by Victor Fuentes “And he said to them: Go ye into the whole world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” Mark 16:15, DRV For any student, the college years are a time of growth. For most, this is the first time they leave home, independent of parental influence. Many flock to a variety of…
Editor’s Note: by way of a colleague and friend in Italy, we received the following translation for publication. It is a commentary on the much-discussed 2020 Vatican Nativity Scene. Translator’s Note: Vittorio Sgarbi is a very well-known figure in Italian public life, who has served in several political offices, including the ministry in charge of…
Advent always reminds me of my Novus Ordo red pill moment. Years ago I discovered three texts around Advent that finally pushed me over the edge. The first was the collect for St. Nicholas. This prayer petitions God, through the intercession of St. Nicholas to save us “from the flames of hell.” This was censored…
One of the greatest musicians in the history of mankind, and certainly among the greatest composers of the Western European tradition, Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827), was baptized 250 years ago on December 17, 1770. It is fitting on such a momentous anniversary to offer readers a brief overview of his life and work, highlighting several…
“Get ready for a better world,” shouts a slogan from a children’s theme park which first came out some years ago. The park, as described in Dr. Anthony Esolen’s illuminating book, Life Under Compulsion, is a dream world where children can pretend to be adults. Not, mind you, in the normal manner one might see…
Tomorrow marks 250 years since the baptism of the great German composer, considered the last of the Classics and the first of the Romantics: Ludwig van Beethoven (Bonn 1770 – Vienna 1827). Retracing his life as a man and artist, through his family, economic and character problems, the seriousness of his training and his artistic…
The infamous “mystery clause” penned by Justice Anthony Kennedy in the majority opinion of Planned Parenthood v Casey (1992) succinctly summarizes the modernist precept. “At the heart of liberty is the right to define one’s own concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life.” Kennedy’s definition of liberty…
A few days after the election, an old college acquaintance wrote me – as “a brother in Christ” – to express his concerns that I was not using my online influence to expose evil, and to “spread the Gospel.” I appreciated the gesture (and still do). But, I was also flummoxed, since I had not…
This morning, at the Catholic Herald, in a piece about laicization of priests as a means of avoiding canonical trial, Chris Altieri sets his sights on Peter Mitchell, a former priest of the Dioceses of Green Bay, Wisconsin, and Lincoln Nebraska. Altieri says that Mitchell was laicized following an investigation that involved “five discrete charges…some…
We knew, over a month ago, that it was coming. It hardly softened the blow to see it. The Vatican Nativity scene for 2020 is…well, it’s horrifyingly ugly. This year’s #Vatican Nativity scene, revealed tonight, comes from a town in the Abruzzi region of Italy famous for its ceramics. Its creators say it’s meant to have…
The other day, as I was scrolling through social media, I saw a headline that caught my eye. “China is harvesting thousands of human organs from its Uighur Muslim minority, UN human-rights body hears.” The first thing I did was look at the source. I know the kind of wicked cruelty China is capable of,…
