Convert from Lutheranism, ordained to the priesthood in 1991 by St. John Paul II in Rome for the Suburbicarian Diocese of Velletri-Segni. Classics at University of Minnesota. Licence and Doctoral studies in Patristic Theology at the Augustinianum in Rome. Formerly a collaborator of the Pontifical Commission "Ecclesia Dei," moderator of the Catholic Online Forum, columnist for The Wanderer and the UK's Catholic Herald, Fox News contributor. Speaker. Blogist. fatherzonline.com @fatherz
Author: Fr. John Zuhlsdorf
At Least On Sunday – 1st Sunday of Advent: When a door shuts…
Early on living in Rome I learned always to close doors so they latched and to block or latch windows, often the tall, vertical kind that meet in the middle. Why? Because when the wind is blowing, by opening a …
24th and Last Sunday after Pentecost: invitations to jubilations
All good things come to their end other than the joy of Heaven. Just so, this series ends with a dive into the Epistle reading for the 24th and Last Sunday after Pentecost, the final Sunday before the beginning of …
6th Sunday Remaining after Epiphany: When You love, You Want More
This penultimate Sunday of the Liturgical Year brings us a pericope from Paul’s 1st Letter to the Thessalonians 1:2-10. Paul’s Letter could be one of his earliest, along with Galatians. Some scholars think it could be the earliest section of …
5th Sunday Remaining after Epiphany: A funny thing happened on the way to Advent
As we approach the end of the liturgical year, an odd thing happens in the Church’s traditional calendar for the Vetus Ordo. The Sundays left over after Epiphany are finally dusted off, “resumed,” and prayed until the liturgical year is …
23rd Sunday after Pentecost: “Stand firm in the Lord, my beloved!”
We would have had a first selection from Philippians last week, the last Sunday of October, but the 22nd Sunday after Pentecost was superseded by the Feast of Christ the King in the Vetus calendar. Sunday’s reading from Philippians 3:17-21 …
Christ The King: Saints in Light
We continue this liturgical year’s task with a look into Colossians 1:12-20, our pericope for Holy Mass at the Epistle for this last Sunday of October. As the last October Sunday, it is the Feast of Christ the King in …
21st Sunday after Pentecost: Put on the whole armor of God
You know the story of Esther during the Babylonian Exile. Wicked Haman plotted to get the King to kill all the Jews. Esther foiled his plan and instead the Jews were able to slay their enemies. You know the story …
20th Sunday after Pentecost: Sober Inebriation
Context is always important. First, where are we in the liturgical year for this 20th Sunday after Pentecost Historically, this is the 5th Sunday after the Feast of St. Cyprian. Obviously, this is a telling of Sundays that existed before …
19th Sunday after Pentecost: “Be angry but do not sin”
For the 19th Sunday after Pentecost in the Vetus Ordo we venture into a Lesson from the letter of St. Paul the Apostle to the Ephesians (4:23-28). [Brethren]: Be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the …
18th Sunday after Pentecost: “Death, Rather than Sin!”
Our glimpse into the Epistle reading for Sunday’s Holy Mass in the Vetus Ordo of the Roman Rite continues for this coming 18th Sunday after Pentecost. Bl. Ildefonso Schuster, the great liturgist and once Cardinal Archbishop of Milan (+1954) informs …