When I resigned from my position as an Anglican priest one of the ladies in the parish was very upset. She couldn't figure out the point of my decision. "Surely!" she cried, "All that really matters is how much we love Jesus?" This is the response from many non-Catholics when faced with the doctrinal claims of [...]
Is there a demonic element to seemingly ordinary human problems? Sometimes. While full blown demonic possession is rare, it is much more common for souls to be troubled by what might be called "demonic infection". In counseling people spiritually I have come to believe that there is a state of demonic influence in our lives which is [...]
In learning more about St Kateri Tekakwitha I was struck by the connecting points between her and St Therese of Lisieux. Both were orphaned. Both suffered from a terrible disease. Both died at the age of just 24. Therese was called "the Little Flower". Kateri was called "the Lily of the Mohawks" Pictured are two antique [...]
Here is this week's article for Integrated Catholic Life. Readers of the blog will notice that it is re-worked ideas that have been posted here previously. The love of God is sweet and tender, but it is also astringent and tough. We have to be sweet and salty at the same time. We have to be [...]
Yesterday's post was about the Fear of God, but today spend a few moments meditating on the Mercy of God because God's Mercy and his justice are never separated. They are two sides to the same coin. We often tend to think of God's justice as his punishment for sin. If we're not careful we imagine [...]
"The Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." Says the Proverb. The critics of Christianity like to say, "Oh, I would rather choose to do good than be forced to do good out of the fear of hell." That's very nice, but what usually happens is that they don't actually do much good because they [...]
The old debate still rages in which Catholics dispute with Protestants who say that salvation is by "faith alone." Yes, we like to pick out the verse from the epistle of James which says that "faith without works is dead." If we're going to talk the talk we have to walk the walk. Action speak louder [...]
"You shall have no other Gods before me." trumpets the Lord in the Old Testament. St Benedict puts it the other way, "Prefer nothing to the love of Christ." Elizabeth Scalia is a daughter of St Benedict--a Benedictine oblate, writer, wife and mother. Blogging at The Anchoress she's also one of the Patheosi--bloggers here from a variety [...]
Guest blogger Norman Anderson is married to Marjorie and is a Catholic father of high schoolers Kevin, Marybelle and Hazel. He works as a claims adjuster at Skinner’s Insurance Incorporated. He attends St Martha’s Catholic Church in Adam’s Falls, North Carolina. Norman is a suburban hermit. Friday is my birthday and I am experiencing the usual [...]
There seems to be an undefined group of Catholics who some call "Peace and Justice Catholics". They are typified as aging hippies. They named their churches "Prince of Peace" in the sixties as a kind of flower power protest. These peace and justice Catholics are portrayed by conservatives as left wing, tree hugging, bra burning, gay [...]