Topics

Indiff’rent Strokes

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

In blurting out his opinion of the supposedly wonderful and God-gifted diversity of religions in a slapdash manner, Francis does great injustice to the Catholic religion.

A Machiavellian on the Throne of Peter?

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

Francis’s soundbite approach to theology has been a disaster for the Church. But worse have been the machinations from which the dissembling serves to distract us.

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.”

Fiducia Supplicans: A Fine Mess

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

The Catholic Church is supposed to speak in one voice, down the ages, in season and out. Now she doesn’t even speak in one voice to her own people!

Transanity Is Taking Over. How Will the Church Respond?

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

Gender ideologues are at work in the Church -- no surprise. That they occupy positions of power and speak with authority is, however, cause for great concern.

The Latest Episode of the Francis Follies

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

We resist the urge to parse every questionable utterance that issues from the Pope’s mouth because the exercise is exhausting and not a little discouraging.

Dystopia 101

A POST-'TRADITIONIS CUSTODES' SHORT STORY

John Cussen

An example of a powerful ruler who should be like a caring elder but seems more bent on crushing dissent comes from an unexpected source.

It’s Time the Church Declared the Personhood of the Unborn

A DOCTRINE BEGGING TO BE DEVELOPED

Monica Migliorino Miller

With our advanced scientific knowledge of fertilization and fetal development, there is really nothing standing in the way of a definitive doctrinal affirmation.

The Pontifical Academy for What?

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

The Academy for Life’s horizons are so broad that it seems to have lost sight of its mission to promote and defend the Church’s pro-life teachings.

The Great Deformer

ON THE FINAL PHASE OF FRANCIS'S TURBULENT PAPACY

Pieter Vree

When Pope Francis told millions at the 2013 World Youth Day to "make a mess," he was also describing the modus operandi of his papacy.

A Synod on What?

AN AMORPHOUS & ILL-DEFINED TERM AND EVENT

Pieter Vree

How can the Synod on Synodality be a rebalancing of ecclesial powers? It is, after all, the brainchild of the most powerful of ecclesial figures.

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.

Some Dare Call It Schism

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

The German Church has launched a program of reforms with elements that, if approved by the bishops’ conference, would contradict longstanding Catholic teaching.

Spiritus Domini: How the Exception Became the Rule

THE SIGNIFICANT CONSEQUENCES OF SMALL CHANGES

Gerard T. Mundy

The Pope's decision to allow women into two “minor orders” of the Church shows how significant change can be instituted incrementally.

Dispatch from the Dead Letter Office

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

The McCarrick report is a historical accounting that doesn’t hold anyone accountable, and it will have no practical consequences.

Defending Marriage in the Pope Francis Era

THE DECISIVE BATTLE

Richard A. Spinello

The language and tone of Amoris Laetitia seem to signal a retreat from the notion of exceptionless moral norms and the doctrine of indissolubility.

Imbergoglios or Standard Franciscan Procedure?

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

Pope Francis is entitled to his opinions, and he’s not shy about sharing them in front of microphones. But his opinions don’t equate to magisterial pronunciations.

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?

Religious Persecution Is Rising. Do Catholics Care?

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

Our struggles in the U.S. are a far cry from the hard persecution that our coreligionists elsewhere in the world face on a routine basis.

The Fires This Time

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

July was a cruel month for attacks on Catholic churches. But the mother of them all wasn’t an act of destruction; it was an act of desecration, a hostile takeover of a former Catholic cathedral.

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.

Terrible Tenderness

Alex Taylor

For humanists, the religious impulse is redirected from traditional religions toward a secularized system of values such as egalitarianism and bodily health.

Million-Dollar Bishops

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

It’s no coincidence that financial corruption walks hand in hand with sexual immorality. Where you find one, you’ll often find the other.

Love of God & Love of Neighbor: One Commandment or Two?

CARDINAL KASPER’S NOVELTIES

Christopher Roberts

Carinal Kasper grounds mercy in New Testament revelation and the Fathers of the Church. But his sources often do not say what he claims they say.

The Vatican’s Filthy Lucre

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

Peter’s Pence doesn’t solicit funds for financial speculation that fattens the Vatican’s investment portfolios; the fund shouldn’t be used that way.

A Peek into Papal Priorities

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

Here’s your Pope: When pagan idols are removed from a sacred space, he apologizes; when his belief in the divinity of Christ is questioned, he’s silent.

Post-Truth, Climate Change & the Catholic University

WHY DO PEOPLE REJECT THE SCIENTIFIC CONSENSUS?

A. James McAdams

As the earth was created before man, Pope Francis advises, man is obliged to treat the earth in a manner that is “caring, protecting, overseeing, and preserving.”

