Reviewing some correspondences with members of the sacred hierarchy recently, I came across multiple references to the dogma, extra ecclesiam nulla salus, which referred to it, not as a dogma or a doctrine, but as a “principle.” Does that word … Continue reading
Catholic film director Alfred Hitchcock popularized the notion of the “MacGuffin” in motion pictures. This, according to Wikipedia, is “an object, device, or event that is necessary to the plot and the motivation of the characters, but insignificant, unimportant, or … Continue reading
There has been a lot of coverage in Catholic circles of recent remarks made by Archbishop Victor Fernández, the newly named but not yet appointed head of the Holy See’s doctrinal office, the DDF (previously known as the CDF, and … Continue reading
Supposing that a cardinal of the Holy Roman Church had said, while discussing a major youth event he is tasked with organizing, “We don’t want to convert the young people to Christ or to the Catholic Church or anything like … Continue reading
My first order of business is to explain the meaning of “the Doctrine of Creation” in the title of this Ad Rem. For my purposes here, I will define the term thus: the literal, historical truth of the first chapters … Continue reading
The YouTube conference embedded below by Father Chad Ripperger is very much worth your careful attention. Father goes a long way in explaining the reasons for what might be called “emotional thinking,” i.e., the kind of low-quality thought that many … Continue reading
This fall, Saint Benedict Center’s annual Conference will have as its theme, “Cultivating and Passing on a Catholic Worldview.” It is my purpose in this Ad Rem to outline some key elements of a Catholic worldview, without trying to be … Continue reading
“The pursuit of happiness” — along with life and liberty — is one of the unalienable rights that we were endowed with by our Creator according to the Declaration of Independence. But in spite of the word being so deeply … Continue reading
“One man’s trespass led to condemnation for all men” (Rom. 5:18). With these somber words, St. Paul expressed one of the truths that govern human history. On account of what St. John Henry Newman called the “aboriginal catastrophe”—namely, the Fall … Continue reading
This Ad Rem is an ‘appetizer’ for a longer piece on our site. This past weekend, I was a presenter at the third annual “Crusader Knights Congress” put on by Mike Church and sponsored by the Crusade Channel and LifeSite. … Continue reading
This past weekend, I was a presenter at the third annual “Crusader Knights Congress” put on by Mike Church and sponsored by the Crusade Channel and LifeSite. Here is the text of that talk.
Father Thomas Crean, O.P., has authored a brief and excellent article for Catholic Answers called Wrestling with the Fate of the Unbaptized. (Update [May 11, 2023]: The article is now published on Catholicism.org with the kind permission of the author … Continue reading
One fortnight ago in this space, I took up the question, “Must I Pray Only to Mary?” I promised then that I would return to develop further “the idea that, because Marian Consecration is fundamentally Christological and Trinitarian in nature, … Continue reading
A woman once came to speak to me about some difficulties she was having. At some point in the conversation, it came out that she could not pray to God the Father, but insisted on addressing all her prayers only … Continue reading
Some recent research on the subject of aeviternity led me to Life Everlasting, by the celebrated Dominican, Père Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange. Tangential to his main purpose in distinguishing time, aeviternity, and eternity, the learned friar tells of the conversion of a … Continue reading
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