A few years ago, author and philosophy professor Edward Feser wrote an essay criticizing Catholic teaching on the death penalty. His piece centers on the following question: Does Pope Francis’s teaching on capital punishment amount to a doctrinal change or...
Dominic and I had a conversation a couple of weeks ago about living out the evangelical counsels (poverty, chastity, and obedience) in marriage that unexpectedly blew up on Catholic Twitter…and not in a good way, haha. There were many folks...
Earlier this week, Dustin Quick invited me onto his podcast, “Holy Smokes: Cigars, Catholicism, and Conversation” to talk about the Magisterium and the development of doctrine. I encounter a lot of hesitancy in the Church with the idea that Church...
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...
There is a tendency among some Catholics to suggest that Catholic teaching has not developed or changed over time. If they studied history, they would know differently. Indeed, if they studied the saints and major thinkers throughout the centuries, they...
Shortly after Traditionis Custodes was promulgated last summer, Shaun Blanchard wrote an excellent analysis of the motu proprio for Church Life Journal. In that article, Blanchard claimed that “we should see Traditionis Custodes as a decisive contribution by Pope Francis...
In the previous installment of my analysis of Dei Verbum (DV)’s second chapter, I explained how the Church defines Sacred Tradition, and how we are to understand its development and growth. In this article, I will explore how Tradition grows...
Vatican City — In his latest apostolic exhortation, Querida Amazonia, Pope Francis calls for “authentic” inculturation in the Amazon, so as to allow for the creation of a Church which truly bears the features of the region and the culture of...
1. The title “Querida Amazonia” is Portuguese / Spanish for “Dear Amazon”–as in somebody’s female beloved, or the salutation of a letter. Oftentimes (not always), a papal document with a title in a vernacular language is meant to speak to...
As I reflected today on my upcoming move to be nearer to most of my family and to some of my roots, I have had a strong feeling of denouement. Sixteen months ago, I went looking for Jesus’ Church in...
St. Cyprian was a bishop of Carthage. He died a martyr’s death in 258. His skill in Latin was so impressive that he was considered the Church’s best Latin writer until Augustine and Jerome. Cyprian was key to resolving the...
“The Breasts of His Own Tender Love” Motherhood needs a cultural reboot. Perhaps no institution is as roundly mocked, belittled, and discounted as motherhood. Our society neglects mothers and discards them when it finds them burdensome. There’s an urgent need...
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