Pope Francis was recently featured in a short online video to promote his monthly prayer intention. Unfortunately, the video has given the impression that the pope is promoting religious indifferentism, and as such, it has scandalized not a few Catholics. My purpose here is not to analyze this particular video or intention, but to examine a larger question…
There’s an old Internet Meme that goes a little something like this: Pretty much everyone has seen this same coat hanger at some point or another. It’s a pretty ubiquitous piece of hardware. Most of us never think anything of it. But from the moment you’ve seen this captioned image, you can never look at…
Editor’s note: since a number of readers have overlooked the link, we would like to note that this “letter” is written in the style and format of another letter, to which it is a response. You may read that letter here. UPDATE: After over 400 comments, I’ve written a followup post here. Good Afternoon! We…
Cologne Cathedral is the largest Gothic cathedral in Northern Europe and the tallest Catholic church structure in Europe. If you’ve ever seen a Gothic cathedral, you know how impressive they can be. Notre Dame de Paris has nothing on Cologne. It took over six centuries to complete, and is Germany’s most visited landmark. It’s even…
A few years ago, I read Dom Chautard’s The Soul of the Apostolate and became convinced of his thesis: the interior life must come first; our good works and apostolates will follow as the good fruit of a sound interior life. As I’ve tried to implement Chautard’s teaching in my own life, its truth has…
During college, I attended a Melkite Rite parish of mostly Lebanese origin. It was during my time there that I became painfully aware of the persecution of Christians by Islamist extremists throughout the Middle East, especially Syria, which borders Lebanon. Parishioners spoke with startling familiarity of the persecutions which their own acquaintances and even relatives…
Beginning on Christmas Eve, I walked away from the website. I took my wife and children to midnight Mass and stayed up way too late putting presents under the tree while enjoying some excellent bourbon. On Christmas day, we exchanged gifts, then feasted together with those of my siblings and their families who were in town…
It’s that time of year again, when the word “tradition” is heard more often than at a “Fiddler on the Roof” audition. Whether it’s in the music we are subjected to in the mall or choose to listen to on our radio, or the food and treats we make, or the decorations in and around…
One hallmark of a well-written book is its timelessness. Certainly over time, the jargon and anecdotes of the text will appear antiquated, but its argument will still resonate long after its publication. I picked up Dean Kelley’s 1972 book, Why Conservative Churches are Growing, to help me understand a paradox facing the Episcopal Church. Their…
Part 4 of a 4-part series: Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV Part 4: The Wisdom of the Church and Her Understanding of Man In this final article, I will speak of the great wisdom of the Church’s understanding of the need for purification, a need that extends not only to the life to come,…
Having just celebrated the grand feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, I would like to recount in her honor a little bit about the apostolate of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP) in her beloved country of Mexico. It all began when the English-speaking seminary of the FSSP was founded. Providentially — and seemingly without much…
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