In a recent essay, Humblesse Oblige, writer Simcha Fisher makes a lovely case for the neglected virtue of obedience, reminding us that the Church doesn’t impose obligations simply to throw her weight around, but because she understands our feelings aren’t always adequate to the situation.
“If obedience for the sake of obedience seems shabby and pathetic to you,” she writes, think of a mom putting nutritious meals on the table for her kids. Sometimes cooking seems like just the...
I can’t believe I am about to defend Mother’s Day – I who dislike being fussed over and think of the occasion mainly as the day I’m going to be forced to stand and feel conspicuous in the middle of Mass.
Nevertheless, I’ve seen some attacks on Mother’s Day from strange quarters over the years, beginning about 20 years ago when I went to greet a priest friend after Mass and overheard him being reamed out by some lady telling him he had no business speaking about mothers in...
I had a column almost written on an entirely different topic this week – and then my son texted me to turn on the news because there’d been explosions at the Boston Marathon.
I tuned in for about a minute to get the gist of the story, but quickly turned it off again. I’ve grown almost allergic to the kind of reporting that accompanies this kind of event. It’s all heat, no light.
Experience has shown repeatedly that the first reports from the scene are almost always false in...
Something charming Pope Francis has been doing his first week as Pope is celebrating daily mass in the chapel at Casa Santa Marta, the Vatican guest residence where he has been living since the start of the conclave. He’s invited all the Vatican workers – the janitors, the groundskeepers, the secretaries – to attend. The Pope as parish priest, almost.
During Tuesday’s homily the Pope preached the patience of the Lord, drawing his lesson from the Gospel passage...
What’s your favorite part of the Sermon on the Mount?
My evangelical protestant mom, who in “retirement” tutors for a Christian homeschool co-op, recently posed that question to her students.
Though they come from serious Christian homes, she was surprised to find that none of them had an answer. Even when given a moment to gather their thoughts, the kids couldn’t identify a single specific thing Jesus teaches in the most famous homily of all time.
Mom mentioned this to the...
When the alarm radio broke the surprise news of the Pope’s abdication a week ago, my involuntary tears were as unexpected as the announcement.
All I could think of was the physical and moral suffering that must have brought gentle Joseph Ratzinger to the decision, and my heart ached for him.
For myself too, if truth be told, because Benedict XVI’s intellectual fearlessness, absolutely lucid writing, and constant focus on the joy of relationship with Jesus has been an important...
A young man smiles a salacious smile. Sniffing brandy in front of a fireplace, in sultry “let’s-get-it-on” tones, he makes love to the camera: “Hey, Baby,” he purrs, “happy anniversary.” As the film rolls, we begin to understand that he is not addressing a woman, but the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision, 40 years old this January 22.
The video (linked here) was produced by the Center for Reproductive Rights to celebrate Roe v. Wade.
My initial reaction was to wonder if...
His first Advent as Pope, Benedict XVI delighted Vatican pilgrims by donning the papal camauro, a traditional fur-trimmed red hat that both keeps His Holiness warm and evokes the image of St. Nicholas.
I haven’t checked whether he’s wearing it again this season, but with or without the camauro, the Pope loves Christmas.
When Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was appointed by Blessed Pope John Paul II to head the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 1982, he turned out to be not only a...
Do you know what distinguishes the New Evangelization from evangelization simply? The audience.
Traditional missionary work brings the Good News to people who have never heard it. The New Evangelization aims closer to home: at re-awakening faith in people and cultures who have fallen away.
This past October in Rome, Pope Benedict XVI launched not only a Year of Faith – a concentrated effort from now until the Feast of Christ the King 2013 for Christians to rediscover their faith – but...
Natural marriage, the defense of life and religious liberty took hits on election night 2012. It would be inhuman for those who love the Church and desire each soul to know its dignity not to feel the sting of those blows and to take some time to reflect and regroup.
At the spiritual level, temporal setbacks are good occasions for regaining perspective, recalling that Christians are pilgrims who are not meant to be completely at home in this world.
Practically, since elections have policy...
