Sports fascinate many people because of what athletes put at risk: their ability to participate and develop through intense focus and work the achievement of excellence in a particular sport. Watching athletes compete at the highest level of physical prowess and intellectual strategizing and concentration proper to their particular sport places into sharp relief how, to use Thomistic language, a human being Read more
Deuteronomy 4:1—2,6—8 Psalm 15 James 1:17—18, 21b-22, 27 Mark 7:1—8, 14—15, 21—23 The readings at their core deal with the notorious tension between law and grace in Christian faith, a tension that has been present since its earliest days. The first reading expresses the deep delight which the Jewish people have taken (and continue to take) in the law they have received Read more
(In no particular order….) 1. Abortion 2. Rape 3. War of Aggression As with every election since at least 2004, the notion of “intrinsically evil acts” arises as a means by which to discern how to vote. Archbishop Lori is one of the most recent to make this point. The question to ask is this: Are any of the candidates of either party, Read more
I’ll say one thing about the nomination of Rep. Paul Ryan for the vice-presidential slot: it has produced some of the most telling exchanges about the details of Catholic thought, especial Catholic social thought, that we have seen in a long while. The fact that the WSJ feels the need to publish not one but two pieces defending Ryan on Catholic grounds Read more
So, the Cardinal-Archbishop of New York will apparently find himself in Florida next week offering prayer at the Republican national convention. Understandably, even though he said that it won’t be an endorsement and he is open to doing the same thing if the DNC invites him, many have pointed out that the optics of this are pretty bad–especially for those of us Read more
In her recent post, Jana Bennett engaged an op/ed piece on the Wall Street Journal’s website that critiqued those, especially the bishops, who failed to recognize the Catholic dimension of Ryan’s budget proposal. Jana critiqued the authors for insinuating that the bishops should not engage politics, especially as it pertains to economic issues, and their failure to fully appreciate the role of Read more
The Obama/Biden ticket got an unexpected gift today from a solid member of the GOP pro-life establishment. Instead of discussing the topics discussed at the town hall meeting that Romney and Ryan did at St. Anselm’s College, we were talking about Todd Akin’s inexplicable description of the most sensitive of issues: abortion in the case of rape. But the Dems are now Read more
Jos 24:1-2a, 15-17, 18b Ps 34:2-3, 16-17, 18-19, 20-21 Eph 5:21-32 Jn 6:60-69 One of foundational anthropological points of the Catholic faith is that we are truth-seeking creatures. Our intellect is made for truth, and we can’t help but try to discover it. We have a special obligation as humans to seek the truth especially concerning God and his Church, and to Read more
I know that a current popular notion is that the bishops have no special or particular authority to say anything about economic policy or justice because they’re not economists. Only economists apparently have the right to say anything about budgets and societal economic issues. (Of course, by this specious line of reasoning, I can wonder, too, why the bishops have any right Read more
As our readers know, I frequently write concerning the real meaning of subsidiarity and emphatically in support of Bishop Blaire’s statements for protecting poverty programs, especially SNAP. The most common response I receive or hear from those who support the approach of Paul Ryan is that John Paul II cautioned strongly against the social assistance state, the implication being that we are Read more
Saturday Morning: 8:00 am
Saturday Vigil: 4:30 pm
Sunday: 7:30 am, 9:00 am, 10:45 am,
12:30 pm, 5:30 pm
Saturday Vigil: 6:15pm
Sunday: 9:00am, 7:15pm
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday: 8:30 am
