In the office of Readings for today we are assigned I John 4:1-10 in which the Apostle speaks about the AntiChrist. Due to end times dispensationalist preachers many people think the AntiChrist is a particular individual who appears at the end of time to usher in the Rule of Satan. St John actually teaches something else: [...]
Thanks to all my readers who have expressed their gratitude for my Jerusalem Diary. I am now coming in on the home stretch of my two month sabbatical in Jerusalem. On Tuesday I fly to London to lead a ten day pilgrimage then I'll have ten more days visiting family and friends in England before finally [...]
Archbishop Jackels of Dubuque has issued a statement commenting on the discipline of barring pro abortion Catholic politicians from communion. You can read it here. First the Archbishop tells us of all the other pro-life issues like gun control, feeding the hungry, health care and saving the planet. Then he goes on to make two points. [...]
I see that almost a week has flown by without a diary entry. That's because I have been on vacation in the chain of Greek islands called the Dodecanese. These fifteen or so islands are steeped in history dating back to the Classical age and further. How can you not like an island in the sun [...]
When optimistic Catholic ecumenists talk about "Visible Unity" between, let's say Anglicans and Catholics or Lutherans and Catholics what do they mean? They must imagine that it is possible for the Anglican Church or the Lutheran Church to come into a new relationship with the Catholic Church in which they are visibly, really integrated into the [...]
On Monday I made my way to Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv for a flight to Rhodes and a ferry connection to the Greek island of Symi. The flight was delayed by forty five minutes which meant I missed the ferry to Symi. Annoyed at the delay and the fact that I would probably have [...]
I realize I have been away from this Jerusalem Diary for over a week, so here's a catch up. Last Sunday, May 8 I went across the street to worship with the Syriac Catholics. The Syriac Catholic Church is one of the Eastern Rite churches in communion with the Holy See. As usual, the history of [...]
I was the guest on a podcast today and we got talking about the end result of the sexual revolution and it occurred to me as I was thinking it through that the sexual revolution will ultimately cave in on itself and end up at exactly the opposite place intended. In fact, on further reflection, I [...]
One of the advantages of an extended stay in Jerusalem is a chance to dig more deeply into the city's rich history and traditions. Today I worked in the Ecole Biblique library in the morning, but decided to look for some books I couldn't find here at the Franciscan Study Center in the Old City. The [...]
After two exhausting days--Monday to Bethlehem and the West Bank and Tuesday's day trip to Masada, Ein Gedi and the Dead Sea, Elias and I took a day to unwind and recoup. I had some laundry to do and some errands to run. Elias had to take care of details for his departure today (Thursday). He [...]