“I tried to shake him awake, but there was nothing. The child was stiff, blue, dark blue in color from the cold.” I read today in the New York Times of how Jumaa al-Batran, three weeks old, died of hypothermia overnight in his...
It is not easy to be an atheist during Christmas. Atheism demands seriousness: if God does not exist, one must be consistent. However, the experience of living without dependence on a Creator Being—a defining characteristic of atheism—often gives rise to...
Last night, as I was walking on the Green in my home city, I stopped by the crèche – nestled on the rough equivalent of half a parking space ceded by the city, installed (and funded) by my hometown multinational men’s...
This final section of the O Antiphon literary meditation is the true destination, where the joy and hope are realized and the most beautiful citations from the saints are to be found. (Click here for Part 1 and Part 2.)...
The first installment of this literary meditation was posted on Tuesday; this second installment deals thematically with art and beauty, and with their true power. The conclusion, with its promised light and joy, will follow soon. As was the case with...
[Author’s note: This piece explores, through the lens of my own experience, humanity’s need for salvation, with all our impulse to creativity and self-determining possibility for good or for ill. The piece requires patience, as it is not until the...
Last month I traveled to Baltimore to cover the USCCB’s Fall Plenary Assembly. There were some worthwhile speeches and discussions at the meeting, as well as some interesting results in a couple of elections for new committee chairmen. For an...
Today is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, a dogma the full implications of which are perhaps too little considered. From the first moment I heard it sung, I fell in love with the medieval chant Sancta et Immaculata, “Holy and Spotless...
[Updated with a response from the Church of Scientology at the end. — ML] A couple of days ago, the Hollywood actress and former King of Queens star Leah Remini posted an image to her Instagram account. View this post...
Doctors Without Borders is a well-known organization that ministers to the sick and suffering wherever they may be found. I discovered that there is also a similar organization known as Carpenters Without Borders who were involved with the reconstruction of...
This morning, I finally got around to listening to Paul Fahey’s Third Space interview with Fr. Chris Kellerman, SJ, author of All Oppression Shall Cease: A History of Slavery, Abolitionism, and the Catholic Church. They discuss what Fr. Kellerman discovered over...
In the darkness of the Church on Holy Saturday night, the new fire of Easter is born. It then blossoms on the paschal candle and all the candles of the congregation are lit from it. The paschal candle will shine...
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