On Dec. 21st, 2020, Pope Francis made his annual Christmas address to the Roman Curia in which he contrasts the concept of crisis with that of conflict. He also called for a year long study of Amoris Laetitia. This article is a partial response to the pope’s address. “Jesus, you really do love your…
Editor’s Note: In light of the news that Pope Francis has changed canon law to accommodate official women “lectors” and “acolytes,” we are re-publishing this article, which originally appeared here on July 17, 2015. In many contemporary debates concerning the priesthood, one rarely hears a genuinely theological account of what makes a priest a priest.…
Back around the turn of the millennium, I was invited one day to sing for the first time the Mass of the Dedication of a Church (Introit: Terribilis est locus iste), at a solemn Mass on the anniversary of a parish run by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter. It was the first time I…
Today Steve reviews what happened in Washington DC yesterday with the storming of the U.S. Capitol, and offers some thoughts on what we’ve seen since November 3rd, and what comes next. VIDEO: AUDIO ONLY: [powerpress] RELATED LINKS: Backdoor Santa – Cocktail Recipe (I recommend Bulleit Rye for this one; gives a nice brightness to the…
I’ve spent most of the afternoon on social media, looking over reports about the protest that turned into a break-in at the US Capitol. Government officials had to be evacuated. One young woman was shot in the neck, and appeared to be in very bad condition. There is an enormous amount of speculation going on…
The Feast of the Lord’s Epiphany is traditionally observed on the twelfth day of Christmas, January 6th. On that day, the Church recalls Jesus Christ’s epiphany, or manifestation, to the Gentiles, represented by the Magi. God had been preparing the human race for this event ever since Adam’s fall from grace. The Israelites had their…
When my alarm went off at 3:15 on a Saturday morning, I briefly questioned my own sanity. I had promised my seven youngest children, ages 14 years to 7 months, that I would bring them to a pre-dawn Rorate Caeli Mass – a sung Latin Mass that takes place during Advent and honors Our Lady. …
I’ve written before about the rather significant indications that Pope Francis is a religious indifferentist, and why that’s a bad thing. Regular readers will require no additional explanation. In fact, most of us are absolutely sick to death of talking about him. He’s bad, we know it, and there’s not much we can do about…
Background: A few years ago, a friend graciously asked me for permission to nominate me for a one-year visiting professorship at a Catholic College which was beginning a study of bias (as the focus for that professor’s teaching and research). I thanked my colleague but declined the nomination. I then wrote to the President of…
An acquaintance of mine was once distraught upon learning that I celebrated Easter. From his reactions, it followed that he saw proclaiming the truth of Christianity as inseparable from a colonialist mindset and an implicit Western supremacism disparaging other religions and cultures. In other words, he considered my public affirmation that Jesus Christ has truly…
Much has been said of a United States Catholic Bishop committee releasing a guide titled Catholic Hymnody at the Service of the Church. The guide has received cautious praise from Catholics, for it tackles many of the problems with post-Vatican II hymns (finally, we can at least agree that heresy in a hymn is indeed…
