Weekly Insight
Saint Anthony Zaccaria
Saint Anthony Zaccaria (+1539), from noble lineage in late-renaissance Italy, was born in Rome in 1502, on the cusp of the Protestant revolt against the Catholic Church. But the mayhem at this point was mostly...
The Fourth of July: Pier Giorgio and Elizabeth of Portugal
A joyous Independence Day to all our American readers. There are any number of factions developing in the once-United States, but all can be traced back to those who accept the Christian principles that...
Pope Benedict and Saint Thomas the Apostle
BENEDICT XVI
GENERAL AUDIENCE
Saint Peter's Square
Wednesday, 27 September 2006
Thomas the twin
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Continuing our encounters with the Twelve Apostles chosen directly by Jesus, today we will focus our attention on Thomas. Ever present in...
Thomas, Apostle – Believing without Seeing
Saint Thomas, the Apostle, is called 'Didymus', the 'twin', perhaps, as some surmised, because he looked a lot like Christ. Whether that be true, he's not like the Saviour in also being called 'the...
Two Praetorians and a Jesuit
Saints Processus and Martinian (+67) were Praetorian Guards – the elite of the Roman legionaries – who were tasked with keeping watch over Saints Peter and Paul in prison. When the Apostles’ prayers caused...
Canada’s Original, and Very Catholic, National Anthem
In the glow of Canada-Dominion Day, here is the original version of O, Canada, which was written in French, in Quebec – Canada was French before she was also English – for the 1880...
Litany of the Precious Blood
A blessed feast of the Precious Blood! This devotion was placed into the calendar, and the feast instituted by Pope Pius IX in 1849. Even if no longer on the public calendar since the...
July and the Most Precious Blood
Traditionally, the month of July is dedicated to the Precious Blood of Jesus. Hence, before entering into the reason why this is so it would be wise to have a look at what the...
Happy Dominion Day!
Or, if you will, Canada Day, to all our readers, on which we celebrate the official founding of ‘Canada’ as a (mostly) independent part of the British Commonwealth. Canada, as readers may know from...
Fate, Determinism and Free Will
“All theory is against free will; all experience for it.” Samuel Johnson
In the normal course of our lives we assume we are able to choose between thoughts or actions that are right or wrong....
The Protomartyrs of Rome
The blood of martyrs is the seed of the Church - Tertullian (+240 A.D.)
The first, or proto-, martyrs of the Church of Rome commemorate the untold number of Christians put to death under the...
Saint Peter and Paul’s Eschatological Battle
A blessed solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul! They were comites, as they say in Latin, companions in life, and in death, both martyred under the diabolical tyrant Nero sometime between 64 and 68 Anno...
Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul
FEAST OF SAINTS PETER AND PAUL
HOLY MASS FOR THE IMPOSITION OF THE SACRED PALLIUM
ON METROPOLITAN ARCHBISHOPS
HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
Vatican Basilica
Friday, 29 June 2012
Your Eminences,
Brother Bishops and Priests,
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
We...
