Our choices matter. They hurtle before us into eternity, dragging us in their wake. And in this election, more than any in the United States since 1860, they matter desperately. I wish they didn’t. The single most damning objection raised by atheists is this: Why would a loving, omnipotent God permit sin, suffering, and the … Read more
Tomorrow is All Saints’ Day — a time for honoring those spiritual brothers and sisters who have run the race and won their eternal rest, and for celebrating our connection, through the Mystical Body, to the Church Triumphant. I think it’s also an appropriate time for reflecting on our own eternal destiny. Back when I … Read more
In October 2008, the Archdiocese of Zagreb celebrated the 10th anniversary of the beatification of Aloysius Cardinal Stepinac, who led the Catholic Church in Croatia during the Second World War. Though he is a hero in Croatia, his reputation elsewhere is a matter of controversy: The Communist regime that took over after the war convicted … Read more
Two weekends ago, almost four-fifths of the clergy and over three-fifths of the laity representing churches in the Episcopal diocese of Pittsburgh voted to leave the Episcopal Church and join the South American Anglican province called “the Southern Cone.” It was the second American diocese (out of 100 or so) to do so, with two … Read more
Jesus famously said, “Seek first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you as well.” Elsewhere, He restated this principle using a different image and adding a negative corollary: Take heed what you hear; the measure you give will be the measure you get, and still more … Read more
The local Community House in Moorestown, New Jersey, where I grew up, used to sponsor a little parade on their grounds each year at Halloween. We would all line up in our costumes and file past a table on the lawn where the judges sat deciding which costume was the best. The great thing was … Read more
From the tenor of my reflections on the seven deadly sins, the careless reader might think I’m playing devil’s advocate — or, even worse, that I’ve pumped up my ego to the point where I think I can compete with C. S. Lewis. In fact, the only Lewis I’m hoping to emulate is Jerry. (Stay … Read more
Called Out of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession Anne Rice, Knopf, 256 pages, $24 A decade ago, Anne Rice — the best-selling author of gothic tales of nocturnal bloodsuckers — found herself “Christ-haunted.” Statues of the saints, half-ruined Catholic churches, and the crucified Christ reignited the long dormant piety that suffused her New Orleans childhood. Flannery … Read more
For some folks, it takes a lot to dispel the myth of the hyper-controlling Church that only permits Bible study among the faithful after the insertion of the Vatican Orbital Mind Control Laser Platform chip in the frontal lobe of the brain. Indeed, it may come as a shock to such folk to discover that … Read more
Up here in Canada, from where I am writing, the prime minister called an election on September 7, and we had it on October 14. By the common consent of the five major parties, there was no discussion whatever of abortion, gay marriage, “human rights” tribunals, or any other of the civilizational issues that are, … Read more
A neglected Catholic poet of the 1970s, Kinky Friedman, wrote movingly of the Resurrection in a tender Easter ballad — frequently used at conservative Novus Ordo parishes as a post-Communion hymn — which concludes with this envoi: Oh, let’s get high on Jesus, high on Jesus, They tried to put His body under ground. Flashing … Read more
The Catholic Church is often accused of complicity in a variety of moral evils, including the institution of slavery, the rise of the Nazi Party, and even the horror of the Holocaust itself. Historians differ on the degree of blame properly assigned to Catholics. But they all agree on one thing: These evils were the … Read more
Last night, the Archdiocese of New York held its famous Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, with both Senators John McCain and Barack Obama as guests. I watched the coverage today — the story is all over the news, along with images of Obama and Edward Cardinal Egan sharing a laugh. Something about that bothered … Read more
When is the last time a bishop’s statement on abortion resulted in several days of protest from pro-abortion Catholics? The joint statement issued last Friday by Bishop Kevin Vann of Fort Worth and Bishop Kevin Farrell of Dallas has done just that. No doubt the forceful clarity of the bishops’ message elicited the outcry. The … Read more
There was a brief controversy in the summer of 2003, when a group of liberal and progressive Catholic figures held a closed-door meeting to discuss Church matters with several high-level prelates, including Archbishop Wilton Gregory and Theodore Cardinal McCarrick. Deal W. Hudson and others at the time observed that the group had a number of … Read more
As we saw last week, antique atheists like Bill Maher still imagine that people who take the Bible seriously must read it literalistically, as he does. However, there is a difference between literalistic interpretation — which is the habit of all fundamentalists, whether atheist or Christian — and the literal sense of Scripture. The Catechism … Read more
In dire days of the last dark world war, one man said after a papal audience: "Pius XII judges everything from a perspective that surpasses human beings, their undertakings and their quarrels. . . . Pious, compassionate, political — such does this pontiff and sovereign appear to me because of the respect that he inspires … Read more
Of the seven areas of life where Jesus spoils our fun, the subject of sex is one where He actually does least harm. Wistful, liberal Catholics like to point out that Christ spent much more time on earth denouncing the smugly rich than the randy. As usual, these people are missing the point: When it … Read more
“Now the last safe haven for Christians is gone,” said Canon Andrew White, the vicar of St. George’s church in Baghdad. During the past week, twelve Christians have been killed and more than 3,000 have left the city of Mosul, once considered a safe zone for persecuted Iraqi Christians. Mosul, on the plain of Nineveh … Read more
An Obama victory on November 4 is far from certain, but the momentum behind his campaign prompts me to wonder: What impact could an Obama administration have on the Catholic Church? The Bush victories in 2000 and 2004 brought a flood of commentary on the so-called red and blue states. If Obama wins in 2008, … Read more