In an article in the Corriere della Sera of August 28 2021, Ernesto Galli della Loggia poses the following question: Are our societies still capable of waging war? Of bearing psychologically the terrible impact of a, so to speak, voluntary dimension of death? Are we still capable of accepting the possibility of knowingly giving or…
For more than 1000 years (610-1700), the sword of Muhammad has fought with Christendom. The sword struck within Christendom after the Muhammadans conquered the Christian Middle East and North Africa in the 7th century. Over the years the crushing blasphemy of the shahada against the Nicene Creed (blasted five times daily by the muezzin) weighed…
Ex umbris et imaginibus in veritatem“From shadows and images into truth”1Blessed John Henry Newman’s memorial epitaph Although many years ago now, I recall the young, eyebrow-pierced woman who told me, with no hint of embarrassment or regret, “I used to be Catholic, but now I’m pagan.” She did not say that she struggled with faith…
I set off a year ago from London in a 20-foot racing sloop declaring — half jokingly — that I would reach Constantinople and liberate it from the Saracen. I am now sitting in a bar in Catalonia, and my chief concern is that the battle will be over before I can unleash my wrath…
It was Mark Twain who, albeit tritely, said it best: “history doesn’t repeat itself, but it sure does rhyme.” Spectators from all sides of the Pachamama controversy, whether they be Catholic or apostate idol-worshipers, might be interested to learn that this is not the first time such a situation has been contested within the Church.…
Our Lord Himself, His apostles, and the first evangelists frequently make use of the prophetic witnesses in the O.T. Scriptures in their arguments and their preaching. Thus, Our Lord taught the Pharisees — who considered the Messiah to be only a human king, instead of the divine Son of God and Lord of David —…
“It’s very difficult for us to recapture people’s motivations for carrying out this practice[.] … Perhaps it was out of … a sense that the good the sacrifice could bring the family or community as a whole outweighed the life of the child.” —Dr. Josephine Quinn, on Carthaginian ritual infant sacrifice “The reasons and need…
Since the Fall of Man, men and women have been locked in a contest of power. Instead of the order of humility and charity created by God, Adam and Eve chose pride and rebellion against God and each other. Pride produces a contest of power because pride cannot be satisfied unless it obtains more power…
You see a lot of strange words now in Catholic circles. Words that you would never before have associated with the word “Catholic,” like “shaman” and “cosmos” and “integral ecology.” All having to do with the recent Amazon Synod. You have to wonder: what would such an “inculturated” church even look like? And what about…
Professor Richard Dawkins’s latest book is entitled Outgrowing God: A Beginner’s Guide. It is divided into two parts, the first being, after a fashion, theological, and the second claiming to be biological and scientific. In the theological section, the author presents his philosophical, theological, and moral arguments against the existence, justice, and goodness of God;…
As a 1998 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, I regularly get messages from classmates during the football season following a good win or a painful loss. This year’s poor performance against Notre Dame elicited the expected string of angry or bewildered texts, though Navy will still be favored over Army in this year’s edition…
