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Category: Commentary

Political Divisions and the Path to Unity

Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa, the Preacher to the Papal Household, did not mince words during his homily on Good Friday this year. “Fraternity among Catholics is wounded! Divisions between Churches have torn Christ’s tunic to shreds, and worse still, each shredded...

The worst kind of dissent

In the recent weeks, there has been some debate at Where Peter Is (among the contributors, in the comments, and on social media) about the similarities and differences between dissent on the so-called right and left wings of the Church....

Dishonest Dissent on the Catholic Left

My recent piece about dissent on the so-called “Catholic right” has generated a bit of a buzz. In the piece, I argue that dissent from what is described colloquially as the Catholic “right” is uniquely dangerous because it presents itself...

Catholic Media and Critical Thinking

Around a decade ago, after being deeply inspired by Pope Benedict XVI and his work—especially Jesus of Nazareth, his masterful three-volume exploration of the life and ministry of Our Lord—I craved to know more and learn more about the faith....

Untangling Sex from Same-Sex Love

Imagine a line segment. On the farthest point left are the words, “Welcome and accompany homosexual persons.” On the farthest point right are the words, “God cannot bless sin.” The CDF’s recent responsum on the question of the blessing of...

The Not-So-Sexy Theology of the Body

Although Catholics in the United States frequently discuss issues related to human sexuality, our catechesis on marriage and sex very rarely treats these as the complex mysteries that they are. Instead, we tend to unintentionally promote an unrealistic vision of...

An old friar’s Good Friday plea for unity

When one thinks of the threads of continuity across the last three papacies, perhaps one of the most overlooked—yet uniquely influential—is Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa, O.F.M. Cap., who has served as Preacher to the Papal Household since his appointment by Pope...

Truth Demands Prudence

Recent events have found Catholics grappling with what it means to be a Catholic Christian in a liberal democracy. To what extent do Catholic teachings apply in secular society? Should law explicitly support the practice of the Catholic faith? Or...

Beauty and Catholic Taste

Plato, one of the main philosophical influences on Catholic theology, believed in the existence of what are called the “transcendentals.” In Plato’s philosophical system, the transcendentals are “properties co-extensive with being”: abstract concepts around which existence and the material world...

Put the dubia in the dustbin

We’re approaching the beginning of the “Amoris Laetitia Family Year,” marking the fifth anniversary of Pope Francis’s landmark exhortation on the family and to celebrate the joy of love and the family. This special year will be kicked off with an...