Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die. (G.K. Chesterton)
Year: 2023
Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor – On Guitar
I wouldn’t have thought it could be done, but for our musical selection this Sunday – after a respite from these – here is Tariq Harb playing J.S. Bach’s famous Toccata and Fugue in D minor, transcribed from the original organ, for the guitar. As one commentator put it, most guitarists who attempt this leave[…]
Twenty-Third Sunday and the Wisdom of the Cross
So you, O son of man, I have made a watchman for the house of Israel’ (Ez. 33:7). This mission given by the Lord God to the Prophet Ezekiel is in turn, the task of those charged with oversight in the Church, the New Israel of God; bishops most certainly and priests no less who[…]
arkness yields before the coming of the light, and grace exchanges legalism for freedom. But midway between the two stands today’s mystery, at the frontier where types and symbols give way to reality, and the old is replaced by the new. Therefore, let all creation sing and dance and unite to make worthy contribution to[…]
The Deleterious Ecclesial Effects of Markan Priorism
Here is some food for thought, from Catholic author Jerome D. Gilmartin, on the deleterious effect of the ‘Markan priorist’ hypothesis – that Mark wrote the first Gospel, rather than Matthew, as is the traditional view, and the view of the Fathers. In his foreword to a new book, The Synodal Process is a Pandora’s Box, Cardinal[…]
Eunuchs for the Kingdom and the Three ‘C’s’ of Sexuality
I have an article out in Catholic World Report on what Christ might mean by becoming ‘eunuchs for the kingdom’, which at first hearing sounds like a bit of a downer, if not impossible, exhortation, but, at a deeper level, is a very freeing and consoling exhortation.
Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin. (Saint Teresa of Calcutta, +1997)
Saint Rose of Viterbo and San Marino
Saint Rose of Viterbo (1233 – 1251) was a recluse in the Italian commune from which she takes her name, and which was contested during her lifetime between the forces of the Emperor, Frederick II, the stupor mundi – the wonder of the world – and forces of the Pope. She sided with the Pope,[…]
To the teacher who informed her that there was no saint bearing her name: “Very well, I will be a saint. I will provide a patron for those who bear my name.” (Blessed Dina Belanger, at the age of 8)
Have confidence in the compassion of our Creator. Reflect well on what you are now doing, and keep before you the things you have done. Lift up your eyes to the overflowing compassion of heaven, and while He waits for you, draw near in tears to our merciful Judge. Having before your mind that He[…]