I’m often asked about the state of Catholicism in Japan and about being a Catholic expat in Japan in particular. I thought this might be a good time to write about it, given that Japan might be on a lot of Catholics’ minds with Pope Francis having just wrapped up the first papal visit to…
Epistle: Romans 13:11-14 Gospel: Luke 21:25-33 Stir up Thy power, we beseech Thee, O Lord, and come: that from the threatening dangers of our sins, by Thy protection we may deserve to be rescued, and be saved by Thy deliverance. – From the Collect for the First Sunday of Advent The First Sunday of Advent…
“Little children, keep yourselves from idols” (1 Jn. 5:20–21). “For all the gods of the Gentiles are devils; but the Lord made the heavens” (Psalm 96:5). Recently, these verses were cited in a homily by a priest at my local parish. He spoke out against idols and focused on making an idol of the Earth.…
With so many crazy things happening in the Church — from idolatry to religious indifferentism to seemingly constant changes to established teaching — Dr. Michael Sirilla, professor of Systematic and Dogmatic Theology at Franciscan University of Steubenville discusses what the faithful should think — and why they should stay Catholic. AUDIO ONLY: [Powerpress] RELATED…
One of the two soldiers who had to lead him caused him all possible sufferings. He was forced to make long marches, was exposed to the rays of the sun, to the rains and the cold of the nights. His body, already weakened by several severe illnesses, finally broke down[.] … In the morning Chrysostom…
In the United States, the annual Thanksgiving day, celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November to thank God for the fields’ good harvest, is one of the most popular national holidays since 1620, when the “Pilgrim Fathers” landed at Plymouth Rock . As you reflect on this day, “in which it is a must to…
The Day Is Now Far Spent Cdl. Robert Sarah with Nicolas Diat Ignatius Press 385 pages $16.96 paperback, $12.97 e-book The new book by Cardinal Robert Sarah with Nicholas Diat, The Day Is Now Far Spent, brims with wisdom and understanding, especially concerning the present crisis and scandal in the Church. Worth the purchase price…
The synod is done. But the mutant thing lives on in its final document, “Amazonia: New Ways for the Church and for a Holistic Ecology.” Prudence and discretion, rationality itself, are baffled by its opening hysteria. The Amazon rainforest … is in an unbridled race to death. It requires radical changes with great urgency, a…
One day, following Mass, a Polish man, in his fifties, shared a childhood story with me. It seems that he and his brother were serving Mass with another boy who, to their frustration, was being deliberately unruly and obstinate. The two brothers, no doubt higher in the pecking order of altar boys, made threatening gestures…
Epistle: Colossians 1:9-14 Gospel: Matthew 24:15-25 Stir up the wills of Thy faithful people, we beseech Thee, O Lord: that more earnestly seeking the fruit of good works, they may receive more abundantly the gifts of Thy loving kindness. – From the Collect for the Twenty-Fourth and Last Sunday after Pentecost This Sunday is the…
In this section, we will examine some Protestant objections to Mary as (1) the Woman in Gen 3:15 and (2) the Queen Mother of Israel and of the Church in Apocalypse chapter 12. Protestant Objection I: (i) I just cannot come to accept that the Woman of Genesis 3:15 is Mary. Perhaps she is Eve,…
