The Nativity Fast in the ‘Advent’ of the East

(On this memorial of the Eastern saint, John of Damascus, here is a reflection worth pondering on the ascetical practices of the Eastern rite....

Pope Benedict and Saint John Damascene

BENEDICT XVI GENERAL AUDIENCE Saint Peter's Square Wednesday, 6 May 2009 John Damascene Dear Brothers and Sisters, Today I should like to speak about John Damascene, a personage of prime...

The Catholic Galileo

Galileo Galilei was born in Pisa, Italy. In his youth he considered several careers: first the priesthood; next medicine at the urging of his...
Pope St. John Paul II

The Grace of Advent with three Popes

With its First Sunday we begin the season of Advent, and the Catechism has this to say: When the Church celebrates the liturgy of Advent...

What Can We Know About God, Anyway?

There are few things more dispiriting to a gregarious theology/philosophy nerd than a conversation stopper. I get it, not everyone wants to explore these...

Time, Hope and the First Sunday of Advent

Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength…to stand before the Son of Man (Lk.21: 36). ⧾ The first Sunday of...

J.S. Bach: Cantata for the First Sunday of Advent: Nun Kum, der Heiden Heiland

A blessed and grace-filled Advent to all our readers! As we begin our preparation for the coming of Christ, both commemorating His first at...

Christ the King, and the Church’s Eschatological Trial

‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his...

Who is Our King?

As Moses prepared the Israelites to enter the Promised Land he prophesied that they would ask for a king, “I will set a king...

Nicolaus Copernicus: Catholic Pioneer of Modern Science,1473 –1543

The parents of Niclas Kopernik of Poland were dedicated Catholics and members of the Third Order of Saint Dominic. The young Copernicus lost his...