Blog of the Archdiocese of Washington
Recently I have found a persistent line of questioning in reference to the traditional understanding of the Lord’s promise to the Church: the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it (Matt 16:18) . Yesterday on the blog a reader stated the question quite well: This is just a curiosity question, but why is it …
Some recent data available over at the CARA Blog presents a sober picture for the Church in the decade ahead. I have long suspected that the 25% of Catholics who attend Mass today was a number that is going to drop quickly, as the last generation to be widely taught that missing Mass is a …
Continue reading “A Recent Look at the Numbers Says it’s Time for Some Unvarnished Truth”
There is wide interest today in the topic of exorcism. The publication a couple of years of the The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exorcist by Matt Baglio, and the subsequent movie and interviews with Fr. Gary Thomas have sparked some of this interest. Prior to this other books such as An Exorcist Tells …
Susan Jacoby, an author and atheist wrote a column in last Sunday’s New York Times entitled “The Blessings of Atheism.” In it she proposes that atheism has a lot to offer, especially in times of tragic loss and that it frees human beings from having to ask and answer difficult question. As you may imagine, …
Continue reading “Answering an Atheist and Asking for Fairness and Accuracy”
In the ancient Church, and until rather recently, we genuflected at the two references to the incarnation in the Mass: at the Creed and at the Last Gospel (John 1). Why did we do this? It was explained to me that the mystery was so deep that one could only fall in silent reverence. There …
As the feast of Christmas approaches some reflection on the Motherhood of Mary seems appropriate. As mother to Jesus she has carried him in her womb some nine months now, and the time approaches when she will give birth to him, will show him to the world. In this, she is not only his mother, …
Continue reading “On the Tender Motherhood of Mary, Mother of God and my Mother Too”
Along with many of you, I am reading Pope Benedict’s latest book, volume 3 of Jesus of Nazareth, on the infancy narratives. I was very moved at a very brief reflection that he made on Mary, as the Angel Gabriel left her. His remarks consider on her faith in a very touching manner. I must …
Late last week on the blog the I made mention of the sins that “cry to heaven for vengeance.” The traditional list, is summarized in the Catechism which states The catechetical tradition also recalls that there are “sins that cry to heaven”: the blood of Abel, the sin of the Sodomites, the cry of the …
Continue reading “The Sin of Sodom and Gomorrah is not about “Hospitality””