Blog of the Archdiocese of Washington
I was reminded recently of one of my favorite hymns as I read the first reading at Mass. In particular these lines stood out: [An] angel came out of the temple, crying out in a loud voice to the one sitting on the cloud [Jesus], “Use your sickle and reap the harvest, for the time …
Continue reading “The Biblical roots of the Battle Hymn of the Republic.”
I was reminded today of one of my favorite hymns as I read the first reading from today’s Mass. In particular these lines stood out: [An] angel came out of the temple, crying out in a loud voice to the one sitting on the cloud [Jesus], “Use your sickle and reap the harvest, for the …
Continue reading “The Battle Hymn of the Republic as Bible Hymn of the Republic”
There is a lesser known hymn, at least in Catholic circles, that is remarkably appropriate for our times. It challenges us to see the choice before us soberly, and encourages us with the fact that the victory is already ours if we choose Christ Jesus. In times like these we need courage and conviction; this …
Continue reading “A Summons to Courage and a Reminder of Victory in an Old Hymn”
There is a lesser known hymn, at least in Catholic circles, which is remarkably fit for our times since it both challenges us to soberly see the choice before us and also encourages us that the victory is already our if we choose Christ Jesus. I would like to present the verses of the hymn …
Continue reading “A Summons to Courage and a Reminder of Victory in an Old Hymn”
One of the Gospels from last week’s daily masses (Luke 12:1–7) opens up some important insights on the “problem of pretending” in the Christian life. One of the problems in getting to this insight of the Lord, is the understanding we have today of the word hypocrisy. To some extent, we have lost the more …
Continue reading “On the problem of pretending in the Christian life, and its solution.”
Last week in the blog I penned what was intended as a humorous post based on a video which asked: Is the Church a Cruise Ship or a Battleship? The video rather humorously depicts how many people want their parish to be like a cruise ship: comfortable, pleasant, with a popular captain and crew, fundamentally existing …
Continue reading “In Defense of the Use of Military Imagery in the Church”