May 5, 2016, Thursday -- Pope Francis Celebrated Today in Rome the "Jubilee of Tears" -- For All Who Weep and Are in Need of Consolation... "Jesus wept." —John 11:35, the shortest verse in the Bible. The verse describes the reaction of Jesus to the news of the death of his friend Lazarus, the brother of [...]
May 5, 2016, Thursday -- A Russian Concert in Palmyra, Syria, Contains a Message to the West The Diplomacy of Music As I write this, a renowned Russian conductor is conducting an orchestral concert called "Prayer for Palmyra: Music Revives Ancient Ruins" in the ruins of the ancient desert city of Palmyra in war-torn Syria. As [...]
April 29, 2016, Friday -- Toward the Orthodox Easter In the Orthodox Church, Today Is Good Friday, and Sunday Will Be Easter Sunday In the West, we sometimes forget that the Orthodox world still celebrates Holy Week according to the old calendar. And, according to the old calendar, today is Good Friday, and Easter will fall [...]
April 28, 2016, Thursday -- A Prominent German Theologian Warns of the Danger of Schism "That it is a rupture is something that is seems obvious to any person capable of thinking who reads the texts in question." —Prof. Robert Spaemann, 89, a leading German Catholic philosopher, in an interview yesterday on the Pope's document Amoris [...]
April 27, 2016, Wednesday -- The Next Synod: The Return of "The Peace of God"? "The Pope would like to dedicate the next Synod of Bishops to the theme of peace." —The Italian news agency ANSA, in a short news article released this morning in Italy. The question of what topic the next Bishops' Synod would [...]
April 26, 2016, Tuesday - Athanasius Speaks "If we analyze certain statements of AL [Amoris laetitia, "The Joy of Love"] with intellectual honesty within their proper context, we find ourselves faced with difficulties when trying to interpret them in accordance with the traditional doctrine of the Church." —Bishop Athanasius Schneider, Roman Catholic auxiliary bishop of Astana [...]
April 21, 2016, Thursday -- Pope Francis speaks of the need to use our memories to develop a personal relationship with Christ "What has my relationship with the Lord been like? (Let us recall) our memories of the beautiful and great things that the Lord has carried out in the lives of each one of us.” [...]
April 18, 2016, Monday -- Where now? Trajan (Roman Emperor from 98 to 117 A.D.): “Dost thou carry Him who was crucified within thee?” St. Ignatius: “I do: for it is written, ‘I will dwell in them.’” Then Trajan pronounced this sentence against him: “Forasmuch as Ignatius has confessed that he carries about within himself Him [...]
April 16, 2016, Saturday -- Pope Returns to Rome from the Island of Lesbos, Greece, Gives Airplane Press Conference, and... ...Twelve Refugees Return with Pope Francis to the Vatican Twelve Syrian refugees in three families board a plane with Pope Francis at the airport of Mytilene, Lesbos, Greece, on April 16, Reuters photo Pope [...]
April 16, 2016, Friday -- Bernie Meets Francis at 6 a.m. in the Domus Santa Marta as the Pope Leaves for Greece A Brief Meeting Outside the Breakfast Room In the end, Bernie Sanders met Pope Francis, briefly. It happened at about 6 a.m. this morning, outside the dining room of the Domus Santa Marta, where [...]