It has become a trite truism to say that the traditional family is under attack. The sources of the onslaught may be traced back at least to the 19th century’s exaltation of Romantic infatuation and its accompanying insistence that the s … [Read more...]
Conscience, Freedom, and the “Law of Graduality” at the Synod on the Family
September 14, 2015 by Rev. Thomas V. Berg, PhD
Ideas have consequences—we well know. My concern here is a series of problematic and closely related conceptions of conscience, human freedom, the moral qualification of human acts, and progress in moral living that might be operative in t … [Read more...]
To Give Up One’s Cloak
June 27, 2015 by Clara M.B. Fleischmann
When St. Martin of Tours encountered a poor, naked beggar, he tore his own warm cloak in half, to share it. Later, he discovered in a dream that the beggar was Christ. The story of St. Martin and the beggar provides a key to an area of … [Read more...]
Witnessing to Truth
Nostra Aetate and the New Evangelization
June 27, 2015 by Dr. Richard Francis Crane, PhD
The Vatican II declaration Nostra Aetate revolutionized the Catholic Church’s relations with non-Christian religions, especially Judaism. The fourth part of this short declaration marked a decisive shift in Catholic-Jewish relations, r … [Read more...]
Preaching the Homily and the New Evangelization
June 13, 2015 by Deacon Peter Lovrick
Preaching in all its forms is indispensable to the Church’s mission given to her by Jesus Christ: “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching the … [Read more...]
Theology of the Body: Insights for the Synod on the Family
May 31, 2015 by Dr. Peter Kahn
Introduction The upcoming Synod of Bishops on the Family, in October 2015, faces a huge challenge. The preparatory document for the synod reminded us that many families find themselves crushed and abandoned. [1. Holy See, "The Vocation … [Read more...]
Summer Reading for June 2015
May 31, 2015 by Book Reviews
Our Father, Who Art on Earth: The Lord’s Prayer for Believers and Unbelievers. Jose Tolentino Mendonca, with a Foreword by Enzo Bianchi. (Mahwah, New Jersey/New York: Paulist Press, 2012) 114 pages; $14.95. (Reviewed by Brandon H … [Read more...]
Words Written on Ice and Wind
A Creative Writer Reflects on the Craft of Preaching
March 30, 2015 by Fr. Raymond Tucker Cordani
At the turn of the century, I graduated from the Vermont College of Fine Arts in Montpelier. Armed with an MFA in creative writing, I set out to write the Great American Novel. I taught writing at the University of Central Florida in … [Read more...]
St. Joseph: His Increasing Importance in Our Times
March 11, 2015 by Fr. Stanley Smolenski, SPMA
In his Apostolic Letter Le Voci of March 19, 1961, the “Pope of St. Joseph,” St. John XXIII, invoked that saint as the Patron of the Second Vatican Council. Shortly after the beginning of that Council, he inserted the name of St. Joseph int … [Read more...]
Winter Reading for January 2015
January 29, 2015 by Book Reviews
New Evangelization: Passing on the Catholic Faith Today. Cardinal Donald Wuerl. (Huntington, Indiana: Our Sunday Visitor, 2013) 91 pages. (Reviewed by Dr. Edward Peters) ______ A Future Built on Faith: Religious Life and the Legacy o … [Read more...]
Breaking Free of Our Metaphysical Winter
On Why Christians Must Study Philosophy
January 12, 2015 by Brian Jones
In diagnosing the philosophical mentality of modernity, the Catholic novelist-physician-philosopher, Walker Percy, once wrote the following: The distinction which must be kept in mind is that between science and what can only be called … [Read more...]
Questions Answered
January 12, 2015 by Fr. Brian Mullady, OP
Is there some Catholic teaching on the morality of the nanny state and its tendency to try to control all of life through federal law? Can you give me some guidance as to the use of the media? We used to have a Legion of Decency which … [Read more...]
The Sacramentality of Human Love according to St. John Paul II
December 2, 2014 by Most Rev. Jean Laffitte
Vatican City, November 17, 2014 Dear Friends, It is my distinct honor and personal pleasure to be with you at this important Colloquium on the complementarity of man and woman, and to share with this august assembly the perspective of … [Read more...]
An Advent Reflection: Redemptor Hominis, Redeemer of Man
December 2, 2014 by Austin P. Kirwan
Introduction The encyclical, Redemptor Hominis, has a specific place in the ministry of Pope St. John Paul II. It was proclaimed the first Sunday of Lent, 1979, the first encyclical of the new pontificate, hence the link to Advent—it m … [Read more...]
The Legacy of the Vision of Pope John Paul II for Marriage and Family
November 14, 2014 by Dr. William Newton
Not even the bullet from the barrel of an assassin’s gun could stop Pope John Paul II from emphasizing early in his pontificate the issues of marriage and family. In just the first five years, he created six key markers in these critical a … [Read more...]
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