Authentic dialogue depends on asking and answering good questions. It is often hard to distinguish good questions from bad ones, however. Luke’s Gospel records two seemingly similar questions in response to angelic messages. When Zechariah was told that his wife...
The “direct action” techniques associated with groups such as Operation Rescue have always been controversial among pro-life activists. Is blocking the entrance to an abortion clinic an effective way to save lives—or do such actions merely damage the pro-life cause...
On this Earth Day, there are calls to “Invest in our Planet.” After all, it is the only one we’ve got! Care for creation has been a major theme during the pontificate of Pope Francis. His opponents claim that the...
Recently, two prominent churchmen called for a change in the Church’s teachings on sexuality. Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich of Luxembourg said in an interview with a German Catholic news agency that the Church’s teachings on homosexuality were no longer correct and...
During his trip to Malta, Pope Francis spoke to enthusiastic crowds, praised Malta for its historic values of openness and hospitality, called for charity toward migrants, and met with the sick at St. Paul’s Basilica. During an address to political...
In the first half of this essay, I explained the importance of engaging in dialogue with conspiracy theorists [1]. Thinkers such as Romano Guardini can provide us with the points of congruence that are needed for such dialogue; in particular,...
The parable of the Prodigal Son was the topic of the Pope’s Angelus address on March 27th. Pope Francis said: The Gospel for this Sunday’s Liturgy recounts the so-called Parable of the Prodigal Son (cf. Lk 15:11-32). It leads us...
To mainstream Catholics, conspiracy theories probably seem like the epitome of error. And yet, what could we learn if we entered into dialogue with conspiracy theorists? Conspiracies really do exist and have existed all through history. However, when I use...
Among the many accusations aimed at the post-Vatican II Church by radical traditionalists, the accusation of “difference” stands out. Traditionalists claim that the post-Vatican II Church is “different”; they claim that the liturgy, spirituality, and pastoral practice of the modern...
In his prayer for the consecration of Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Pope Francis lamented the collective sins of our world. We can’t see ourselves as free of guilt; we have all fallen. He said: Yet...
On March 25th at around 6:30 p.m. Rome time, Pope Francis will consecrate Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The date is significant; it is the Solemnity of the Annunciation, the same feast chosen by Pope St....
During his Wednesday audience of March 16, 2022, Pope Francis commented that for all our talk of progress, “our imagination appears increasingly concentrated on the representation of a final catastrophe that will extinguish us…an eventual nuclear war… it seems that...
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