Regular Contributions
“The Ambiguity of Islam”–Members of ISIS are Authentic Muslims
I commend to the readers of the Bellarmine Forum, a most excellent explication on the truth of Islam by one of the Holy See’s experts on the issue, Fr. Samir Khalil Samir, S.J. His book, 111 Questions on Islam, is not only timely, but it is essential reading for anyone who not only wishes to understand the current resurgent…
The Dormition (Assumption) of Mary from Around the World
It always surprises me when somebody makes the claim that the Pope invents theology and tries to support their claim by pointing to the dogmatic pronouncement of the Assumption (Dormition) of Mary. A brief little tour of cathedrals and icons dedicated to this feast shows that the Dormition is a part of Christianity to the very…
To Restore What Has Been Seized Unjustly
If the Christian Religion forbade war altogether, those who sought salutary advice in the Gospel would rather have been counseled to cast aside their arms, and to give up soldiering altogether. On the contrary, they were told: “Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely, and be content with your wages,” the command…
The Life and Mission of a Liberationist Priest: When political activism fails social justice
A biography about Msgr. Geno Baroni by journalist Lawrence M. O’Rouke, Geno: The Life and Mission of Geno Baroni, begins with a couple of notions that crystallize the great divide over what constitutes social justice. “It was no longer enough…to respond with charity to appeals for a food basket, the month’s rent, or a bag…
What Our Grandparents Have Always Done
I’ve been following opera and Italian food expert Fred Plotkin for a number of years now. Politically, philosophically (in large measure) and theologically, we would likely find ourselves opponents. He is a self-described “pleasure activist and egalitarian,” whereas I assent to an orthodox understanding of a divinely ordered hierarchy in the universe and recognize–in a phrase that may…
5 Crazy Things you Didn’t know about St. Ignatius of Loyola
These 5 things about St. Ignatius of Loyola will shock you! 2 bonus: Ignigo’s ultimate prayer, and the one formula they have to convert souls is in their constitution (do they do it?)
Hobby Lobby: Whatever You Do to the Least…
Though the Supreme Court in Burwell, et al v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., et al., (argued on the Feast of the Annunciation and released on June 30, 2014), held in favor of Hobby Lobby in a 5-4 decision, Justice Kennedy’s concurring opinion presents ample reason for concern: …it should be said that the Court’s opinion…
A mystery for our readers: Do you know anything about this Cross?
My aunt had her 90th birthday party and gave me some things. Among them, she gave me this cross. Anybody know what this is called and when these were made? We’ll give a hint: this one carries an indulgence from a Pope Pius. Tell us in the comments what this is!
BAM! Paprocki Drops a Knee on the Head Bob crowd
Thank God! Do you hear the sound? (bam!) That’s the sound of a knee being dropped. In a pastoral letter, Ars celebrandi et adorandi, given to his diocese on June 22, Bishop Paprocki says it: “the proper reverence to the Blessed Sacrament is ‘to bend the knee,’ to genuflect.” THANK GOD! On Bending the Knee Wait! Do you hear the…
Book Review: Credentialed to Destroy: How and Why Education Became a Weapon by Robin Eubanks
Over the last three decades, there have been a number of excellent books written to explore the direction education reform has taken. Some look narrowly at specific programs or policies; other take a broader perspective, following the historical trends that bring us to our present moment. Robin Eubanks’ Credentialed to Destroy: How and Why Education…
