Childhood Be Damned
When I think of my own childhood and youth, it occurs to me that my happiest hours were rarely spent indoors, certainly not in school, nor at home in front of the television.
The Church Needs Children
“Let the children be, do not keep them back from me; the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” (Matt. 19-14) Recently in these pages, I wrote about a local traditional Latin Mass parish and a modern parish renewal program called “Rebuilt,” which was developed by a suburban parish outside of Baltimore. I noted … Read more
Thomas Hughes’ Tom Brown’s School Days
“After all, what would life be like without fighting, I should like to know? From the cradle to the grave, fighting, rightly understood, is the business, the real, highest, honestest business of every son of man. Every one who is worth his salt has his enemies, who must be beaten, be they evil thoughts and … Read more
Carlo Collodi’s Pinocchio
How does a wooden puppet become a real boy? How does one tame a wild boy full of spirit? When does a boy become a man? What is the art of educating the young to become refined and civilized? Pinocchio shows that the wooden puppet—stubborn, slothful, and thankless–deserves the honor of boyhood when he acquires … Read more
