Saturday, February 22, 2020013I recently finished a fascinating book by Norman Doidge on neuroplasticity, “The Brain that Changes Itself.” It’s a very readable book about how science is overturning the “mechanistic” view of the human being, which, Doidge argues, has dominated culture at least since the philosopher-scientist René Descartes (1596-1600)....
Friday, February 7, 20200204If posed to a general audience, the question “What is prudence?” would likely elicit a series of memorable and perhaps depressing answers, ranging from “a name for a cranky granny” and “a cool Beatles song from the White Album” to “excessive hesitation in coming to a decision” and “the Catholic way of saying ‘NO’ to...
Wednesday, January 22, 20200109I do not often go to the movies, but I do try to see everything I can by the director Terrence Malick, since I think he is for movies what Michelangelo was for marble — a master of the medium like no other. His most recent movie, “A Hidden Life,” is one of the most interiorly beautiful movies I’ve ever seen. It recounts the...
Thursday, January 16, 20200335This column is simply an exhortation to you, good reader, to watch and ponder the film “A Hidden Life.” The movie chronicles the true story of Franz Jägerstätter, an Austrian farmer, devoted husband, father of three young girls, and a devout Catholic who refused to swear an oath of loyalty to Hitler, and was consequently condemned...
Friday, December 20, 20190174It’s been many months now since the Feast of Corpus Christi, but the Eucharist has been on my mind ever since, especially as Advent begins and we rekindle our longing for the presence of Christ. The feast was first celebrated in Belgium in 1247 and then extended to the entire Church by Urban IV in 1264 in order to affirm the real,...
Wednesday, December 18, 20190183In the book of Exodus, the Lord instructs Moses to build a suitable place for His glorious presence (Exodus 25-40). Described simply as “the dwelling,” the Ark of the Covenant was a gilded wooden tabernacle containing the stone tablets of the commandments and manna, the bread from heaven. More important than these covenant treasures,...
Monday, November 18, 20190118People today are deeply affected by the challenges of unity and diversity, especially the younger generations. These challenges are a chance for the Gospel to show its power.
For some people, our society’s affirmation of diversity must be so uncompromising that truth and unity, and therefore community, become acceptable losses. I...
Monday, November 4, 20190308The recent devastation of trees, homes, and stores by a tornado proves once more the utter powerlessness of man before the might of nature. No matter our planning, our insurance policies, and our efforts to avoid the prospect of death and disaster, the immense and unpredictable forces of earth, water and wind are never tamed by mere...
Saturday, October 19, 2019082St. John Henry Cardinal Newman is an ecumenical saint: that is, he is a saint who in a sense belongs to all Christians, inasmuch as his eventual conversion to Catholicism was preceded by other conversions to other Christian traditions, all of which can be seen as representing a progressively deeper discovery of the Gospel. Before...
Wednesday, October 9, 20190117The canonization of John Henry Newman, set to take place in Rome on October 13, is cause for great rejoicing among Catholics. Regarding the canonization of another Englishman in the year 1935, G.K. Chesterton remarked that Saint Thomas More “is more important at this moment than at any moment since his death, even perhaps the great...
