Manos
Ladies and Gentleman: Start your Christmas Novena Today!
Your challenge, should you accept it: Try completing this simple novena. It will change your outlook on Christmas and inspire good meditation on the Nativity of Our Lord. His birth in humble means. The trials Mary and Joseph faced to make it happen. The circumstances of not even being welcome. All of the Old Testament…
Elections: Screaming for Barabbas?
I was aghast at some of the irrational mental gymnastics I’ve seen tossed about in the name of Catholic thinking about this election. For instance, Simcha Fisher, who writes for Catholics, is propounding that she voted for Hillary Clinton. Coverage of this has occurred elsewhere in social media, and you can read a pretty good analysis at blog Mahound’s…
And They Can’t Figure Out Why People Don’t Go to Mass
Among all the other things Mass is meant to be, it certainly stands out that it is meant for us, as the people of God, His children, to worship Him together. A priest and friend from an unknown parish, in an unknown American location sent this photo of a booklet found in the sacristy. These are…
Runaway Memes: Pumpkin Spiced Sacrilege on the Feast of St. Gennaro
I have a buddy named Gennaro, and every year I think it’s the coolest thing because on his feast day, one of the most famous blood miracles occurs or does not occur. It’s sort of like the groundhog day of the Catholic calendar, in the sense that the event might happen, or it might not. Some…
Bellarmine on Hell-Bound Popes. Our Patron’s Feast today.
Today is the feast of St. Robert Bellarmine, the patron of the Bellarmine Forum/Wanderer Forum Foundation. It is the perfect opportunity to illustrate one of the many, many, many examples from his life of why he is the perfect saint for our time in America. The trouble is that there are so many reasons! We could discuss…
7 Secrets Fr. Hardon Observed about Saint Mother Teresa’s Power
Although many people think Mother Teresa was already canonized, some thinking it happened several times already, today it was official. Some news services are calling her Saint Teresa. Even Pope Francis said it was going to be difficult to change how we refer to her, from “Mother Teresa” to “Saint Teresa.” I think, mostly because…
Back to School Challenge: Find these 5 ideas in your child’s catechism!
Ahh, back to school time… I remember having to make book covers out of old grocery bags, and then needing to promptly doodle, draw, and/or write on the covers to immediately identify them. Then, I’d scan the book for pictures and see just what was in this new thing. It’s the time of year and…
5 Things to Consider on the Beheading of John the Baptist Compared to Today
Today is the feast of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist. All great eras have to come to a head — a pinnacle where all the threads of plot swirl in wild tempest to resolution. Of all the stories in the old testament, I think the end of John the Baptist is a lot like Our…
Act Like You Know the Queen: Fr. Hardon Explains The Queenship of Mary
When I read about the variety of things Pope Pius V did in bringing Mary to a higher place of honor in the Roman Church, I’m often amazed that he wasn’t able, or perhaps, it was not yet time, for the apparent conclusions. Just consider this short list of changes he made: He added the…
What Hamish Fraser Saw About Your Children Thirty Years Ago
I’ve been going back and listening to some old cassettes lately. I ran across one quote that is harrowing. I mean it. The insight some of these people had peering into the state of the day reaches across decades to today and is fresh, if not terrible. I can’t help it — anyone who has listened to Fr….
