Sidebar
Browse Our Articles & Podcasts

The Poor Need Real Mercy, Not a Marxist Fantasy

“Naïve and immature people have a great passion to ‘serve humanity,’ but they cannot bear to serve a human being standing right in front of them.” This adage was given to me by a wise man who pithily summed up the pervasive folly of our age, and indeed several centuries of modernity. The bloodshed wrought … Read more

Music for Catholics: Henryk Górecki’s Opus for Instruments

When introducing the instrumental works of a composer to a musically untrained audience, a bit of trepidation naturally sets in. Tastes in music are often entrenched and become even more so where instrumental music is concerned. People are naturally more responsive to the sound of the human voice in music, while the modern era of … Read more

The Church’s Abandonment on the Cross

Having devoured many spiritual classics from the desert fathers to St. Augustine during my two and half years as a Benedictine monk before discerning out, one idea struck me above the rest. An author, whose name escapes me, prophetically proclaimed that the Catholic Church must undergo everything our Lord has gone through. On a personal … Read more

In the Midst of Eastertide, Lent Continues for Us

Due to the explosion of the Tambora volcano in 1815, we had a year without summer, for the atmosphere was filled with sunlight-inhibiting dust. This year we had a year without Easter, another gift from the Far East, but it is impossible to miss that although it began much earlier in China, in the West, … Read more

Suffering and Joy in Bleak and Dangerous Times

If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. Our hope for you is unshaken; for we know that as share in our sufferings, you will also share in our … Read more

Danger to Catholics during the Coronavirus Panic

As the COVID-19, Chinese communist, Wuhan coronavirus pandemic (pick your modifier) crisis continues, faithful Catholics from all sides have divided on the issue. The spectrum of opinions ranges from those faithful Catholics taking the virus very seriously and advocating for great caution to those other faithful Catholics dismissing the whole thing as an overblown and … Read more

In These Ominous Days, Benedict Must Speak

I begin by recounting a magnificently horrible tale from the Church’s past: the exploits of the iniquitous Pope Stephen VI. It speaks to corruption, power, and the extent one is willing to go to “undertake” macabre vengeance. Briefly, the notorious Stephen VI, soon after his election in 896 A.D., had the rotting corpse of his … Read more

Finding the Jewel in a Mountain of Gray

Publisher’s note: I’ve maintained a consistent public editorial line over the past month that the most prudent course of action in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic is to follow the recommendations on social distancing, even to the point of being supportive of a temporary suspension of public Masses. I have argued in favor of the … Read more

Music for Catholics: Rediscovering Henryk Górecki

There is a select group of composers who seemed to anticipate and ultimately embody John Paul II’s Letter to Artists, somehow also achieving great international prominence and influence despite their industry’s general hostility to all things Christian. They prove that a vital Christian musical art was possible even in the age where most subscribed to … Read more

Friday Roundup – March 27, 2020 Edition

Well, the world has had its eyes fixed on the coronavirus pandemic and all things related for yet another week. But there are some other stories of note — not all directly virus related — that have come out over the past few days, and I wanted to bring them to your attention.   Meat … Read more

Popular on OnePeterFive