Regular Contributions
Helen Gurley Brown — With A Twist
Dawn Eden has an interesting piece on the Cosmo Girl’s decadence, and a curious and hopeful turn at the end of her life. On a societal level, the fallout from the Cosmo philosophy helped turn modern Western society into what John Paul II described in his “Letter to Families” as a “culture of use,” where…
Bravo Bishops!
Bishop Paul S. Loverde, of Arlington Virginia,recognizes with Pope Benedict XVI that in recent years Catholics have often been poorly catechized. So in his diocesan newspaper this week he explains his recent decision “to have all of the diocese’s catechists and teachers of religious education make a public Profession of Faith” — a decision which…
Where Is Catholic Charities USA?
The usual suspects are mocking pro-lifers mercilessly because an obscure politician garbled a sentence in a TV interview (so that’s news??!!). Yet the issue has now been raised — what will become of the children of women who are raped? Why shouldn’t they be aborted? Apart from all the other back-and-forth, why haven’t the bishops,…
We Have No King But Caesar
“Fundamental rights” seems to be a preoccupation with Americans and, increasingly, people all over the world. Sometimes the adjective “fundamental” is not appended to the term “rights,” but there is a preoccupation all the same. When asked to define in general what a “right” is, I’m not sure that those who wish to secure such for themselves…
HOLY COW! Something Apocryphal — Russian Patriarch to Visit Poland Day after Dormition
Hitting the news today is the report that Russian Patriarch Kiril I is visiting Poland this Thursday. Reporting the story on the Russian Orthodox side is Prawoslawie: The Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church and Patriarch of Moscow and all the Rus, Kirill I will come to Poland on Thursday on a visit which raises…
Canonization Near For Paul VI, Author Of Humanae Vitae?
“Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi said he hopes to see the late pontiff raised to the altars soon,” reports CNA/EWTN News. Supporters of our prayerful petition to our bishops supporting Humanae Vitae can pray to Pope Paul VI, and resonate his plea to his brother bishops — “We invite all of you, We implore you, to give…
Reasons to Pay Attention to Solzhenitsyn, Mindszenty, and Ciszek
The excellent Catholic blog Rorate Caeli has a piece on the 4th anniversary of the death of Alexandr Solzhenitsyn. The author of the piece takes the opportunity to praise Solzhenitsyn and others within the Soviet Union for their heroism in standing up to the godless Communist regime. Similarly, he takes to task the Fathers of the Second…
“Now it is our time to suffer and die…” Syrian Archbishop Reports on the Destruction in Damascus
I am posting for your consideration a letter that was sent out two weeks ago. Although I have seen a few Catholic stories here and there, I had not found the full text of the letter anywhere, so haven gotten my grubby hands on a copy, I post the whole letter here. There may be…
From our Mailbag: A Reader in Canada Questions Dolan
An astute observation came to our email from a reader who signed the Petition for the Campaign for Humanae Vitae, that we felt compelled to share here. Dear Bellarmine Forum. Thank you for the opportunity to sign the Humanae Vitae petition from Canada. I am pleased to do so. I was surprised and am concerned…
Implementing Humanae Vitae: Good Women Religious Are Leading The Way!
In my hometown, and right down the road from Bellarmine Forum president Charles Rice, the Franciscan Alliance, which operates 14 hospitals in Indiana and Illinois, is leading the way. As of July, the alliance began offering a natural family planning benefit to all employees– the result of a suggestion from the employees themselves! Of interest: Franciscan…
