Prayer Imploring for Holy Popes
We must pray to the Lord with the words of Esther: “We have no helper but you.”
We Share in the Suffering of the Poor Souls in Purgatory
The foundation of our love and devotion for the poor souls in purgatory is this: “If one member suffer any thing, all the members suffer with it; or if one member glory, all the members rejoice with it” (I Cor. 12:26). This is the bond of charity that binds the Church Militant to the Church…
Should Laity Pray the Breviary or the Rosary?
Perhaps this is not your question, but it is a question I have been asked by Catholics as they discerned what forms of vocal prayer to prioritize in their lives. We have a limited amount of time available to us individually and within the family circle, so the question is not merely theoretical. I hope…
Vespers: An Often Forgotten Universal Prayer of the Church
“Sunday is the day of the Resurrection, it is the day of Christians, it is our day.” -St. Jerome The leisure suits, felt banners, and clown Masses prevalent in the 1970s are not the sort of seedbed one envisions for the start of a 45-year liturgical tradition of chanting Sunday Vespers in Latin with exposition…
What If God Is Silent? Resistance and Relationship in Mental Prayer
A while ago, I did something thoughtless that angered a good friend. I was faced with the realization that one foolish decision had the potential to irreparably damage this valuable friendship. Although the conflict was ultimately resolved, and the friend forgave me, the feeling of uncertainly beforehand was gut-wrenching. I was horrified by what I…
One Step to Revive Contemplative Life
Catholic News Agency published an article stating that in the wake of monasteries closing left and right in Spain, Cardinal João Braz de Aviz, the head of the Vatican’s congregation on consecrated life, insists that contemplative life will not go away: “we need contemplative life as we need food and water to live.” While I…
Rather than Interfaith Prayer, Why Not Rogation Days?
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues deep into May, the majority of Catholics in Western society are still without public Masses. Some Catholics are without any sacraments at all, depending on the diocese. On May 14, the Pope Francis called all Catholics to a day of fasting and prayer to end the coronavirus. Surely, this is…
Coronavirus, Communists, and Our Lady of China
It’s sad to think of Chinese-Americans feeling stigmatized as a result of the coronavirus. One survey shows a majority of Americans have lost respect and trust for China in recent months. Of course Chinese Americans had nothing to do with the virus or its spread, and no one finds fault with individual Chinese people living…
Active Participation: ‘Actuosa’ and Subverting the Law of Prayer
Let us consider an intriguing dilemma that has occupied the minds of all involved in the Liturgical Movement since its beginning: the novel principle of active participation (participatio actuosa), which Vatican II’s Constitution on the Liturgy promoted as “the aim to be achieved before all else.” It all started with Dom Lambert Beauduin’s accusation that the…
What Fulton Sheen Did When Churches Were Closed
I remember my utter shock and disbelief when our diocese closed all the churches. It seemed like an impossibility (and still does) that there would be no sacraments available to the laity. How does this make sense? In the time of global pandemic and such fear and uncertainty, the sacraments are what we seem to…
On Keeping to Arduous Paths and Leaving Satan Behind
I have developed an affection for a verse in Psalm 16: Propter verba labiorum tuorum ego custodivi vias duras, “On account of the words of Thy lips, I have kept the arduous paths” (Ps. 16:4). King David, to whom these words are attributed, knew what it was like to keep to arduous paths. At the…