Inspired by Truth, Enlightening Minds for the Church in Canada and Throughout the World
Inspired by Truth, Enlightening Minds for the Church in Canada and Throughout the World
A blessed ‘feast’ of Our Lady Seat of Wisdom, Sedes Sapientiae, an ancient and venerable title of the Virgin Mary celebrated on June 8th as the Chora tou Achoretou, the ‘container of the uncontainable’, the new ‘ark of the covenant’, the ‘chosen shrine’, as the sixth century hymn by Venantius Fortunatus has it, ‘in which[…]
A blessed Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, to all our readers, a feast which has its origins in the early Middle Ages, when a renewed emphasis upon Christ’s humanity dawned upon the devotional world, led by saints such as Bernard of Clairvaux and Francis of Assisi, on into the visions devotio moderna of[…]
Catherine Pakaluk, a professor at Catholic University of America, in a recent article over at First Things, seems to opine that no one should comment on the commencement speech of Harrison Butker, since it was addressed only to graduates of Benedictine College. As a ‘private’ event, it should be kept private, much as, in the[…]
The secularization of Poland continues apace: The mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski, has now banned any public display of crosses (and any other ‘religious symbol’), including on one’s own desk at work. The Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, has called for such a ban nation-wide. I went on pilgrimage to Poland back in 2015 with my[…]
On this 29th of May in 1886, John Pemberton, a pharmacist, placed the first advertisement for a new drink he had invented, in the Atlanta Journal. Originally called Pemberton French Wine Coca, he took out the alcohol – due to temperance restrictions back then in force – but kept in a smidgen of cocaine, as[…]
The iconic Saint Bernard dogs take their name from today’s saint, Saint Bernard of Menthon – also known as of Montjoux – an 11th century Burgundian priest from a noble family, who was born in about 1020, and died in 1081. He evangelized the then largely pagan regions of Aosta and Lombardy, with numerous conversions[…]
(The saint today get muted, due to the memorial of Mary, Mother of the Church, on the Monday after Pentecost, in the Novus Ordo. Still, it’s good to remind ourselves yearly of the great Saint Bernardine. As far as the days following Whit Sunday go, the story has it that Pope Paul VI signed the[…]
We celebrate today, Pope John Saint I (+526). One might wonder why it took five centuries for a Pope to be chosen with this very biblical and apostolic name. But, then again, up until the time of Pope John, Popes kept their baptismal names, and it was not until 533, when a certain Mercurius was[…]
Back in 2003, I argued with a priest friend over his support for proposed legislation governing reproductive technology, which would legalize, and fund, things like in vitro fertilization, bringing them under government control. He was not in support of these procedures themselves – condemned by the Church in no uncertain terms – but, with many[…]
I’ve been attending the March for Life here in Ottawa, Canada since its inception in the late nineties – they mentioned that this last one on May 9th was the 27th, which would mean 1998 (counting the Jubilee Year 2000). I’ve missed two or three, due to travel, but have seen its evolution, its ebb[…]
