(1) On this day in 1946, twenty-five year old Karol Wojtyła was ordained a priest in the Archdiocese of Krakow, Poland. Fr. Wojtyła would later become Poland’s youngest bishop, at 36, and in 1964, he became Archbishop of Krakow. A mere three years later, he was elevated to the rank of Cardinal by Pope Paul… Continue reading Happy All Saints’ Day!
Tag: Saints
Msgr. Ronald Knox on St. Thomas Aquinas’ Five Ways
Thomas Aquinas’ five ways of proving God exists, called the Quinque Viae (which just means “Five Ways’) serves as some of the finest theology ever penned by man. His original explanation can be found here, and is worth the read. If you’re not familiar with Aquinas’ style in the Summa, he starts by raising the… Continue reading Msgr. Ronald Knox on St. Thomas Aquinas’ Five Ways
Happy Labor Day!
In honor of Labor Day, I thought I’d include a quote from St. Josemaria Escriva on work, since he’s the saint with some of the finest writings on the subject. For example, in The Way, he writes, “Add a supernatural motive to your ordinary work and you will have sanctified it” (359). This notion runs… Continue reading Happy Labor Day!
Why Pray for the Faithful Departed?
I had lunch with a Baptist friend of mine, who was troubled about CCC 1271. Yeah, he’d been reading the Catechism (which puts him ahead of a lot of Catholics). He was very uncomfortable with the idea that the Eucharistic Sacrifice is offered for the faithful departed that they might enter Heaven. It had everything… Continue reading Why Pray for the Faithful Departed?
John Henry Cardinal Newman on Faith and Obedience
Last night, my dad mentioned that he needed to read more of the Venerable John Henry Newman, because he had stumbled on a few quotes from him that he thought were very insightful (I think he stumbled on these in his Magnificat — a prayer aide I can’t encourage enough for anyone and everyone). This… Continue reading John Henry Cardinal Newman on Faith and Obedience
Fourth Century Icons of Jesus and the Apostles Found
This is a pretty cool story. Underneath an office building in a working-class part of Rome, they’ve discovered some ancient ruins (probably a noblewoman’s tomb) containing the oldest icons dedicated to Peter, Paul, Andrew, and John.* The icons date to the early 300s. Since it’s Rome, it’s fitting that these four followers of Christ were… Continue reading Fourth Century Icons of Jesus and the Apostles Found
Happy St. Joseph’s Day!
It’s St. Joseph’s Day, which is a bigger deal for me than most folks, because: I’m named after relatives who were named after him, so that makes today my name day (in some countries, like Poland, name days are a bigger deal than your birthday). I was very sick, and almost died, as a baby… Continue reading Happy St. Joseph’s Day!
The Real St. Patrick
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Here’s a snippet from an email I got from Catholic Culture yesterday: Perhaps we can do better on Wednesday than mustering another secular drinking bout in honor of Saint Patrick. The restoration of Catholic culture demands that we celebrate feast days with keen attention to the virtues of the saint in… Continue reading The Real St. Patrick
Guess the Author
Try to guess who made these statements: Those who are in charge of the sacred mysteries, and especially those who are careless about their task, should realize that the chalices, corporals, and altar linens where the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ are offered in sacrifice should be completely suitable. And besides, many… Continue reading Guess the Author
True Catholicism, or why I love Fr. John Gother
1. Catholicism, MisrepresentedOne of the frequent problems facing Catholics defending the Faith is that those attacking it really aren’t. They’re attacking some strange distortion of the Catholic Faith which, if true, would deserve to be attacked. Occasionally, this distorting is done willfully to advance one’s own theological agenda (as with the influential Centuriators of Magdeburg,… Continue reading True Catholicism, or why I love Fr. John Gother