Most Americans understand the Bible as a rulebook for how to live your life, but fewer think of it as a hymnal. Yet the long history of American—mostly Protestant—hymnody, set to the cadence of the King James Bible, is embedded in our collective religious consciousness. (Think Julia Ward Howe’s “Battle Hymn of the Republic” or Read more
Charity – caritas – is our very life; it is what makes us “be” what we are. When we embrace God’s love and when we love one another in him, we plumb the depths of our identity, as individuals and as Church, and the meaning of our existence. We understand not only how important our own lives are, but Read more
In our Faith, we have created many names for the second person of the Trinity. They are names that reflect our adoration. Jesus is Christ our Saviour, Redeemer, Lamb of God, Word made Flesh, Prince of Peace, Fountain of all Holiness… Such names are deeply etched on our minds and hearts. If someone mentions “Sacred Read more
Last Sunday at Mass, the Parish Priest, a sensible, experienced man, mentioned that next week we’d have First Communion, and increased numbers of people were expected at Mass. Then he smiled and said: ‘We probably won’t see them again the following week, but that’s OK.’ I was pleased to hear that. It is of the Read more
Most of my adult life I have learned to be logical in my choices. Now, however, it is logic itself that I am doubting. You hear people saying ‘everything happens for a reason’, and so they attach a reason to things. Reason is not the explanation. It’s a face-saving gimmick we humans import to cover Read more
I’m not an authority on anything. The ridiculous certificates one gets after certain courses do little more than confirm one’s literacy. Way back there used to be a tag Roma locuta est, causa finita! Rome has spoken, that closes the issue! (We had Latin in school.) Well, in no sense am I a Roma echo! Read more
When we explore the historic writings of the Church, we often find veins of gold that enrich our spiritual life. Usually, the gold is in a simple statement and sometimes it is quite ancient. Always it is right for the moment we discover it. This is the way God works. I still cherish a vein Read more
Some people today define “grace” as “God’s riches at Christ’s expense.” Others gloss it as “unconditional gift” or “undeserved favour.” Still others prefer to see it as God’s favourable disposition toward his people. However, the word grace in the New Testament (Greek charis) simply means “gift.” The content of the gift is determined by its Read more
It is a blessing to have a Pope who sees a world of religious multiplication rather than religious division. Many of us grew up in an era of “We are right and the others are wrong.” Christian churches seemed to have high fences around them, and religions that were not Christian were often labelled “Heathen” Read more
Pope Francis Social Encyclical: ‘Fratelli Tutti’ was launched at the Vatican, Sunday 4 October, 2020. The document focuses on fraternity and social friendship as the ways to build a better, more just and peaceful world – with the contribution of all: people and institutions. The official summary follows, with a link to download the full Read more