It is written (Ezechiel 18:22): “I will not remember all his iniquities that he hath done: in his justice which he hath wrought, he shall live.” Saint Thomas in the third part of his Summa Theologica, Q. 86, art. 1 … Continue reading
Category: Spiritual Life
A Spiritual Workaround: Meditating on the Texts of the Traditional Mass
Over at One Peter Five, Dr. Peter Kwasniewski has authored an article that may be read in tandem with what I just published on the crisis of no public Mass: Your Local Mass Canceled? Try Meditating on the Texts of the … Continue reading
Crisis Response? Time to Fortify the Domestic Church and the Catholic Community!
Whether or not one thinks that the episcopal decision in now most of the country (and elsewhere) to suspend public Masses is a wise one or not, we are now virtually all stuck with the new status quo. I have … Continue reading
A Beautiful Prayer from the Maronite Divine Liturgy to Transform Evil into Good
As a result of Saint Benedict Center’s present situation, we Brothers and Sisters have been compelled to travel a bit to find reverent Masses. When a Traditional Latin Mass is not available, we find ourselves at an Eastern Rite. This … Continue reading
The Sameness and Difference of Saint Thérèse
During the last fortnight, when I should have been thinking about what to put in this Ad Rem, I became bogged down in some academic and administrative matters that zapped my writing time. (Exam week and grading papers among these! … Continue reading
You Cannot Rightly Love without Logos
We were made for love, and made by Love, for “God is charity” (1 Jn. 4:8), and “he made us, and not we ourselves” (Ps. 99:3). To love is in our nature as beings possessed of bodies with their passions … Continue reading
Is Jesus our ‘Brother’?
One of the more rewarding aspects of being a high-school religion teacher is to be the recipient of good questions, questions that show that the student thinks and cares about the important subject matter he is studying. Some months back, … Continue reading
The Primacy of the Intellect and the Curse of Religious Sentimentalism
For decades, there has been an invasion of anti-Logos irrationalism into the Church. Sometimes this irrationalism takes the form of sentimentalism (see Brother Francis’ article, Sentimental Theology), at other times it is existentialism (“existence precedes essence”), or a host of … Continue reading
Fighting Rage
A few months ago, in response to an article of mine on the Habsburgs, I faced what German-speakers have dubbed an “Online-Lynchmobb,” courtesy of Twitter. The puerile nature of the attacks drove me through the roof! Difference of opinion is … Continue reading
Challenging and Inspiring Parables of Our Lord
Holy Scripture abounds in analogy. There are similes and metaphors and that particular form of Hebrew poetry called parallelism. The Hebrews didn’t rhyme words in their poems, but they coupled ideas. An analogy is a comparison of two or more … Continue reading
Thank You! And Let us Adore the Sacred Heart
Last week in this space I wrote a very urgent cri de coeur to my readers. The response was tremendous. We received an outpouring of prayers and financial contributions, as well as written expressions of concern and gratitude for our … Continue reading
An Ascension Quartet
It would be a terrible shame if we failed to honor the grand mystery of Our Lord’s Ascension on this Thursday and the remaining days of Paschaltide that follow it, which are, in fact, called Ascensiontide. We may rightly (and … Continue reading
Ascension Thursday
Ascension Thursday is one of six holy days of obligation (not counting all Sundays) in the United States, although most dioceses have now transferred it to the following Sunday. Canon Law has relegated the holy days to local bishops or … Continue reading
Recovering a Bright Medieval Vision for the Future
“I try to be unoriginal.” That quote was attributed to Brother Francis in a recent conversation I had with a friend, who, like me, regards Brother as a beloved mentor. Our teacher’s point, which he made in various ways over … Continue reading
Saint Augustine: A Letter to a Widow on How to Pray
National Catholic Register, Matt D’Antuono: St. Augustine explains that the word prayer does not simply mean speaking to God, though that is certainly one way to pray. Prayer, in its broadest sense, means desire: What else is intended by the words … Continue reading