Father Figuring

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

The Catholic Church's sex-abuse problem is caused by predators who wear clerical collars and who are protected by a clericalist culture.

Wuerl, the Flesh & the Devil

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

The whole Wuerl saga goes to show — yet again — that many of the leaders of the Church aren’t so much interested in professing the truth as they are in protecting their prestige.

Are Revelation & Modernity Compatible?

THE DANGER OF “DOUBLE TRUTH”

James V. Schall

The effort of the Church to come to terms with the modern world too often assumes that contemporary culture is neutral when, in fact, it is closed to the transcendent.

Is Francis’s Revised Teaching on the Death Penalty a Development of Doctrine?

THE PRIMACY OF MERCY — OR THE END OF MERCY ?

Monica Migliorino Miller

The Culture of Life may be advanced by the Holy Father’s innovation, but he has forged an unsettling theological path to take us there.

Dante’s Divine Comedy & the Viganò Testimony

GUEST COLUMN

Joshua Hren

Then as now, opinion makers try to reduce those who testify against Church corruption to resentful reactionaries working out their revenge.

Ecce Papa Franciscus!

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

The Pope convened a summit for February 2019 with the presidents of all bishops’ conferences to discuss "protection of minors."

The Strange Magnetism of Virtual Fisticuffs

REVERT'S ROSTRUM

Casey Chalk

What happens when a fairly obscure writer picks a fight with a Christian YouTube celebrity who has over 200,000 followers?

At Last, a Reckoning?

NEW OXFORD NOTEBOOK

Pieter Vree

Archbishop Viganò has cracked open the Vatican cone of silence and exposed what might be a Church-wide cover-up of McCarrick’s crimes.

A Pro-Life Pivot?

GUEST COLUMN

F. Douglas Kneibert

Pope Francis’s new appointees to the Pontifical Academy for Life have expanded the pro-life umbrella to include migrants, technology, and the environment.

Is Francis Doing What Jesus Did?

ON "GOING BEYOND JESUS"

James V. Schall

Heretics and schismatics today do not leave the Church to form their own separate bodies. They stay inside the Church and demand their ideas be included.

Scalfari Strikes Again

Knowing Italian journalist Eugenio Scalfari's habit of not taking notes during interviews, why does Francis continue to allow him to stir up controversy and cause PR headaches for the Vatican?

Are There Atheists in Heaven?

Pope Francis well knows that whenever he speaks into a microphone, he is addressing not only those present but the whole world, in his capacity as leader of the Catholic Church. Therefore, his words are open to scrutiny.

Zen & the Artifice of Vatican Diplomacy

Joseph Cardinal Zen Ze-kiun, archbishop emeritus of Hong Kong, calls the looming Vatican-China deal a "shameless surrender" that legitimizes the communist regime's episcopal appointments and "enslaves the Church."

Cardinal Cupich's Uncertain Trumpet

A PRINCE'S PUZZLING PREVARICATIONS

John A. Perricone

Revolution is an overturning of the present order; it is dreadful in any society. But it is impossible in the perfect society of the Holy Catholic Church.

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?

Falling into the Darkness of Error

Maurizio Chiodi, one of Pope Francis's most favored theologians, asserts that responsible parenthood can obligate a married couple to use artificial birth control. Yes, obligate!

Chronic Confusion, Polarization & Polemics in the Church of Francis

After the  and a , Pope Francis was the unhappy recipient of yet another critical letter that expresses concerns about his pontificate.

Is the Pope Looking to Lambeth?

Why would Pope Francis form a group to study the composition of the 1968 encyclical if the intent is not to fundamentally change its message?

Under the Rainbow

When Catholic moral theology and LGBT "rights" collide, one must give way. How will this play out under the "inclusive" bishop of San Diego?

The Sinner's Veto

HAS CANON LAW BECOME A DEAD LETTER?

Jake Neu

Canon law reflects the Church's deliberate wisdom for faithfully carrying out the teachings of her Founder in a way that protects priests, laymen, and the community.

How "Remarried" Catholics Can Validly Receive Communion

GUEST COLUMN

Ines Angeli Murzaku

The regular practice of spiritual communion might be part of their discernment, penance, and preparation for full reintegration into the Church.

Francis or Fundamentalism: A False Dichotomy

WHO ARE THOSE "CATHOLIC INTEGRALISTS" ?

Thomas Storck

After the Council, the majority of both liberal and conservative Catholics have found their standard for belief and conduct in shifting political ideologies.

A Pontificate of Mercy — or a Merciless Pontificate?

The time has come to offer an unvarnished look at the fruits of this papacy: Four-and-a-half years of evidence shows that Francis has fomented division and preached politics over the Gospel.

Silence of the Shepherds

ISIS capitalizes on the West's ignorance of its own history. The Pope and bishops should allow competent theologians and historians to publicly defend the faith against Muslim propaganda.

