The purpose of this article is to present a vision of liturgical leadership that can be found on the pages of Pope Francis’ apostolic letter Desiderio Desideravi (2022) (henceforth DD, available on the Vatican website). The context of t … [Read more...]
Assenting to Fiducia Supplicans
At some point in my spiritual pilgrimage to the full communion of the Catholic Church from an Evangelical Protestant upbringing, it became apparent to me that the only way that I could infallibly believe the deposit of divinely revealed … [Read more...]
Pope Francis and the Church’s Mission Today
September 27, 2024 by Archbishop George Leo Thomas
Note: Archbishop George Leo Thomas gave the following address on October 16, 2023, at the conclusion of the Mass of Canonical Establishment of the Archdiocese of Las Vegas. On June 29th, the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, I received the … [Read more...]
Revolution in Theology?
A Closer Look at the Significance of Pope Francis’ Ad Theologiam Promovendam
July 26, 2024 by Fr. Andreas Kramarz, LC
A theological outrage was frothing in the wake of Pope Francis’ November 1, 2023, apostolic letter motu proprio: Ad Theologiam Promovendam (henceforth ATP), which accompanied the approval of new statutes for the Pontifical Academy of T … [Read more...]
Book Reviews – July 2024
June 28, 2024 by Book Reviews
Pope Francis and Mercy: A Dynamic Theological Hermeneutic. By Gill K. Goulding. Reviewed by Fr. Vien V. Nguyen, SCJ. (skip to review) Memoirs. By Jószef Cardinal Mindszenty. Reviewed by Fr. Joseph Briody. (skip to review) Gift and … [Read more...]
Embodiment and Integral Witness
Pope Francis’ Early Teaching on Catechesis
December 29, 2023 by John Hartley
As a bishop, Jorge Bergoglio communicated profound truth in a simple manner. In words as in deeds he embodied the goal of total identification: “My people are poor and I am one of them” was a plain fact that undergirded his episcopal min … [Read more...]
There but for the Grace of God
June 23, 2023 by Bishop Paul Sanchez
“O wonder of your humble care for us! O love, O charity beyond all telling.” Exultet One of the four Americans mentioned by Pope Francis in his address to the joint session of Congress on September 15, 2015 was Thomas Merton. Thomas Mer … [Read more...]
Pope Francis and the Symposium on the Priesthood
March 29, 2023 by Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio
Many times, Pope Francis has been very critical in speaking about priests and even seminarians, and for sure bishops. He is calling the Church to a renewal, and he does not seem to have this concern without some experience. He began his … [Read more...]
St. Joseph and Fatherhood
February 24, 2023 by Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio
Originally delivered as a talk for the Diocese of Paterson Advent Day of Prayer for Priests, St. Paul Inside the Walls Evangelization Center, Madison, NJ on December 6, 2022. It is my privilege and pleasure to be with you today at the … [Read more...]
Overview of Desiderio Desideravi
July 28, 2022 by Fr. Timothy Eck
On the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, June 29, 2022, Pope Francis promulgated the Apostolic Letter Desiderio Desideravi.[1. Francis, Desiderio Desideravi (Rome: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2022), … [Read more...]
Flannery Was Right
The Problem of Nihilism Within the Catholic Church
February 26, 2022 by Fr. Damian J. Ference
In a letter to Betty Hester dated August 28, 1955, Flannery O’Connor wrote: “If you live today you breathe in nihilism. In or out of the Church, it’s the gas you breathe.”[1. Flannery O’Connor, The Habit of Being, hereafter HB (New York: Far … [Read more...]
Thinking About Ministry After Covid
Based On Ecclesiological Insights of Pope Francis
December 24, 2021 by Fr. Nihal Abeyasingha
The opening paragraph of Lumen Gentium states, “Since the Church is in Christ like a sacrament or as a sign and instrument both of a very closely knit union with God and of the unity of the whole human race, it desires now to unfold more f … [Read more...]
Shepherding the Flock Out of the 1962 Missal
November 24, 2021 by E. Tyler Graham
The time has come, says God to Moses. You must lead my people out of Egypt, out of captivity, toward the Promised Land.[1. Ex 3:10.] Unfortunately for the eager travelers, the journey lasts 40 years,[2. Deut 1:3.] and along the way the … [Read more...]
“Amoris Laetitia”: A Clarion Call for a Healthier Clergy
October 28, 2021 by Msgr. Frank Chiodo
One of the often missed points in Amoris Laetitia (chapter 6, §203) is the Holy Father’s reference to the importance of improving the psycho-affective development of future priests. I am convinced that this is long overdue. Having been a … [Read more...]
Clericalism: Problems Past, Present, and Future
September 9, 2021 by Jerome Buhman
I am a permanent deacon, married and with children; at the same time, I am ministering in my parish. When I was first ordained, I used to joke that I “had a foot in both camps,” as I seemed to be both laity and ordained. But in reality, we a … [Read more...]
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