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The Innate Qualities of the Child

Father Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, O.P. (1877-1964) was one of the greatest theologians of modern times. He was a staunch anti-modernist, who engaged and exposed the twerpy upstarts responsible for the neo-modernist Nouvelle Théologie (”New Theology”). Much more than a controversialist, the Dominican Friar could write of the deepest spiritual truths with a relish and lucidity that make his theology engaging to study.

In a series of three Ad Rem, I purpose to present his thoughts on “spiritual childhood.”

by Brother André Marie March 11th, 2010

‘England should be a Catholic country again’


Brother André Marie

That’s the motion that was debated last week in London, at an event hosted by the Spectator and held at the Royal Geographical Society. And guess what — “the 700-strong sell-out audience voted overwhelmingly in favour of the motion”!

Excerpt from The Catholic Herald:

Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, author Piers Paul Read and Dom Anthony Sutch, former headmaster of Downside, spoke for the motion.


No Way to Anime


Brian Kelly

Anime cartoons and their characters are a huge cultic phenomenon, the most popular of all escapist media venues. It is very addictive and very dangerous, to the soul and the mind. I don’t post weird stories, but this blog by Zoe Romanowski from Inside Catholic, along with another, even …


CDF Prefect Affirms: ‘Union with the Catholic Church is the goal of ecumenism’


Brother André Marie

One of the commentators on the relevant CWN article expressed it well: “It’s past time someone said this. Too often ecumenism is taken to mean the weakening of the teachings of the Church and the addition of non-Catholic ritual and beliefs.” A-m-e-n-!

Past time is better than no time — or, “better late than never.” All the scandal that has transpired, and is ongoing, in the name of ecumenism and inter-religious dialogue should cease at these words of Cardinal Levada defining its purpose (or “final cause” to you Aristotelians out there): “Union with the Catholic Church is the goal of ecumenism.”


2010 Saint Benedict Center Conference


The Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Our 2010 conference will be held on October 8 and 9 at Saint Benedict Center in Richmond, New Hampshire.

The information currently available is as follows:

Theme: “The Romance of Wisdom”

Cost: $100 for both days (Friday and Saturday). This includes meals. Single days without meals: $40.

Note: This year, Friday and Saturday will both be full days. There will be eight speakers giving presentations in addition to the master of ceremonies, our Prior, Brother Andre Marie.


Why Buddhism Is Open to Suicide


Brian Kelly

Archbishop Alberto Bottari de Castello, apostolic nuncio to Japan, has a very perceptive insight into the subversive effects Buddhist doctrine  has on the soul of a suffering devotee confronting hopelessness.  From Sandro Magister’s latest column: “Why Life is Worth So Little in Prosperous Japan.”

“The Japanese do not have a personal …


Is the False Apparition in Medjugorje Finally to Be Condemned?


The Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

[March 5, 2010 - Rome Reports (with hat tip to Rorate Caeli)]

Benedict XVI has formed a commission to investigate if Our Lady truly appeared in Medjugorje, a small town in Bosnia.

The commission is part of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and Cardinal Camillo Ruini will preside over the commission. Ruini is the pope’s former vicar of Rome’s diocese. Ruini goal will be to explain to the pope what’s happening at the sanctuary which has become the third most visited in Europe.

Allegedly, at least 6 people have witnessed the Virgins apparitions there since 1981.


Yet Another Defense of Pius XII


Brother André Marie

When the enemies of the Church, the enemies of Christianity in general, and those who want to “hold” the Catholic hierarchy’s “feet to the fire” constantly jabber about Pius XII’s supposed complicity in the Nazi murder of Jews, it becomes necessary to defend the truth as well as the honor of the Holy Father. He was, after all, not only innocent of the crime of which he stands accused by an angry mob, but was also proactive in the protection of innocent Jews. That’s history. Catholics have a particular duty to defend the Church’s honor, but even secular historians of the era ought to vindicate Pius XII, if only to protect the integrity of their science.


The ‘Woman’ of Genesis


Brian Kelly

In changing the traditional Douay-Rheims rendering of Genesis 3:15 from “I will put enmities between thee and the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel” to the Catholic Revised Standard Version translation (based on the King James Bible), “I will put enmities between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed: he shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel,” the scriptural foundation for the dogma of the Immaculate Conception is compromised. So, too, is the traditional doctrine concerning Our Lady’s essential role in salvation history, which has been translated into her more modern title of “Co-redemptrix.”


Iraq’s Dechristianization Continues


Brother André Marie

“The United Nations estimated that 683 Christians fled Mosul between February 20 and February 27. Chaldean Catholic Bishop Emil Shimoun Nona of Mosul estimated that ‘about 400 families’ had left the city’s community of 4,000 Christians.”

This disheartening data comes from an article in Catholic World News. The Iraqi Catholic bishops themselves are bemoaning the situation. But that’s not all they are doing; they are also praying, fasting, and organizing their people to protest peacefully. The facts are not to be denied, and they are not the “spin” of liberal news pundits trying to make a Republican effort look bad.


Manchester Bishop John B. McCormack to Lead Pilgrimage for Brother André’s Canonization


The Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Bishop John B. McCormack is inviting New Hampshire Catholics to join him on a pilgrimage to Rome and other Italian holy sites from October 15-25 in celebration of the canonization of Blessed Brother André Bessette.

Pope Benedict XVI recently announced that Blessed Brother André will be formally declared a saint at a ceremony in Saint Peter’s Square on October 17, 2010.

