It is once again that time of year that the late Ray Bradbury famously dubbed “the October Country.” The waning of the year brings to more temperate regions the closure of harvest, the falling leaves, and the preparation for the succession of holidays that close and open each year in every country. Just as regularly…
Every year, as a teacher, when Halloween approaches, I have struggled to thoroughly answer the question, “What do you think of Halloween?” Every year, then, I would research the traditions and history of Halloween and get closer to providing a more complete answer. My wayward youth of enjoying Halloween for evil purposes, which was tied to…
And in the end of the sabbath, when it began to dawn towards the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalen and the other Mary, to see the sepulchre. And behold there was a great earthquake. For an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and coming, rolled back the stone, and sat upon…
Today is Holy Thursday, also known colloquially as “Maundy Thursday,” which begins the Easter Triduum. What does “Maundy” mean? It’s a derivative of the language used in the “new commandment” given by Christ as he washed the feet of the apostles at the Last Supper. “Maundy” comes from “Mandatum” in the expression, “Mandatum novum do…
Imagine you’re in a movie theater watching the latest blockbuster, thoroughly captivated by the plots and subplots, the beautiful faces and lush scenery as the movie progresses inexorably toward its climax. Your cell phone alerts you to an incoming call. (Of course, you silenced the ringer before the movie began.) Much as you hate the…
Author’s note: there are many legends and stories of St. Patrick. In an attempt to view the saint from a different perspective, I offer a reflection on one of the most significant events in the life of the “Apostle to the Irish” as a creative non-fiction short story. The following is based on actual accounts…
If you’re a Catholic, you’ve probably seen it: a mysterious series of letters and numbers, looking for all the world like an equation, inscribed in chalk over a doorway at your parish, or at the home of a friend. Maybe you thought you could figure it out. Maybe you were too embarrassed to ask, “What…
The Feast of the Lord’s Epiphany is traditionally observed on the twelfth day of Christmas, January 6th.1 In the universal law of the Latin Church, Epiphany is a holy day of obligation (can. 1246); the same law gives to conferences of bishops (with the approval of the Holy See) the right to abolish certain holy…
Image: Massacre of the Innocents, Peter Paul Rubens Memento mori: remember death. The last vestiges of colorful wrapping paper have not yet been whisked away by the garbage men. There is still leftover rib roast in the fridge. We have only just begun the octave of celebration of the Incarnation, the birth of the Christ child,…
From all of us at OnePeterFive, we wish you a Merry, blessed, and grace-filled Christmas and God’s abundant blessings in the new year!
There’s something rarely heard about the commercialization of Christmas. On the one hand, I can forgive the neo-pagan Marxists for the suppression of Christ—they know not what they do. On the other hand, Catholics, who should know better, have in recent decades anesthetized the Incarnation so as to empty it of all physical reality. The…
Please help us to meet our expenses by donating today!
