Topics

Revisiting & Redefining Universal Salvation

PERFECT JUSTICE COUPLED WITH PERFECT MERCY

Hurd Baruch

Let us acknowledge that there is a Hell, and that there are souls in it. Is there a way to reconcile that reality with the concept of universal salvation?

Was Pope Benedict XVI Holding Back the Destroying Flood?

LITURGY & THE CHURCH'S DESTINY

Pieter Vree

Key to the great apostasy is the liturgy. “The way we treat the liturgy,” Benedict said, “determines the destiny of the faith and the Church.”

Traditionis Custodes: Taking a Bulldozer to an Anthill

TRADITIONALISTS AND POPE FRANCIS

Pieter Vree

There are no protagonists in the latest liturgical drama, only antagonists. Nobody comes out clean, neither traditionalists nor Pope Francis.

The Crystallized Church & the Technological Society

POPE BENEDICT XVI’S 1969 PROPHECY REVISITED

Brian M. Torro

A smaller, meeker Church will be more capable of speaking to and welcoming those who have experienced the emptiness and existential horror of our age.

Love of the People vs. Art of the Deal

Jason M. Morgan

Will Chinese Catholics belong to the Church, or will they be sold over as part of a political deal that some in the Vatican wish to strike with the powers of the world?

Will the Coronavirus Lockdowns Usher in a Mustard-Seed Church?

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

The willful suppression of the sacraments by Catholic leaders could portend the diminution of the Church in both numbers and influence.

The Priesthood in a Time of Darkness

Christopher Beiting

The problem of two different conceptions of a cleric-as-minister and a cleric-as-priest divided Christendom and has seeped into the Church.

Spendthrift Shepherds & Pervert Priests: Where Are They Now?

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

Here we follow-up on some disgraced prelates and their inner circles who did the dirty work of covering fraudulent, criminal behavior.

What If Pope Francis Were to Rescind Summorum Pontificum?

UPON THE DEATH OF BENEDICT XVI

W. Patrick Cunningham

What options does a parish that currently offers celebrations of the Mass in the extraordinary form have if it finds itself unable to continue doing so?

Is Benedict to Blame?

Vatican II's vaunted reforms couldn't keep Catholics from being swept away from the Church. There wasn't much Pope Benedict XVI could do to stop this, and surely he can't be blamed for it.

Great Refusals

CELESTINE'S REFUGE, BENEDICT'S INSPIRATION

Clara Sarrocco

After only three months of papal rule, Celestine decided to abdicate the papacy and return to the hermetical life in the rocky ranges of the Maiella.

A Dialogue of Forms

MUTUAL ENRICHMENT ?

W. Patrick Cunningham

The Extraordinary Form and Ordinary Form sat down to discuss the first eight years of their formal co-existence, and invited me to record and moderate the conversation.

The Heavyweight Prelate Debate

The Synod was part of a larger struggle between two opposing camps, both of which are led by men who've dominated the post-Vatican II ecclesiastical landscape: Joseph Ratzinger and Walter Kasper.

Enter the American Bergoglio

The National Catholic Reporter, the anti-Catholic Huffington Post, New Ways Ministry, and Call to Action are thrilled with Archbishop-elect Blase Cupich, Chicago's shepherd since 2014.

Mysteries of Christ's Early Life

Stephen J. Kovacs

Throughout Ratzinger/Benedict XVI's theological career and pontificate, the Person of Jesus Christ has always been at the heart of his teaching.

Sex, Lies & Dossiers: The Vatican at the Crossroads

The months leading up to the recent papal conclave saw abundant stories of Vatican intrigue, from last year's curious VatiLeaks scandal to a confidential dossier made available exclusively to the new pontiff.

The Christocentric Shift

Arthur C. Sippo

Ratzinger found Jesus not only in Tradition and Scripture but also in the Church as the Mystical Body of Christ and most directly in the Real Presence.

The Pope's Problem

GUEST COLUMN

Andrew M. Seddon

Benedict XVI said he had meant the Regensburg lecture as "a strictly academic address" without realizing the world sees papal lectures as "political statements."

We're Taking Our Ball & Going Home

When Pope Benedict urged the governments of Muslim countries to take more effective measures to protect religious minorities within their borders, Egypt went apoplectic.

Condom-mania, the Rerun

Here we go again. It's been about sixteen months since the last outbreak, but papal condom-mania has resurfaced. This time the Pope is the hero.

The 2010 Easter Offensive

OBJECTIVE: BENEDICT

Kenneth D. Whitehead

The fantasy notion that the Pope was complicit in abuse cover-ups was considered nearly everywhere in the media to be a solidly established fact.

The Devil's Fingerprints

At a time when the Church is poised to receive groups of Anglican converts, the global media's smearing of her reputation kicked into high gear.

2002 Deja Vu

Many have wondered in recent years if the priest sex abuse scandal is a uniquely American problem. This year we got our answer -- no!

The Timing Is Just Too Perfect

Have you noticed the wickedly impeccable timing of the world press's latest piling-on of Pope Benedict XVI?

Enter the Belgian Ratzinger

Pope Benedict XVI has appointed a new leader of the Church in Belgium — a man who appears to be his liberal predecessor's polar opposite.

