Last week, I began what I intend to be a three-part study of the cardinal virtue of prudence using the insights of the German Catholic philosopher, Dr. Josef Pieper, with an eye to current events. There is a lot of … Continue reading
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The ‘Mother’ of Virtues as a Remedy to Pervasive Surrealism
German Catholic philosopher, Josef Pieper, had very much to say about the theological and moral virtues in a number of his writings. Of interest here are chapters in his 1964 collection of previously written studies, The Four Cardinal Virtues, wherein … Continue reading
Dystopian Fantasy versus Reality
The following is a brief speech I gave at IHM School’s graduation this past Sunday. Readers should know that our school in rural New Hampshire is very small. We had two graduates this year. Over the last eighteen months, we have all … Continue reading
Saint Bernard’s ‘Three Freedoms’
Over eight centuries before Franklin D. Roosevelt articulated his “Four Freedoms,” a shorter and much better list of freedoms was elucidated by the young abbot of the new monastery of Clairvaux, one Bernard by name. In his work On Grace … Continue reading
The Progress of Salvation
“Are you saved, brother?” That question, often asked by a certain kind of “reformed” Protestant, can be answered in different ways, depending on the precise meaning given to the word “saved.” We might answer, “No, I’m not dead yet,” or, … Continue reading
On Everything That’s Presently Wrong with the World
There is a joke I have been telling people in the last few weeks. Not a joke, really, more of a jocular quip. I mentioned to a few friends and correspondents that I have to find out who the patron … Continue reading
Days of Grace
We are in the Sacred Triduum and therefore have entered into the very “holy of holies” of the Church’s liturgical cycle. Please know that all our generous supporters, tertiaries, readers, and friends are remembered in our prayers in this holiest … Continue reading
‘Same Sex Attraction,’ a Different Perspective
Dr. G.C. Dilsaver once said something very provocative about “same sex attraction” in an interview with Mike Church. For those not familiar, this is the term of recent coinage used to label the intrinsically disordered attractions otherwise called “homosexual” and … Continue reading
‘Be Strengthened in the Lord’
The anxieties and troubles we undergo often vex us irrationally. As I write this, I find myself having to console a frightened dog and am, therefore, in a position to observe non-rationality where it best remains: in a beast. Our … Continue reading
This Lent, Keep the Big Picture in Mind
It is, as I write, Sexagesima week. Next week will be Quinquagesima, its fourth day being Ash Wednesday. Penance beckons us. Jesus invites us into the desert with Him. As we follow, we must collect our thoughts and travel there … Continue reading
To Heaven with You!
Catholics should always have some good spiritual book that they are reading. “Spiritual reading,” and its more ancient cousin, Lectio Divina, are staples of the Catholic spiritual diet.1 The need for devout reading has always been a reality for the … Continue reading
My Pro-Life Speech on the Steps of the NH State House
This past Saturday was a first for me. I was asked to give a short pro-life speech on the steps of the New Hampshire State House. The occasion was the New Hampshire March for Life, an annual event sponsored by … Continue reading
A Perfect Christmas Octave
A liturgical octave is the eight-day observance of an important feast of the Christian calendar. During each day, the feast itself is commemorated even if other feasts happen on those days. The traditional liturgy is rich with octaves, and one … Continue reading
Fortes in Fide
Every night, when the Brothers pray the traditional office of Compline together, we encounter the following words of Saint Peter (I Pet. 5:8): Fratres: Sóbrii estóte, et vigiláte: quia adversárius vester diábolus tamquam leo rúgiens círcuit, quærens quem dévoret: cui … Continue reading
The Once and Future Politics
Our friend Charles Coulombe has written a wonderful book that I am reading right now, Blessed Charles of Austria: A Holy Emperor and His Legacy. Though I am only about half-way through the book, I was so struck with the … Continue reading
