If one’s home is the most stable object in most of our lives, one’s spouse is surely one of the most stable people. Like one’s home, one’s spouse (or partner or long-time boyfriend or girlfriend) is easy to take for granted on account of this person’s seeming permanence in our lives. Because they are there… Read More Renewing Gratitude: Spouses
Events in our national life are often sadly familiar. That is certainly true of the Orlando shootings this past weekend. Mass violence. Contentious claims about Islam and domestic terrorism. The nation briefly rallying in solidarity. Prayers, anguish, and calls for change. Probable failure to address the root causes. An almost inevitable repetition in the near… Read More Prayer During Tragedy
I’m neither a conservative nor a Republican. But as a citizen, I believe that the United States would benefit from having a better Republican Party and conservative movement—one more committed to human dignity and the common good. Our system does not function well with divided government and extreme polarization. The ideological purification of both parties… Read More David Brooks’ New Traditionalism and a Better GOP
It seems appropriate to lead off this series of reflections with something that is at once one of the greatest blessings in most of our lives and one of the easiest to take for granted—one’s home. If you are at home as you read this, take a quick glance around you. (If not, you can… Read More Renewing Gratitude: Having a Home
Following last night’s defeat in the Indiana primary, Ted Cruz has officially ended his 2016 presidential campaign. And even though Sanders beat out Clinton in the Hoosier state, his Democratic opponent appears to be on a clear path to securing her party’s nomination. It would seem that we are finally nearing the (welcome) end to… Read More Our Candidates, Ourselves
I received my copy of The Catholic Catalogue by Melissa Musick and Anna Keating on Fat Tuesday. Earlier in the day I googled “shrove” to see why it is sometimes referred to as Shrove Tuesday. I didn’t realize that I would have the field guide to such questions in my hands a few hours later.… Read More The Catholic Catalogue: Living a Catholic Life in the 21st Century
A recent article published in Crux laments what the author considers a lack of adequate attention given to the Catholic Church in centenary celebrations of the 1916 Easter Rising in Dublin, Ireland. In spite of the presence of the Head Chaplain for the Irish Defense Forces during the centenary celebrations, a planned centenary Requiem Mass… Read More The Easter Rising at 100: What Role Did the Church Play?
Millennial 