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Columns

Our Lady’s Assumption: The key to understanding procreation

By Msgr. Charles M. Mangan
Today, it has often been said that most Catholics have already made up their minds about contraception. Either one believes, as the Catholic Church does, that contraception is intrinsically evil and, therefore, must not be practiced or one believes that contraception is permissible, given, among other reasons, the diverse economic, political and societal pressures that […]
8/6/15
Reading Time 5 min

A patron saint for cooks

By Thomas J. Craughwell

In 258, Emperor Valerian began a fresh round of anti-Christian persecution. Just days after the emperor had published his edict outlawing Christianity, a troop of Roman soldiers raided the catacomb of Praetextatus on the Appian Way, arresting Pope St. Sixtus II who had just finished celebrating Mass. When the soldiers burst in, they found the pope seated on a chair, surrounded by his seven deacons and subdeacons, as he taught the Catholic faith to his congregation. The Romans arrested Sixtus along with the deacons Felicissimus and Agapitus, and the subdeacons Januarius, Magnus, Vincent and Stephen. But for some inexplicable reason they did not take the deacon Lawrence. As the troops led their prisoners away, Lawrence, in tears, clutched at Sixtus' robes and said, "Where are you going, priest, without your deacon? Where are you going, father, without your son?" Sixtus comforted Lawrence, saying that in a few days they would be reunited.

7/29/15
Reading Time 2 min

Papal trip expenses

By Fr. Kenneth Doyle
Q. The pope will visit the United States, and he will speak about the treatment of the poor. Before his visit, many millions of dollars will probably be spent to pretty up the churches in three cities, as well as the surrounding areas. Some time ago, the same thing happened in San Antonio. Whole neighborhoods […]
7/29/15
Reading Time 2 min

A father’s voice

By Elizabeth Foss
When my boys were little, I watched a phenomenon play out so many times that I’m sure it’s an infallible truth: If they are playing and their father shouts from the sidelines, they hear him. Over every other voice, they heard their dad. Most times, they would execute the play or correct their position accordingly. […]
7/28/15
Reading Time 3 min

We need God’s love

By Mary Beth Bonacci
It has happened more than once. A friend comes to me, looking nervous, with something important to discuss. Sometimes he hems and haws. Sometimes he just blurts it out. He’s gay. He’s same-sex attracted. He’s “coming out.” The terminology varies, but the one constant is that he’s afraid of being rejected, afraid that as he […]
7/28/15
Reading Time 4 min

Meeting Saint Fleur Junior Charles

By Christine Stoddard
Sometimes, no amount of research can prepare you for an interview. Such was my recent experience in interviewing Saint Fleur Junior Charles, a 32-year-old man brimming with courage, strength, and- more recently, he says – faith. Junior, as he prefers to be called, is the administrative head of St. Joseph’s Clinic in Thomassique, Haiti, a […]
7/28/15
Reading Time 2 min

Is the culture war over?

By Russell Shaw
Does the Supreme Court decision constitutionalizing same-sex marriage mean we’ve lost the culture war and need to raise the white flag? (As should be obvious, “we” here are traditional Catholics, evangelical Protestants, and others who hold similar views on social issues.) The Jesuit weekly America thinks that the answer is yes. An editorial in the […]
7/27/15
Reading Time 3 min

The pope’s call to ecological conversion

By Carolyn Y. Woo
In June I had the unbelievable privilege and unforgettable experience of speaking at the Vatican press conference for the launch of Pope Francis’ much-anticipated encyclical on the environment. Named “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home,” the encyclical draws from St. Francis’ “Canticle of the Creatures,” which “invites us to see nature as a […]
7/23/15
Reading Time 2 min

Something greater than miracles

By Fr. Robert J. Wagner
In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus uses five loaves and two fish to feed a crowd of five thousand. This miracle of multiplying loaves and fish is well-known to us because it is included in each of the four Gospels; Jesus even performs this miracle twice in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark. The miracle itself […]
7/22/15
Reading Time 3 min

Definitely a must-read

By Effie Caldarola
I must admit, encyclicals are not at the top of my summer reading pile. So, even though a papal document wouldn’t normally go to the beach, “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home” by Pope Francis is definitely a must-read. The pope’s writing on climate change and the environment garnered a lot of press, […]
7/15/15
Reading Time 3 min

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