The Church's Strange Reappraisal of Islam

WILLING CAPTIVES TO CONTEMPORARY IDEOLOGY

Timothy D. Lusch

The Church came to see Islam as meriting different treatment because it is a religion, unlike Nazism and Communism, which were secular and atheistic ideologies.

Amoris Laetitia: What Is Pope Francis Up To?

THE MYSTERIOUS LIGHTNESS OF THE LORD'S YOKE

Anthony Giambrone

When the Apostles, with Spirit-led courage and Christ-like mercy, boldly lifted the full yoke of the law from the disciples' shoulders, they retained sexual morality.

Dawah, Dislocation & the Hijacking of Catholic-Muslim Dialogue

THE CIVILIZATION-JIHADIST PROCESS

Timothy D. Lusch

The USCCB must recognize the threat that dialogue with ISNA and ICNA presents, and either seek partners without Islamist motives or end the dialogue altogether.

The Interfaith Delusion

THE U.S. BISHOPS' CATHOLIC-MUSLIM DIALOGUE

Timothy D. Lusch

It is time for the Catholic faithful to question the Church's interreligious efforts vis-à-vis Islam, with respect to its goals and choice of dialogue partners.

A "Climate of Fear" in the Vatican?

Bishop Schneider of Kazakhstan says in Rome today, churchmen "live in a climate of threats and of denial of dialogue towards a specific group" — that is, towards anyone not in lockstep with Francis's reform movement.

To Kill in the Name of God Is Satanic

The Pope plainly stated, "To kill in the name of God is satanic," but again he studiously avoided identifying Muslim terrorists as perpetrators of this.

A Sign of Self-Contradiction

Today, transgenderism is firmly established in the cultural landscape. Who will cut through the cant, expose the cultural masquerade, and proclaim the truth? Our religious leaders?

A Year of Magical Thinking

FAITH IN THE DENIAL OF REALITY

Timothy D. Lusch

The chief rabbi of Poland said that while "there's not a silence" about the persecution of Christians around the world, "there is not enough yelling and screaming."

Islam Is Like Fruit Salad?

Pope Francis sows confusion when he makes unconsidered or uninformed remarks during his in-flight press conferences, which are supposedly held in order that he might appear honest and transparent.

Barbarians Inside the Temple

By killing a priest as he celebrated Mass, Islamic supremacists have framed their ongoing aggression as a religious war between Islam and Catholicism.

Is It 'Triumphalist' to Acknowledge Europe's Christian Roots?

CHARLEMAGNE'S GHOST

Timothy D. Lusch

Francis speaks to the European body, not its soul. This is a development with grave consequences for the Church in Europe.

Cardinal Kasper's Merciful Incoherencies

AN IMPOVERISHED SPIRITUALITY OF SUFFERING

Christopher Roberts

He proposes an existential approach to God that focuses not on ontology but on the way in which the Bible reveals that the Almighty relates mercifully to humanity.

Pope Francis's Appeasement Plan: Securing a False Peace With Iran

GUEST COLUMN

Timothy D. Lusch

At a time when Western culture has long since excised Christian faith from its core, the lone bulwark against an avalanche of secularism is Rome.

'The Remnant' Crosses the Rubicon

GUEST COLUMN

John Médaille

Debate, dialogue, discuss, argue, or even shout, as your personal taste in such matters dictates. But schism is never the answer.

A Virus, a Crisis

EXAMINING THE FALLOUT FROM ZIKAGATE

Monica Migliorino Miller

Why didn't Pope Francis immediately promote natural family planning as soon as he heard the reporter ask about the licitness of "avoiding pregnancy"?

A New Springtime for Liberal Catholicism?

When John Paul II and Benedict XVI commanded the chair of Peter, conservative and orthodox Catholics knew the pope and Magisterium were their 'court of last appeal.' That privilege now belongs to liberal Catholics.

Pope Francis Streamlines the Annulment Process

WHAT COULD GO WRONG?

Philip C.L. Gray

Salvation of souls requires us to desire and pursue what is true, not to call true what we desire.

The Other Side of Mercy

CHRIST'S MISSION OF TOUGH LOVE

Frederick W. Marks

Meditation on divine mercy is counterproductive if it crowds out our fear of Hell, along with our recognition that God can and will allow souls to go there.

Francis & the Lutherans: Intercommunion Confusion

A joint document published by the U.S. bishops and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America leaves unsaid how "Eucharistic hospitality" can be accomplished without violating Catholic practice.

Crossing the Chasm of Faith & Praxis

THE DO-NOTHING CHURCH IN THE REARVIEW MIRROR

Chene Richard Heady

The late-twentieth-century Catholic Church didn't mean ill; she was simply too exhausted to bother her members much.

