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Comparing First Holy Communion at Two Parishes
Recently, my grandson Thomas received his first Holy Communion at a parish I have visited only a few times. My wife and I assist at Mass at a different parish, in part because it offers the traditional Latin Mass. The …
New Motu Proprio on Clerical Sex Abuse Raises Standards, But Questions Remain
A new papal motu proprio letter, Vos Estis Lux Mundi, makes some important changes to the way the Vatican handles clerical sexual abuse. The plan, promulgated today, goes into effect on June 1, 2019. “The crimes of sexual abuse,” the …
When Creeping Normalcy Bias Protects a Chaotic Pope
Reactions to the Open Letter accusing Pope Francis of holding seven heretical propositions — a letter that now bears the signatures of 81 clergy, religious, and scholars — have ranged from strong support (Zmirak, Coulombe, Verrecchio) to sympathetic critiques (Lawler, …
Guilty or Not Guilty? Withhold Judgment in Abuse Cases
We are in the midst of the Easter season: He is Risen, alleluia, alleluia! We read in the book of the Apocalypse that Jesus Christ is “the first and the last” (22:13). Indeed, He is first in the eternal sense, …
How a Bully Pushed Me to the Front Lines of the Pro-Life Movement
Is it possible to take private beliefs a step further when you’re 63, a bit shy, and have a head full of gray hair? Is it possible to protest in front of an abortion clinic and actually save a life …
How to Become a Great, Wonderworking, Levitating, Bilocating, Ecstatic-Vision-Having Saint
Sanctification: Neither as easy nor as impractical as we think Many people are wondering how to handle the current crisis in the Church, what they can do in practical terms, in a situation that seems increasingly apocalyptic and completely out …
My First Experience of a Pre-1955 Holy Triduum
Recently, I bumped into a friend who expressed her surprise that this year was the first time I had ever attended the pre-1955 (i.e., ancient or unreformed) Holy Week liturgies. She was under the impression that someone who travels, reads, …
Catholic Scholars Accuse Pope Francis of “the Canonical Delict of Heresy”
In the seemingly interminable war between Catholics and Pope Francis, another salvo has been fired. This time, it lands a bit closer to the target. In a 20-page open letter addressed not to the pope, but to the bishops of the …
The Fight against Clericalism Takes a Dangerous Turn
“Clericalism” has been a favorite buzzword of Pope Francis almost since the inception of his pontificate. He wields it like a Swiss army knife, applying it to every problem he doesn’t have a sufficient alternative explanation for. (There’s also not a little …
A Brief Update on the Open Letter on Papal Heresy
There have been a number of developments on the Open Letter accusing the pope of heresy since I first summarized it in this space on April 30. The first of these is that the number of scholars who have signed it …
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