The pilgrimage will be organized by Canterbury Tours of Bedford, NH. It will also include visits to other Italian holy sites in Rome, Assisi, and Siena.


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Marriage and Family

Jesus elevated marriage to a sacrament. A sacrament is an outward sign instituted by Christ to give sanctifying grace. Therefore, in holy matrimony, husband and wife receive the grace appropriate to that state in life. Primarily this grace will help them in sanctifying each other and the children God sends them. It will give them strength to keep the bond of matrimony in sickness and in health, for better or for worse, in riches or poverty, in good times and bad, until death parts them.

In a good marriage the spouses must be open to life, which means that they should bring forth the fruit of children, and do nothing to frustrate conception. Herein lies another great grace that ordinarily comes with matrimony, namely that God will send a couple as many children as they can properly raise, if they cooperate with Him. It takes a strong act of Faith to firmly believe this in this materialistic age, in which economics trumps trust in the Creator.

Pope John Paul II often referred to the family as a “domestic church.” This is but another way of interpreting what Saint Paul meant when he was inspired to write these tremendous words to the Ephesians: “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ also loved the church, and delivered himself up for it” (5:25).

There is only one perfect family, the Holy Family of Nazareth. Meditating on the peace, charity, and industriousness, that Jesus, Mary, and Joseph exemplified in their domestic life will help the families of poor sinners who are trying against all odds to counter the evil influences of a godless society. When the hearth has been chilled by selfishness and technological idols, this sad state will by necessity be reflected in a cold and ruthless civic disorder.

Catholic News Service: Charity without justice is “only a forgery because charity requires that objectivity that is typical of justice and which must not be confused with inhumane coldness,” the pope said. Read full article here.

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In a manner of speaking, yes. American Life League’s Katie Walker explains:

A British researcher has added to the growing body of evidence showing the link between the birth control pill and the rise of the effeminate heartthrob.

Dr Alexandra Alvergne, of the University of Sheffield, says the hormones in the pill and other hormonal contraceptives suppress a woman’s interest in masculine men and make boyish men more attractive, reports the UK’s Daily Mail.

According to the theory, the Pill could contribute to the rising popularity of effeminate men in the last 40 years. Read More »

CNA reports:  Carlos Abarca visits his wife Erika Sotelo three times a day. She has been in a coma for the last fourteen years, after suffering complications during surgery at a hospital in Santiago. This devoted husband tells how his day-to-day life is with his wife and how in these difficult circumstances, his affection for her “is stronger than ever” and that he always “hopes for a miracle.”

This dramatic and moving case, in contrast with that of Eluana Englaro, who was killed in Italy after her father requested that her feeding tubes be removed, was made know by the Chilean daily El Mercurio.

How few parents realize the immense power they possess for moulding the character and shaping the future career of their children. The tiny babe just born to them comes from God’s hand with vast possibilities for good and evil; like the young forest tree, its soul may be trained to grow straight and beautiful, or bent and twisted, made horrible and deformed. Read More »

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Jun 5
Michael Hamilton

Courtship and Marriage

by Michael HamiltonJune 05th, 2009

Anyone who is contemplating marriage has a lot to think about, indeed.  However, there is one modern trend that should be avoided once you have determined that marriage is your vocation.  To explain this pitfall and how to overcome it, I introduce a phrase from philosophy. “The first in intention is the last in execution.” No, we are not talking about executing people as so many irreverent jokes concerning wives go. In this sense we use the word execution to mean: the result of an act performed, such as in, “The plan was sound; its execution, faulty.” Read More »

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The Temperament God Gave You: The Classic Key to Knowing Yourself, Getting Along with Others, and Growing Closer to the Lord, by Art and Laraine Bennett. Published by Sophia Press.

The four temperaments: “Catholic astrology” or solid science? In this easy-to-understand, fun to read and often humorous book by a husband and wife team, we learn much about the ancient concept of the four temperaments, how they are, in fact “solid science,” and how they affect our personalities and our interactions with everyone around us. Read More »

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Catholicism.org has recently published a few things on marriage, the editors being of the conviction that the restoration of the family is necessary for the restoration of the Church and the State. It’s good to see that there is an insightful piece on the subject in the last issue of Chronicles. In the article, “Moonstruck Morality Versus the Cosmos,” Father Barbour contrasts the original Vatican II schema on marriage  with the text the Council ultimately produced. The latter, he holds, is inferior. Read More »

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In the recent row over the Holy Father’s statements about birth control devices, it was made very apparent how much the world hates the Church’s moral magisterium. Even bishops, shepherds of Our Lord’s flock, went on record opposing the teachings of the Chief Shepherd of Christians. While I was considering this revolting set of circumstances, it struck me how closely these events tie into our Crusade to restore faith in the defined dogma, “no salvation outside the Church.” Read More »

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“Three things are too wonderful for me, yes, four I cannot understand: the way of an eagle in the air, the way of a serpent upon a rock, the way of a ship on the high seas, and the way of a man with a maiden” (Proverbs 30: 18-19).

The international furor recently caused by Pope Benedict’s true words about prophylactics shows how much of a religion sexual immorality can be. Abandoning science and right reason (along with Christian revelation and the natural law), the votaries of “safe sex,” show themselves to be Read More »

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(This was written in preparation for a series of conferences on vocations and states in life that I gave at Saint Benedict Center in the Spring of 2005. Please see the end of this piece for a small table of contents with links to the other conferences.)

Last week, we spoke about choosing a partner. Now, there are two aspects to choosing a partner. One is the choice of an ideal partner you would like. Read More »

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