The Pope's Duck-Billed Platypus

On Caritas in Veritate: There are times when praise and support for the Pope come from those who are perennial papal antagonists.

Pope & Rabbi Square Off Over the Teachings of Jesus

CAN THE TORAH BE AMENDED?

Hurd Baruch

The Torah expressly indicates that God's saving revelation was not complete in what had already been announced.

Pope Benedict's Surprise

LET THEM COME TO ST. RADEGUND

James M. Thunder

Franz Jagerstatter was a martyr because he defended two ancient Christian doctrines, those concerning "free will" and "just war."

Death & Eternal Life According to Ratzinger

Arthur C. Sippo

This erudite exposition of Catholic dogmatics includes biblical, patristic, magisterial, ecumenical, and theological insights from the very heart of the patrimony.

Definitely Not a Political Theorist

Cardinal Ratzinger "has given some popular currency to the phrase 'the dictatorship of relativism.' The true relativist...would have nothing to dictate to anyone."

'Nothing Positive Comes from Iraq,' Says Pope Benedict

The figures are telling: two million Iraqis are displaced internally and two million others have already fled the country.

Will the Secular Mass Media & Liberal Churchmen Try to Remove Benedict From Office?

POPE BENEDICT'S 80TH BIRTHDAY

Cathy Caridi

Never mind opinion polls or the musings of talking heads on the nightly news; the Church has her own legal system already in place!

Restoring the Altar Rail & the Tabernacle

UPHOLDING THE SACRED

Lyn Frances Elledge

How do we renew our beloved Holy Mother Church? We must begin with how we worship -- on our knees, before God, who is really God.

You Can Criticize Bad Bishops, But Don't You Dare Criticize the Pope Who Appointed Them

George Kendall accuses New Oxford Review of becoming a Protestant publication -- a bizarre and crazy accusation!

Another Neocon Is Pleased With the Document on Homosexuals In the Seminaries

Robert Royal says, unlike some Catholics, he has faith in Pope Benedict -- but not when it comes to the Iraq War.

"He Doesn't Want to Upset People"

Father Joseph Fessio seems a little disappointed that his close friend Pope Benedict XVI appointed Cardinal Levada to an important Vatican post.

What Does the Pope Know About World Affairs?

Where hot wars are concerned, many of Ratzinger's most ardent admirers find themselves diametrically at odds with the Pope.

A "Compassionate Conservative" Advises Pope Benedict XVI

Bush's "faith-man" believes Ratzinger could be a good pontiff if only he will be "compassionate toward all God's children."

The Man Who Was Ratzinger (Part II)

AD INTRA -- POPE BENEDICT XVI & THE CHURCH

Michael S. Rose

In answer to objections that two Roman rites are confusing and "disunifying," he explained that various Roman rites have always existed side-by-side.

Benedict the Moderate?

Fr. Richard McBrien gets emotional over the jubilation of Catholics who hail the election of Pope Benedict XVI.

Reading Between the Lines

Bishop Mulvee hopes that Benedict XVI will "unite the entire church."

The Man Who Was Ratzinger

AD EXTRA -- POPE BENEDICT XVI & THE WORLD

Michael S. Rose

It was not surprising that the election of Pope Benedict XVI met with much gnashing of teeth among liberal pundits (and much cheering elsewhere).

Three Cheers for the Panzerkardinal

EDITORIAL

Dale Vree

Benedict XVI will not be a globe-trotting pope and will pay attention to the details of Church governance — which is precisely what we need.

The Kasper-Ratzinger Debate & The State of the Church

WHEN CARDINALS CLASH IN PUBLIC, IT'S SERIOUS

Philip Blosser

Kasper's interest in the decentralization of Church authority is aided by the interpretive “wiggle room” provided by freelance historical and biblical interpretation.

Collegiality Means Responsibility

Many bishops have been complaining that Rome treats them like children.

Cardinal Ratzinger vs. St. Bozo’s Parish

Stephen Hand

Ratzinger was keenly aware of the ways the Mass has been trivialized and made to appear as an ongoing and evolving experiment.

Would Wojtyla & Ratzinger Have Been "Weeded Out" of Sacred Heart Seminary?

The Archbishop of Detroit will ordain only two men next year. Quelle surprise!

Do the Pope & Cardinal Ratzinger "Have Their Backs to the Wall"?

EDITORIAL

Dale Vree

Those Misleading "Leading Theologians"

PRIDE & A PREJUDICE FOR THE FASHIONABLE

Kenneth D. Whitehead

The experts not only got it wrong; they also helped to deform and destroy the faith of many by openly opposing the Church’s teachings.

Leonardo Boff, Harvey Cox & Liberation Theology

CHRIST & NEIGHBOR

John C.Cort

The Vatican’s New Look at Liberation Theology

ON THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE CHRISTIAN TO THE WORLD

Russell Shaw

The Church has attempted to correct the excesses of radical liberation theology and that “dualistic” Christianity that views the Church as a fortress and calls on Christians to retreat within its walls.

Searching for the Real Ratzinger

Dale Vree

He is a man of extraordinary intellectual and spiritual depth, and when he says that the thing we need is more holiness he does not sound hollow or platitudinous.