Finding the Church in a Bach Fugue
Many of you have likely read the classic description of the Church from the 1951 novel Dan England and the Noonday Devil, by Myles Connolly. It is a wonderful reminder that the Church is not an institution, but a Body, made up of members who, each in his own unique way, give witness to the […]
Heaven is an Acquired Taste
There is a tendency today to forget that Heaven is an acquired taste; not everyone wants what God offers. While everyone wants to be happy, often happiness is conceived of in an egocentric way. Heaven is thought of as a personally designed paradise where we will be happy on our own terms. But that is […]
Give Me Jesus – A Sermon for the 17th Sunday of the Year
The Gospel today asks a fundamental question: “What is it that you value most?” In other words, He’s asking us what we want most. We tend to answer questions like this the way we think we should, rather than genuinely. When we’re with the doctor (and Jesus is our doctor) our best bet is to […]
The Power of Repentance to Rewrite the Record
This animated short contrasts the consuming quality of envy, anger, and hate with the overwhelming power of love and forgiveness. It also depicts the possibility of repentance upon recognizing the damage caused. In the video, a little girl’s written resentments of her older sister spring forth from her diary to wreak their havoc. Witnessing the […]
What Does It Mean to Trust God? Maybe Not What You Think
We are often told to trust in God, and many of us have counseled others who are anxious or downcast to do so. But what does that mean? In some cases, when people give this counsel they mean this: Don’t worry, God will eventually give you what want. God will come around to your way […]
Three Characteristics of the Diabolic That Are Widely Evident Today
The video at the bottom of this post is of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen. It is a fascinating excerpt from a longer presentation he did. In it, he analyzes the diabolic (anything of or relating to the Devil) from several different perspectives. Archbishop Sheen identifies three characteristics of the diabolic by examining the story of […]
Suffering for the Gospel: Pondering a Picture of Apostolic Times
Writing as I am on the Feast of Saint James, likely the first Apostle to be martyred, I’d like to ponder the kinds of sufferings the Apostles endured in order to announce the Gospel and win souls for Christ. In the “softer” Church of the declining West, it is hard for us even to imagine. […]
Does God Harden Human Hearts?
One of the more difficult biblical themes to understand is that of God hardening the hearts and minds of certain people. The most memorable case is that of Pharaoh. Before sending Moses to him, God said that He would “harden Pharaoh’s heart” (Ex 4:21). There are other instances in which biblical texts speak of God […]
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