Pope Francis Doesn't Need Your Applause

Pope Francis isn't satisfied with the reductionism that narrows the Catholic ethic of life to "no abortion," or the Catholic teaching on the family to "no same-sex marriage."

The Theological Blurriness of Cardinal Marx

German Cardinals Marx and Kasper have implied by their words and actions that national episcopal conferences can form their own doctrinal and pastoral policies apart from Rome and contrary to the Church's universal teaching.

Losing the Liberals

As we mark the two-year anniversary of Jorge Bergoglio's election to the papacy, the extended honeymoon period with liberal Catholics that he enjoyed is coming to a bitter close.

Rabbitgate: Twelve Questions for Pope Francis

GUEST COLUMN

C. Jacob Johnson

If the mothers and fathers of large families seek the Lord and have goodwill, who are we to judge them? Indeed, who is Pope Francis to judge them?

On Pilgrimage with Pope Francis

ESCHEWING SECURITY, HEADING FOR THE PERIPHERIES

Raymond T. Gawronski

Francis allows us to surrender all our preconceived notions in favor of a direct encounter with the Lord of history in the circumstances in which He has placed us.

Aberrations, Confusion, Synodal Machinations

The interim report of the Synod on the Family shone a light on reformers who seem bent on transforming the Church into a replica of the Anglican Communion.

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.

The Blood Crying Out from the Ground

We Westerners bear responsibility for the current sufferings in Iraq. We created a power vacuum there that has been filled by bloodthirsty maniacs hellbent on religious cleansing.

Is Pope Francis a Socialist?

GUEST COLUMN

Steve Soukup

He has said that "sustainable human and social development" depends on "a generous and disinterested spirit of gratuitousness at every level."

Lost in the Plethora of Anathemas

The Pope hurls one anathema after the next. Each time he speaks, each time he gives an interview, he seems to have a fresh target — and many are members of the Catholic Church.

False Mercy & the Integrity of Marriage

Cardinal Burke, the Church's foremost expert on annulment, said the process is "essentially connected with the doctrinal truth" of the Church, and changes should be considered with great care.

How Effective Is the "Francis Effect"?

The alleged "Francis effect" on church attendance appears to be more wishful thinking than actual fact, but the Church's financial figures have experienced a boost.

As the Tables Turn

The shift in the Congregation for Bishops could signal a coming sea change in the type of bishops and priests who are tapped to head American dioceses over the next decade.

Canon Fire: Burke vs. Wuerl

WHOSE VIEWPOINT WILL PREVAIL?

Christopher Manion

Pro-abortion Catholic politicians are unlikely to experience problems with their new bishops in coming years.

The German Question

On the question of how to accommodate second marriages in the Church, most of the key players in the debate, for now, happen to be German bishops and cardinals.

Pope Francis: Put-Down Artist?

Generally speaking, Pope Francis's language of mercy and compassion has been directed toward "outsiders." To those inside the sheepfold, he's struck a startlingly different tone.

The Self-Fulfilling Prophet

Oscar Andres Cardinal Rodriguez Maradiaga has opined, "I'm firmly convinced we are at the dawn of a new era in the Church, just as when Pope John XXIII opened its windows 50 years ago and made it let in fresh air."

Reading Francis through Manzoni

ECHOES FROM THE PAGES OF A BOOK

Francis J. Manion

The main themes of "The Betrothed" include the mercy and forgiveness of God and the corruption caused by love of wealth and worldliness in society and the Church.

Pope Francis: Delight of the World

Jorge Mario Bergoglio is fast becoming one of the most popular persons on the planet, a global celebrity of the greatest appeal.

Pope Francis & the Primacy of Conscience

The most egregious remark in the Pope's interview with Scalfari concerns a subjective definition of conscience, one that the self-described atheist says he "perfectly shares."

The Poor Misunderstood Pope?

While Pope Francis doesn't deny the truth or the faith, he implicitly calls some of it into question, not only by his call for a re-ordering of priorities, but through his uncertain and inexact language.

Is Francis Flogging Conservative Catholics?

Left-leaning journalists trumpet Pope Francis's "new direction," using thinly-veiled triumphalist language to show that the pontifical tables have finally turned.

Dances With Wolves, Vatican Edition

The days of trusting what's going on deep behind the scenes in chanceries and in the Roman curia are over. Transparency is what's needed, not blind trust in some broken bureaucracy.

Action & Overreaction: Figuring Out Francis

Our new Pontiff has new ideas and a new manner of delivery. Even as we are jolted about by his surprises, we see that he is staying faithful to his mandate.

Will the Real Pope Francis Please Stand Up?

Aside from style, Francis gives every indication of carrying on the essential spiritual vision of Benedict XVI, particularly in battling the "tyranny of relativism."