In April, Todd M. Aglialoro asked readers of this site, “What happened to Catholic fiction, and how do we effect its renewal?” This question — which generated over 100 responses — could be broadened: How do we renew Catholic literature? William Baer has been asking the same thing, and has been taking tangible steps toward … Read more
For the past six months, I have commented regularly on Barack Obama’s outreach to Catholic voters. Looking over what I have written, I realized that taken together these articles serve as a one-stop reference for Catholics who want to know where Obama stands on the non-negotiable Catholic issues. Before I get to the problems with … Read more
Somebody (I’ll say Chesterton, just to start another meme falsely attributing great quotes to him) once remarked that "the man who declares ‘The modern intellect can no longer accept the primitive doctrines of the Resurrection of the Dead, Transubstantiation, and a Trinitarian Godhead’ typically means ‘I’m sleeping with my neighbor’s wife.’" These days, … Read more
Britain’s Royal Family is often — no, make that always — in the news. Its position in the public mind has utterly changed over the past four decades — from something that held a real, and understood, place in the constitutional scheme of things into something more like a soap opera, and often described … Read more
Nature conspired in Eric Lionel Mascall (1905-1993) to flaunt St. Peter’s image of the body as a collapsible tent (2 Pt 2:13-14) — at least I have not known such an agile mind in such a clumsy frame. He once stumbled over himself in the dark, and only his groan prevented me from stepping on … Read more
For modern folks like me, perhaps the most frustrating thing about the Church is her failure to be ambiguous. The Catholic moral code is frightfully clear about a long, long list of things, and leaves no wiggle room for those of us who’d rather form our consciences from papier-mâché and wishful thinking. For some 20 … Read more
From July 14 – 18, InsideCatholic will be hosting our first online book discussion. Join participants Amy Welborn, Matthew Lickona, Joseph O’Brien and Bishop Daniel Flores in the conversation. What is "Catholic" fiction? Is it simply fiction written by a Catholic? Must it include Catholic characters and treat distinctly Catholic themes? Does it reflect a … Read more
When Ralph Reed told me he was writing a political novel, I had my doubts. That Reed is a multi-talented man is beyond doubt — he is in the top rank of political strategists. Furthermore, his work as executive director of the Christian Coalition between 1989 and 1997 changed American politics by bringing the voice … Read more
The juxtaposition of same-sex “marriage” being approved in California with the raid on the Texan polygamists seems to have made a few people ponder the logical connection between homosexuality and polygamy — and, in some cases unhappily, reflect that former senator Rick Santorum was right when he said the Supreme Court’s Lawrence decision would … Read more
People usually laugh when they hear me say that I think the Internet age will lead to mass conversions to orthodox Christianity. Anyone who’s spent much time online knows that the ratio of sites with base or immoral content to those with spiritually edifying content is approximately a zillion to one, so what makes … Read more
My husband and I met a consecrated virgin last week. Later he commented to me, “She is full of light,” and then added: “Why didn’t I find a girl like that when I was young?” I broke out laughing. But he did not. “Honey,” I nudged him with a helpful tip toward his improvement, “You … Read more
They just can’t shake it. It’s a noose. It’s destroying their credibility. It’s the abortion albatross. Try as they may to find matters that rival the life issues, the Catholic Left continues to come up empty. When the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops voted overwhelmingly on June 13 to affirm the Church’s teaching … Read more
“What Goldwater was to Reagan, McGovern was to Obama,” New York Times writer Sam Tanenhaus wrote about the 2008 election, in reference to the two fathers of America’s modern political movements. The first story, about the conservative ascendancy in the Republican Party, has been told. The second, covering the liberal ascendancy in the Democratic … Read more
Graham Chapman, the actor who played the self-righteous Anglican Mr. Blackitt, was gay. In light of all that’s transpiring these days over gay marriage, I find that tidbit ironic. That’s what being a Protestant’s all about. That’s why it’s the church for me. . . . I can go down the road any time … Read more
Do "Godspammers" who write converts to the Catholic faith honestly believe that they are the first people in the universe to ever suggest reading the Bible? If not, then what are they thinking? Almost every other day, it seems, I will open my e-mail and find something like this specimen (culled from my "deleted" file): … Read more
Catholic social teaching has consistently held as its core principle that economic activity is to be subordinated to the common good, which the Catechism defines as “the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their fulfillment more fully and more easily.” Debate over precisely how the … Read more
Last week Irish citizens voted on a referendum to ratify the Lisbon Treaty. As the results rolled in — the Irish rejected it — European leaders were quick to express their dismay, saying the Emerald Isle’s “no” would send them back to the drawing board. The Treaty of Lisbon, also known as the Reform … Read more
A new survey on religion and politics provides important background on the dynamics at work among religious voters in 2008. The “National Survey on Religion and Public Life” published by the Paul B. Henry Institute for the Study of Christianity and Politics at Calvin College was based on a large sample of 3,002 interviews, … Read more
When thinking about religion it is often helpful to bear in mind a distinction between “thick” religions and “thin” religions. This distinction can help us understand why American Catholicism went into decline about 40 years ago. By a “thick” religion I mean one that requires its adherents to do and to believe many things. And … Read more
The names Mark Steyn and Ezra Levant — two of my Canadian journalist friends — have recently become better known Stateside, thanks to prosecutions of their works before Canadian "human rights" tribunals. These are kangaroo courts that were established in Canada more than a generation ago, in the era of Pierre Trudeau, to adjudicate … Read more