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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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Saint Benedict Center, Richmond

The original Saint Benedict Center was in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and flourished in the 1940s and 50s. The founders relocated to Harvard (Still River) Massachusetts in 1958. In 1988, Brother Francis, Sister Marie Louise, and a handful of other religious moved from Bolton, Massachusetts to found Saint Benedict Center in Richmond, New Hampshire. The Center in Richmond is made up of a monastery of men, and convent of women, a school, and a chapel where the traditional rites of the Church are offered. It serves as the religious and cultural center of a Catholic community in the area.

The pieces in this section pertain to our work in and from Richmond.

We will tell the history of the Center in a question-and-answer format.

How did Saint Benedict Center begin?
In 1940, a prominent Catholic laywoman, Catherine Goddard Clarke, sought permission of the then Archbishop of Boston, William Cardinal O’Connell, to establish an educational oasis of Catholic truth close to the renowned secular universities that dominated the area. The cardinal agreed to the project, admonishing Mrs. Clarke to “teach the Faith without compromise.” So it was that Saint Benedict Center quietly came into existence that year at the intersection of Bow and Arrow Streets in Harvard Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts. Read More »

For this Ad Rem, I would like to share with our readers a brief gem that we hope to publish soon as part of a larger work. But before doing that, I will recall something more fundamental. And in so doing, I will reveal the “setting” of this gem.

Speaking of the work of Saint Benedict Center and the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Brother Francis often said, “We are three things at once: a crusade, a religious order, and a school of thought.” Usually, he would embellish this utterance with little summaries of each of the three. By crusade, he meant our two-fold apostolate for the conversion of America and the restoration of doctrinal sanity, beginning with that very fundamental dogma, extra ecclesiam nulla salus. Read More »

As we mourn the loss of a great man, our Superior, Brother Francis Maluf, M.I.C.M., we are pledged to promoting his life’s work for the Catholic Faith, sound reason, and holy beauty. This poet, philosopher and Catholic thinker’s work can be found not only in his few books, but also in his many recorded lectures, which are much applauded and loved by listeners the world over. Too, readers can browse his articles and poems on this web site.  Read More »

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It is certainly my pleasure to be a part of this tribute to our wonderful teacher.  I’m sure I speak for all in saying that we know the one, true Faith better because of him.  And for that we are all deeply grateful.

You may wonder why it is that I am up here speaking on this wonderful occasion.  Well, I’ve been wondering about that too.  I’ve come up with a possible answer.  It is that I was chosen because I’m the only person in this room — other than Brother himself — who has ever been to Lebanon. Read More »

The obsequies of our beloved Brother Francis were an appropriate finale to his long and fruitful life in this tearful vale. This Ad Rem is a series of more-or-less random reflections on Brother’s wake and funeral, followed by a photo gallery of the same.

There is nothing in this world so sublime as the Church’s liturgy. The reason is simple. While Catholic liturgical rites take place in this world, they are not of this world. They not only represent, but effect a singularly supernal reality. In the Church’s liturgy, heaven is come down to earth so that we Christians may have conversation there (cf. Phil 3:20), rendering worthy homage to the Father through His Son, and in the unity of Their Spirit. Read More »

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(This posting was originally published on the IHM School Site.)

In the early morning of December 12, 2008, southwestern New Hampshire and a large section of Massachusetts lost power due to a devastating ice storm. The tops of trees snapped off, branches broke, entire trees were uprooted (one narrowly missing two of the Brothers). Read More »

Nov 18
Brother André Marie

An Interview with Myself

by Brother André MarieNovember 18th, 2008

Today, the Feast of the Dedication of the Basilicas of Saints Peter and Paul, there is an interview with me published on the Renew America web site. Brian Mershon, a traditional Catholic journalist interviewed me several months ago, and this is the result:

One year later…the forgotten document: A reaffirmation of the one true Church of Jesus Christ
An interview with Brother Andre Marie of the St. Benedict Center
Read More »

Street Address:

Saint Benedict Center
95 Fay Martin Road,
Richmond, N.H. 03470

(With Map)

Read More »

Besides reading the fine articles available on this web site, what do you do to form your mind in a Catholic way? Here’s an idea: Join the Saint Augustine Institute of Catholic Studies! Read More »

“Sentimental Theology Revisited” is an article published in issue #32 of From the Housetops (this issue is unfortunately out of print), discussing Brother Francis’ article, “Sentimental Theology” and its significance to the Crusade of Saint Benedict Center. Read More »