Author: S&P
The Benedictines have more saints than any other order — and this Saturday is their feast day…
Poussin, “St Frances of Rome” 1657 My last post focused on saints who converted from Protestantism. This post looks at another angle on the saints, modern saints from the Benedictine tradition. November 13th is the feast of All Benedictine Saints. The Benedictines have more Saints and Doctors of the Church than any other order, largely because their history stretches back to the 6th century. The n...
4 key clarifications about bishops, public officials, and Holy Communion…
As the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops prepares to meet in Baltimore, misconceptions about a proposed conference statement on the Eucharistic vitality and integrity of the Church in America abound. The confusions originating from online Catholic sources and social media have been exacerbated by a mainstream press that has consistently misrepresented what the bishops are doing. I hope ...
The Call of Duty: Priests, Seminarians Respond to Dire Need for Military Chaplains…
As a young man, Darren Balkey knew he was called to a life of service. He just wasn’t sure if it was to the priesthood or to military service in the U.S. armed forces. If his current trajectory is any indication, it seems the answer is “both.” Ordained a transitional deacon for the Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, this past summer, Balkey is also a staff officer in the U.S. Navy, having been ...
Superstition
Do you have a lucky number? Do you make a wish when you see a star fall or cross your fingers when you hope for something? Those are all little things that show you’re a little superstitious. But what is superstition? Believing in something supernatural that is different or derived from an existing ‘official’ belief is called superstition. All over the world people have forms of superstition that ...
What does God say about your future?
“You will be a millionaire next week!” Good news right? But how about, “You won’t live past the age of 35.” That’s a bit more scary. But you don’t get this message in the hospital, but from a fortune teller. And what do you do with this prediction for the future? Predicting the future is something that has been done for centuries. From a fortune teller with her crystal ball at the fair, to a psych...
New film tells the story of C.S. Lewis, the ‘most reluctant convert’…
The Fellowship for Performing Arts (FPA), in association with 1A Productions and distributor Trafalgar Releasing, has announced expanded distribution and encore presentations of the newly released film The Most Reluctant Convert: The Untold Story of C.S. Lewis. Originally in cinemas nationwide for one night only on Nov. 3, the movie garnered more than $1.2 million in box-office sales, captur...
The Kalaam cosmological argument is a popular argument for God’s existence. But before you use it, here are some words of caution…..
The Kalaam Cosmological argument is one of the more popular arguments for God’s existence. In essence, it states (1) that anything that has a beginning must have a cause, (2) that the universe has a beginning, and so (3) the universe must have a cause, which is God. There have been various attempts to show philosophically that the universe has a beginning, but these arguments don’t work. However, ...
Traditionis custodes: Rome diocese bans Traditional Latin Mass for Easter Triduum…
As pope, Francis is also the bishop of Rome, but because the pope has many other responsibilities, the day-to-day care of the Diocese of Rome is entrusted to the vicar general, whose full title is Vicar General of His Holiness. A vicar general is given, by canon law, executive power over the diocese in all administrative acts except those reserved to the bishop. In the Diocese of Rome, the cardina...
130 years ago, Pope Leo XIII prophetically saw our troubled times, and urged everyone to pray the Rosary…
During his 25-year reign (1878-1903), Pope Leo XIII saw major dangers arising in the world. After an alarming vision right after saying Mass — 33 years to the day of the final vision of Fatima on Oct. 13, 1917 — he gave us the Prayer to St. Michael to be recited after Masses beginning in 1886. After being sidelined a few decades ago, this prayer is making a strong comeback in some dioceses. In sev...
Pray for the dying and they will pray for your intentions…
“Today they need your prayers,” said Venerable Mary Potter. “Tomorrow will be too late.” What could be more urgent than a person near death in the state of mortal sin? Nothing. They are moments away from making an eternal decision: God or no God. Heaven or Hell. Forever. We cannot imagine not choosing God at that juncture. Yet, Father Stefan Starzynski, author of Miracles: Healing for a Broken Wor...
Vatican finance stories matter, and Catholics ought to be paying attention to them…
Listen to this article ROME – It’s only Tuesday, but I’ve already got a candidate for the Vatican soundbite of the week. It came in a piece in the Financial Times, quoting an unidentified expert on the London real estate market on news that the Vatican is selling a property in the posh Chelsea neighborhood for $270 million, representing roughly a $130 million loss on its original investment of $40...
Why Catholics stay, USCCB preview, and the Lateran basilica…
Hey everybody, Today the Church celebrates the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica — and this is The Tuesday Pillar Post. The choir and apse of the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome. Credit: tango7174/wikimedia. CC BY SA 4.0 If you’re a convert to Catholicism, or if you didn’t grow up celebrating many liturgical feast days, it might seem a bit weird that the Church periodically celebrates these ...
