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By Clement Harrold December 6, 2024 The story of the Finding of the Boy Jesus in the Temple brings a range of emotions to the surface. For many Catholics, the whole episode can feel baffling, if not downright traumatic. More than any of the other joyful mysteries, this one seems to encapsulate the title of William Shakespeare’s comedy, All’s Well That Ends Well! St. John Paul rightly noted that the mystery is a story of joy mixed with drama. In some deep sense, therefore, the Finding in the Temple speaks to exactly the kind of joy which ought to mark the Christian life: a joy which acknowledges the many hardships which lie between us and heaven, without trying to ignore or downplay them. It is the joy, too, of realizing at the end of our trials and troubles that God knew what He was doing ...

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There’s no way around the question this time of the year, so I will offer my take on The Controversy. “Die Hard” is not a “Christmas movie.” However, I will add this word — “unless.” And my “unless” is built into a Christmas movie typology based on feeling tingles of “hathos” (definition here) during decades of having to watch promotional materials for The Holidays — primarily advertisements. I say “having to watch,” because I am a sports fan, which means enduring lots of ads (even with the sound clicked off). I also have to wait to click out of ads while following YouTube channels that I consider worthwhile (like this, this and, yes, this). I think that there are four kinds of “Christmas movies.” We are talking about moves that: (1) Are set during Christmas, sort of, and that’s that. See ...

Share via: Creepy Catholics It couldn’t have happened at any other point in my life. Let me explain. For most of my adult life, Catholicism had given me the creeps. As a young man of twenty-nine, fresh into ministry, I was privileged to take a mission trip to Campinas, Brazil. While there, our interpreter was kind enough to show us some of the local sites, including the Metropolitan Cathedral. As a budding young Baptist minister, I simply had no box for what I encountered there. The church was very large and magnificent. The outside was topped with impressive statues of I knew not who, and the inside was filled with intricate wood carvings, statuary, and even items of gold. There were also niches, each with its own statue, before which were prostrated several poverty-stricken old women wee...

The most Catholic show on network television has its finale tonight, 14 years and 283 episodes after its premiere in September 2010. Blue Bloods has had an extraordinary run in a time when network television has been hemorrhaging audiences. Blue Bloods is not only a police drama. It’s a family drama about a police family. Tom Selleck stars as Francis (Frank) Xavier Reagan, the Irish Catholic police commissioner of New York City. Widowed, he lives with his widower father, Henry Reagan, who also served as the NYPD commissioner, now retired. Frank has three sons, all New York policemen, though corrupt cops killed the eldest before the series begins. His daughter is an assistant district attorney in Manhattan. Law enforcement is the family business. There have been other family crime shows — e...

Most Catholics wouldn’t consider the motherly image of Our Lady of Guadalupe a martial image. The serene, pregnant Virgin—signified by the black sash expectant Aztec women wore—appeared to St. Juan Diego and upon his cactus-fiber tilma in 1531, a decade after Christianity came to the Mesoamerican people. In a tender vision to Diego’s uncle, the same Lady disclosed her name, “Santa Maria de Guadalupe,” though many think the now-famous title is a mistranslation of “Coatlaloppe,” meaning “snake crusher,” which is anything but tender. The manifestation and majesty of Our Lady of Guadalupe was always a conquering force, putting an end to the Aztec bloodshed with the unprecedented conversion of millions. Our Lady of Guadalupe completed the work of the Franciscans in appearing to her little son o...

By Dr. Jeff Mirus ( bio – articles – email ) | Dec 10, 2024 It’s amazing how out of touch with current reality we can become as we age. I’ve mentioned before Hilaire Belloc’s interesting thesis that people in their sixties tend to still fight the battles in which they were engaged in their twenties and thirties, even though current problems might be quite different. The battles we keep fighting also depend on our personal inclinations, and if our inclinations haven’t changed (as, for example, through a deepening conversion) we are even more likely to bypass current reality in favor of attacking old straw men. But there is something far deeper at stake than our own theories of what is wrong with the Church and the world. I am sure examples could be taken from my own life and the...

(ZENIT News / Rome, 12.08.2024).- As Pope Francis approaches his 88th birthday, the past week has brought a mix of minor injuries, unexpected protests, and moments of quiet reflection for the pontiff. A Visible Injury Sparks Curiosity  On Friday, December 6, the Pope appeared for his first public engagement with a noticeable bruise on his chin and neck, sparking immediate speculation. By evening, Vatican spokespersons confirmed the cause: an accidental bump against a bedside table the previous morning. Such incidents are common among older individuals, yet the timing—just days before his milestone birthday—highlighted the Pope’s advancing age and his enduring commitment to his duties despite occasional mishaps. Protest Disrupts Marian Celebration  Just two days later, on December...

Catholic University of America facing $30 million deficit Skip to content The president of The Catholic University of America announced on Tuesday a $30 million “structural deficit,” and has asked university personnel for ideas to generate revenue and cut costs in the coming year. McMahon Hall at The Catholic University of America. Credit: Wikimedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Share University President Peter Kilpatrick cited decreasing tuition revenue and increases in expenses as the cause of deficit spending for five of the last seven years. Kilpatrick, who took office in July 2022, said the university has made plans to address its financial situation through budget cuts and potential revenue growth opportunities. He also asked the university community for ideas to balance the budget for the next fis...

Thanks to team work and tremendous dedication, the girls at Oakcrest School are celebrating a victory three years in the making… Editor’s Note: This story was originally published at TheologyofHome.com. It is reprinted here with permission.  Each year the classical radio station in Washington, D.C. WETA (90.9) hosts the annual Classical Countdown. Listeners vote on their top three favorite classical pieces and then the top 100 pieces are played the week of Thanksgiving. For years and years, Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony (which includes the Ode to Joy) has taken first place. Everyone knew this and expected it to happen again in 2022. But two years ago, instrumental music director, Alix Baldwin at Oakcrest School, a Catholic school in Vienna, Virginia, had an idea. She su...

(OSV News) — Advent is the perfect time to make a retreat, and opportunities abound, whether it’s overnight retreats, days of reflection, parish missions or evening events. Stepping away from the hustle and bustle is enticing, especially as we prepare our hearts for Christmas. However, not all of us are able to take advantage of those opportunities. It can be especially hard for families who are already pinched for time and money as Christmas approaches. Yet, we want to observe Advent in a pronounced way. What can we do? With some prayerful and inspired ingenuity, we can form our own Advent retreat at home. While it’s optimal to remove ourselves from our usual surroundings, we can make an effective retreat at home, simply by changing our schedule and attitude. All it takes is planning and ...