Thoughts on listening, accompaniment, and synodality
In a 2017 interview, Vatican official Rodrigo Guerra López summarized the evangelical ideal behind Francis’s call for openness, dialog, listening, and accompaniment: Francis … lives under the premise of having an elementary sympathy with all people, […]
Send 2023 CHRISTMAS CARDS to Fr. Z!
I always enjoy your Christmas cards. The notes and letters which describe the year people have had are interesting and, often, moving. I read them all. And drawings by kids are great! I’ve included one below. If you would like … Read More →
Your Sunday Sermon Notes – 1st Sunday of Advent 2023
It’s the 1st Sunday of Advent. A new liturgical year begins. Was there a GOOD point made in the sermon you heard at your Sunday Mass of obligation? Share the good stuff. Quite a few people are forced to sit … Read More →
Daily Rome Shot 871
Photo by The Great Roman™ Welcome registrant: selZ79 Meanwhile, the 13th London Chess Classic is underway from 1-10 December. 10-player single round-robin with a classical time control. Nine super grandmasters. In other news, the dreaded MITTENS is back. Meanwhile, … Read More →
At Least On Sunday – 1st Sunday of Advent: When a door shuts…
Early on living in Rome I learned always to close doors so they latched and to block or latch windows, often the tall, vertical kind that meet in the middle. Why? Because when the wind is blowing, by opening a door in one area, the air flow changes, and – BAM! – a door or […]
Let the warmth of Advent pull the bleak midwinter from you
Christina Rosetti’s poem, In the Bleak Midwinter, is a Christmas classic. “In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan, Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone. . .” As Advent begins and the first wintry weather sets in, those words come to mind. As I write, today is such a day — gusty […]
The ‘Mediterranea’ NGO scandal is a reminder that a Pope’s friends can be as dangerous as his enemies…
Perhaps under the heading that no good deed ever goes unpunished, Pope Francis today finds himself dragged into a new controversy which, among other things, illustrates that even the very best of intentions have the potential to generate heartache. The case centers on an Italian non-governmental organization called “Mediterranea,” the head of which is a […]
Pope Francis on First Sunday of Advent: ‘I’m Improving, but My Voice Still Doesn’t Work’…
Pope Francis for the second consecutive Sunday was assisted by an aide in praying the Angelus as he continues to recover from an acute bronchial infection. “Even today I won’t be able to read everything: I’m improving, but my voice still doesn’t work,” the pope said during the Sunday morning broadcast on the first Sunday […]
Good Advent and Christmas Reads From EWTN
Shown: Books covers of, clockwise l to r, ‘Advent Reflections,’ ‘Rejoicing in Our Hope’ and ‘Mother Angelica on Christ and Our Lady’ For the reader who …
Looking for Advent Content to Add to Your To-Read List?
Interior page of ‘The Jesse Tree for Families’ The timely thoughts of a cardinal, to the Jesse Tree and EWTN resources.