asked me: “What is that, do you know?” Evidently, the “non-ultra” principal thought it all right to siphon needed cash from the “ultra” parent. No strings were … Read more
Two years ago, the USCCB released a document of revised guidelines for liturgical music titled “Sing to the Mountains” — er, “Lord.” In its 88 mostly tepid pages are found a meditation on the scriptural and theological foundations for the use of music in worship, notes particular to the celebration of special rites within the … Read more
I didn’t want it to be true.  I thought Tiger Woods was one of the good guys. After all, he worked hard at polishing his image in order to convince the world he was one of the good guys. And that polished image earned him over $100 million last year. Woods might still be a good … Read more
As Catholics, it comes as no surprise to us that the human brain is hard-wired for religion. We believe in a God who created us in His image so that we would come to know and love Him. But for Enlightenment thinkers, who had committed themselves to the “liberation” of human thought from the shackles … Read more
Cryonics. Neural implants. Designer babies. Welcome to the future of transhumanism. This energetic movement, comprising thousands of adherents, actively promotes the enhancement of humans via cybernetics, genetics, medicine, surgery, nanotechnology, and a full panoply of other scientific advancements. This enhancement would, according to Nick Bostrom’s “Transhumanist Declaration,” seek to advocate “the moral right for those … Read more
The responsory at today’s Mass was especially appropriate: “The Lord is coming and will not delay; He will bring every hidden thing to light and reveal himself to every nation.” Sadness and anger pervades Ireland this first week of Advent. The release of the massive Murphy Report revealed more details about the three decades of … Read more