A sub-category of News.
In the wake of sex abuse scandals in the German Archdiocese of Freiburg, a commission has called for children not to be admitted to Confession prior to First Communion. Instead, their report asserts, the sacrament should be delayed until before Confirmation. In Freiburg-im-Breisgau, that usually means age 15-16. The “theological experts” say that children prior…
Above: the Nine Sovereigns at Windsor for the funeral of King Edward VII in 1910. Standing, from left to right: King Haakon VII of Norway, Tsar Ferdinand of Bulgaria, King Manuel II of Portugal, Kaiser Wilhelm II of the German Empire, King George I of Greece and King Albert I of Belgium. Seated, from left…
Traditionally, the 2nd Sunday after Easter is called “Good Shepherd Sunday” due to the reading from the Gospel of John 10:11-16. In the Novus Ordo this Gospel is now read on the 4th Sunday of Easter. It is hard to exaggerate the influence of the image of Christ as the Good Shepherd on the minds…
Above: Cardinal Martini, architect of the St. Gallen Mafia. On April 8, 2024, Cardinal Victor Manuel “Tucho” Fernández sat for a press conference about his new document Dignitas Infinita. He was the recently-appointed head of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (D.D.F.)—entrusted by the pope with changing the office’s reputation for policing orthodoxy….
On the matter of Christ’s alleged appearance among men, an event which we call the Incarnation of God, there is little room to maneuver once you’ve eliminated either madness or mendacity as an explanation for it. Leaving what? Only the bedrock certainty that it happened, which is to say, a miracle. And because that’s the…
When President Joe Biden was asked by EWTN correspondent Owen Jensen what Easter means to him, he responded, “Time for forgiveness and people getting together, and a little bit of love and no phoniness. Be straight with people.” At first hearing, it might be shocking to hear a self-professed Catholic define Easter without mention of…
So the promised Easter document on human dignity has been released. By Catholic standards the document is quite problematic. However, by the standard of this pontificate, it is not as bad as it could have been. In any event, the document may indicate that Francis is pumping the brakes, which would be good news. But…
Leading up to April 8th, the internet morphed into a sea of apocalyptic theories. Reminders of doom, prophecies, and an urgent plea to “read the signs” filled news articles and Christian commentators’ platforms. We were on the precipice of an eclipse, and clearly, that must mean we were on the threshold of theapocalypse. People dismissing…
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith published a declaration, Dignitas Infinita, on April 8 (though it predated it April 2, supposedly to coincide with the 19th anniversary of St. John Paul II’s death). The declaration is divided into two parts: a general discussion of “dignity” as the organizing concept of the document and…
In my study of the current crisis in the Church, I have learned that it can all be summed up by one core problem: a collective lowering of the bar. Every parent, teacher, coach, manager, supervisor, or babysitter knows that children are overachievers. They will do anything they can to meet your expectations, no matter…
