Inside and outside the Catholic Church, the publication of the Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report on historic abuse (spanning 70 years) in 6 Catholic dioceses has shocked the world. Coming so soon after the dreadful revelations of serial abuse by Archbishop McCarrick, one of America’s most influential Catholic leaders, the report has hit ordinary Catholics with all the force of a sledge hammer. We weep for … Continue reading Nine Reactions to the Abuse Scandal
Bishop Barron’s talk at the Google headquarters (Googleplex) in Mountain View, CA on March 20, 2018. He addressed a room full of Google and YouTube employees on how religion doesn’t shut down the questing intellect, but in fact opens up our minds, causing us to seek the fulfilment of our deepest longings. Continue reading Religion and the Opening up of the Mind
Just as contraception seeks union without the procreative meaning, so IVF seeks procreation without the union of the couple as one flesh. Yesterday was the 50th anniversary of the publication of Pope Paul VI’s encyclical Humanae Vitae. It was also the 40th anniversary of the first IVF live birth in the UK. In this article for the Catholic Herald, David Albert Jones, of the Anscombe … Continue reading Popular MisConcepions
An unexpected Easter conversion on the Camino seemed an ideal post for today’s feast of the Apostle, St James. So much care for the stranger, and so little care for the few physical possessions we carried on our backs. Writing in America Magazine, Ken Bagstad describes how, like many before and since, walking the historical route to Santiago de Compostela, became a life-changing encounter with … Continue reading St James’ Camino: A Path of Conversion
Despite a mischievous title, I have a deep appreciation for this reflection by Constance T Hull at Catholic Exchange. Obedience is About Love, Not a Loss of Freedom unpacks why we, as individuals and in society, so often get authority wrong; and how enriching it is to practice obedience in a truly Christian spirit. Continue reading Original Sin, Obedience, Freedom and Coffee
Lord Acton had a dictum that power tends to corrupt. What I saw that day was the rare exception. Power did not corrupt this man. He remained true to himself and true to his principles. Justice Scalia’s Great Heart is a simple account of a small incident in the life of US Supreme Court Justice, Antonin Scalia. That author Jeffrey Tucker witnessed it is a … Continue reading Scalia, the Lionheart
In this 12-minute Homily, Fr John Hollowell offers a powerful and uncompromising response to the recent revelations of abuse perpetrated by senior clergy in the USA. Continue reading Woe to the Shepherds who mislead and scatter my flock…
“As a young woman I thoroughly rejected most church teachings and was planning on leaving the Catholic Church. I thought the church was a draconian institution that oppressed women, wanted us barefoot and pregnant, and told us to sit down and shut up. I believed that secular culture was what gave women dignity and rights.” On the anniversary of the publication of Pope Paul Vi’s … Continue reading From radical feminist to Catholic nun, via “Humanae Vitae”
This is an excerpt from an old BBC documentary – an interview with a doctor who carried out late term abortions. It’s very surprising & thought-provoking. Continue reading The unanswered ‘why’ of abortion
The ‘gay cake’ fight: why the bakers had a right to refuse this order As the UK Supreme Court hearing of the Ashers’ Case came to a close last week, Kenan Malik in The Guardian, argues that the case has nothing to do with discrimination and everything to do with freedom of consciences. Continue reading The Icing on the Cake
In the Public Square 
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