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All Catholic commentary from February 2025
St. Vincent Ferrer—On the Purification of Mary
“This present feast is one of the greater of the whole year... Because there are three grades of sanctity which we celebrate in this feast.”
My grandmother, the emergent Catholic right, and why Massimo misses it
"I was not wrong," writes Wolfgang of his 1990s plunge into Catholic conservatism. "I was early." The goals those 1990s Catholic groups sought to achieve may now be accomplished—with far greater effectiveness—by today's Catholic conservatism.
True God and True man: The Practical Paradox
Jesus – true God-- leads us to the Father: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me.” (Jn.14:6) Jesus – true man – humanizes reverence with His divine love as true God.
Should I add great Catholic essays to CatholicCulture.org’s library?
Though she may be often remembered now for the support she gave to a troubled Francis Thompson, author of the very well-known poem “The Hound of Heaven”, Alice Meynell was a fine poet and essayist in her own right.
“I am a human being”: The Elephant Man (1980), w/ Andrew Petiprin
Andrew Petiprin joins James and Thomas to discuss the late David Lynch's most uplifting film, The Elephant Man. The film is based on the real Victorian-era life of Joseph Merrick, a man who suffered terrible abuse because of his extreme deformities, yet whose human dignity was ultimately recognized and allowed to flourish by those who rescued him and cared for him with Christian compassion.
190—Fulton Sheen, Convert Maker—Cheryl C.D. Hughes
A new biography of Ven. Fulton Sheen gives special attention to his high-profile converts, but reveals many other interesting facets of his life as well. Author Cheryl Hughes joins to discuss Sheen’s at times shockingly direct evangelization methods, his outstanding television presence, his lifelong struggle with vanity and ambition, and the mistreatment he suffered from his rival, Cardinal Spellman.
Should Biden be excommunicated for joining the Masons?
So where does that leave Joe Biden, who has continued to profess his Catholic faith, attend Mass, and receive Communion regularly? He is forbidden to receive Communion. But then he was already forbidden to receive Communion!
The Conundrum of Parish Involvement
Pastors rightfully seek ways to involve the lay faithful in as many aspects of parish life as possible. It’s a simple calculus: the more the faithful engage in various parish events, the more they come to love their parish. They will then support more events, make the parish seem alive and attractive to others, and, most importantly, their efforts will push them to grow deeper in their own faith.
WHO should pay to help migrants?
The focus of the current debate is on what our federal government should do. A debate on what we should do, through our own private efforts, would be a much healthier discussion.
St. John Henry Newman—The Oxford Sermons | 1. The Philosophical Temper, First Enjoined by the Gospels
"The philosopher might speculate, but the theologian must submit to learn."
Book Review: Saints Around the World
Honest Review of Meg Kilmer-Hunter's book Saints Around the World and the 5 volume collection Saints Around the World for Little Ones. Highly recommended for children ages 6-12.
A remarkable resurgence of Catholic education and formation
Granted that these superior institutions educate only a very small minority of those who go to ostensibly “Catholic” colleges or seek education “in the Jesuit tradition” (a sobriquet increasingly trotted out to mask a lack of Catholicity), they are an important sign of vitality in American Catholicism. But what I find most interesting at this moment is the extension of this authentically Catholic intelligence into vocational training on the one hand, and serious scientific endeavor on the other.
Best Practices of the Church
Only Mary is without sin. We are not. His Holiness Pope Peter denied Jesus three times. His Excellency Archbishop Matthew the Evangelist was among the hated tax collectors. His Eminence Judas Cardinal Iscariot betrayed Jesus. The sins of the twelve would keep parish gossips busy.
Trump’s antics and the highest human value
Obviously it is better to accept what has been wrought through bad political leadership in the past and proceed now to implement a solidly prudential immigration policy with adequate controls. That’s not a simple task, but it is clearly simpler—and far less harmful to those involved—than the mass deportation of millions of desperate immigrants who have already arrived.
5.4 St. Gregory of Narek: Patron Saint of Armenia
In the first episode on St. Gregory of Narek (c. 945-1003), Dr. Papandrea introduces one of the newest additions to the list of Doctors of the Church. Gregory was an Armenian monk, scholar, poet, and saint, who was praised by Pope St. John Paul II.
The Pope’s disastrous letter on immigration
In his letter Pope Francis is on very firm ground when he states the Church’s unshakable commitment to human dignity. No one— in the Catholic Church or in the Trump administration— should have objected to that principle. But the Pope’s distorted application of the principle now makes it easier to dismiss even that sound first principle.
A Valentine’s-Day challenge to young single Catholic men
When I heard today’s Gospel reading, because it was Valentine’s Day, I thought of the young men who, it seems, need a miracle to loosen their tongues so that they can pop the question.
Happy Ordo Amoris Day
Happy Valentine's Day! Or Sts. Cyril and Methodius Day! Or, this year, let's just declare it Ordo Amoris Day. Here's why.
The Crown of Human Perfection
God did not allow sin to obliterate His handiwork. We remain images of God, even in our fallen state.
The Marx Brothers w/ James Matthew Wilson
Poet and philosopher James Matthew Wilson joins the podcast to discuss two films by the Marx Brothers (Duck Soup, A Night at the Opera). Wilson also reads one of his poems featuring allusions to the Marx Brothers, and talks about the letters written between Groucho Marx and T.S. Eliot.
Recommended aids to improve your prayer life in Lent
Periodically I try to recommend a few worthwhile books for devotional use during Lent, concentrating on what might have been newly released by trusted Catholic publishers.
When Catholics praise single parenthood
Prior to the sexual revolution, there was always a stigma on having a child out of wedlock and on the behavior that leads to it. Every child is a gift from God, but parents who deprive their child of a loving family do not deserve the congratulations due to spouses who follow God’s ordinance to be fruitful and multiply in honorable wedlock. If we want fewer abortions and fewer suffering children, we will need to return to the social guardrails of old, including a healthy social pressure.
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