To understand Catholicism, you need to get Italy…
If you were an American Catholic who carved out space midday Friday to watch Pope Francis lead the traditional Christmas Eve Mass, you may have tripped over a section of his homily in which, seemingly out of a clear blue sky, he brought up workplace safety and issued the cry, “On the day of Life, […]
Christmas is full of paradoxes. Here are 12 examples…..
In the ancient Church and up until rather recently, one genuflected at the two references to the Incarnation during the Mass: during the Creed and in the Last Gospel (John 1). Why was this done? It was explained to me that the mystery of the Incarnation is so deep, one can only fall in silent […]
Is it still Christmas? The octave, the 12 days, and what you need to know…
Christmas is December 25, right? Or maybe it’s an eight-day celebration — something called an “octave?” But aren’t there 12 days of Christmas? Yes. The answer to each of those questions is “yes.” When Catholics talk about “Christmas,” they mean more than one thing — actually they mean several overlapping things. And, well, if you’re […]
Love and marriage (and sex), our Christmas specials, and Cardinal Cupich’s crackdown on the Latin Mass…
Cardinal Blase Cupich, issued on Christmas Day a policy that restricts the Extraordinary Form in the Archdiocese of Chicago beyond most expectations, in the name of the ecclesial unity. The cardinal’s policy will require parishes or groups normally celebrating the Extraordinary Form to celebrate the Ordinary Form of the Mass at least once monthly, and […]
On the Feast of the Holy Innocents, there’s something we have to make clear…
Last year, both Father James Martin and papal biographer Austen Ivereigh took the occasion of the feast to tweet about immigration. Using the Holy Family’s Flight into Egypt as their hook, they tried to refocus the feast to the plight of refugees. There’s a grain of truth to that argument: the Holy Family had to […]
Yes, Herod’s slaughter of the Holy Innocents really happened, and here is the historical evidence…..
On Dec. 28, the Church commemorates the slaughter of the holy innocents. These are the baby boys in Bethlehem that Herod the Great had slaughtered in an attempt to kill the Baby Jesus. But many people today challenge the idea that this ever took place. “We have no record of it!” they say. Actually, we […]
Cardinal Cupich Issues New Restrictions on Traditional Latin Masses…
Cardinal Blase Cupich has issued a new policy for the Archdiocese of Chicago that curtails the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass and other sacraments in Latin using liturgical books that pre-Vatican II. Under the policy, which takes effect Jan. 25, priests, deacons, and ordained ministers who wish to use the “old rite” must submit […]
United States: Catholic Healthcare Establishments in Danger
Upon his appointment, in March 2021, to the post of Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), various Catholic media expressed alarm at the arrival of Xavier Becerra in a highly sensitive post affecting questions relating to the right to life. It must be said that the former attorney general of California had filed, between […]
Moscow Patriarchate Signs Death Certificate for Conciliar Ecumenism
The number two of the Russian Orthodox Church reacted, on December 12, 2021, on the Rossiya-24 channel, to the remarks made, on December 6, by Pope Francis on the plane back from Greece to Rome. The Sovereign Pontiff then declared: “I am ready to go to Moscow… My meeting with Patriarch Kirill is on the […]
Pope asks pontifical council to begin planning Holy Year 2025
ROME — Preparations for the Holy Year 2025 have already begun, and Pope Francis has asked the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization to take charge of the efforts. In a brief note Dec. 26, the Vatican press office said Archbishop Rino Fisichella, president of the pontifical council, already has had meetings with officials of […]