I have given my body to the strikers, and my cheeks to them that plucked them: I have not turned away my face from them that rebuked me, and spit upon me. (Isaias 50:6) In His Agony in the Garden … Continue reading
Category: Spiritual Life
Consoling Thoughts on Suffering
All men suffer. The poor suffer because they lack the necessities of life. The rich suffer because of the “cares of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches” (Mark 4:19), which provoke thousands of anxieties. The young suffer because they … Continue reading
The Religion of Peace
This Sunday, the first after Easter, was Low Sunday. Its Gospel comes from Saint John, who relates Jesus coming into the Upper Room on the evening of His Resurrection. The reading spans to the next Sunday, when the incredulous Saint … Continue reading
The Suffering of Jesus in Caiphas’ Dungeon
They have laid me in the lower pit: in the dark places, and in the shadow of death (Psalm 87:7). After Our Lord endured the mock trial under Caiphas, and before being led in chains to Pilate, He was held … Continue reading
Does God Want Sacrifice or Not?
When first introduced to praying the Psalms, I found some passages, especially of Psalms forty-nine and fifty, to be confusing on the subject of sacrifice. I knew they could not contradict either the rule of faith or each other, but … Continue reading
Near Occasions of Sanctity
On a dreary New Hampshire winter afternoon, as I was preparing myself for a philosophy discussion on the subject of Ontology by attentively taking in a recorded lecture by Brother Francis, I was given one of those moments of joy … Continue reading
The Language of Gesture
Your author dedicates this essay to his mentor and beloved friend, the valiant Baron Arnaud de Lassus, renowned leader of traditional Catholics in France, organizer of the Chartres Pilgrimage, editor of the magazine Action Familiale et Scolaire and author of … Continue reading
Candles
On February 2, forty days after Christmas, the Latin Rite celebrates the feast of the Purification. It is also called Candlemas because on this day Christ, the Light of the World, entered the holy temple nestled in the arms of … Continue reading
The Twelve Days of Christmas
The twelve days of Christmas take us from the Nativity to the Epiphany. The first to adore the Christ Child were His Mother and Saint Joseph. After them and with them, although unseen, were the angels: Let all the angels … Continue reading
Saint John the Baptist and Our Times
Saint John the Baptist is our guide, along with Isaias the Prophet, through the season of Advent. He helps us to prepare for the coming of Christ, in His mystically renewed first coming in mercy (the mystery of the Nativity), … Continue reading
From the Dung Beetle Learn a Parable
As some high-profile scatalogical comments are garnering attention in the Catholic world and beyond, the following paragraph met my gaze this morning, from a book of meditations written nine-hundred years ago: The Meditations of Guigo I, Prior of the Charterhouse. When a … Continue reading
Dealing with Evil
With the Fall of Adam sin entered the world, and with sin, death. Worse than physical death is the “second death” (Apoc. 20:14) of eternal damnation. It is from this death, and from sin that leads to it, that Christ … Continue reading
Purgatory
A Commentary On Father Schouppe’s Purgatory Explained Alas! We do not sufficiently remember our dear departed, their memory seems to perish with the sound of the funeral bells. Saint Francis de Sales Have pity on me, have pity on me, … Continue reading
My Morning Cup Of Joe – Part IV
Since we are on the subject of getting old — we were talking about that, weren’t we? — or is my mind slipping into two months feeling like it was two years ago. Time, oh time, it goes so fast … Continue reading
God is Here
There is a Latin rhyme that goes like this: Ora et labora, Deus adest sine mora. In English, we can translate it this way, keeping the rhyme: “Work and pray; God is here without delay.” Ora et labora is well … Continue reading
