The Narthex

As the Church prepares to close the 2026 Easter Season with Evening Prayer II next Sunday, I'll share some final reflections on this juncture in the liturgical year. Liturgical Anomaly The “pastoral” shift of the Solemnity of the Ascension from the 40th day after Easter (i.e., Ascension Thursday) to displacing…

Anthony Esolen has spilled no small amount of ink challenging the doctrinal and other issues that plague contemporary Catholic hymnody. Demonstrating how today’s “Catholic” ditties upend the traditional liturgical principle lex orandi, lex credendi (how we pray expresses what we believe) has almost become a cottage industry online. Recently, Trent…

The Gospel of the Second Sunday of Easter (Jn 20:19-31) incorporates two appearances by Jesus to His Apostles. His first, on Easter Sunday evening, is the institution of the sacrament of Penance, entrusting the ministry of forgiveness to His Apostles. The second, a week later, is when he confronts “doubting…

Here I begin experimenting with something new. I have long thought that film -- especially classic films -- often raises important religious and/or moral questions that deserve comment. I also think, given the bilge produced by the current “entertainment industry” (particularly in the U.S.), that many people are unfamiliar with…

The New York Times’ “Ethicist” column is an anti-gift that just keeps on giving. On December 20, it discussed “family planning in uncertain times” (a link is below). The gist of the correspondent’s question is whether, at a time when the climate is changing and the bogeyman of “overpopulation” still…

Sunday’s readings said a lot about trees and their growth. The First Reading spoke about God, who fosters some trees and withers others. The Gospel spoke of the tiny mustard seed that produces a large tree. The Catholic poet Joyce Kilmer wrote a poem, “Trees,” that was once standard fare in…