Catholic Church

By Prof. Roberto de Mattei, Voice of the Family – And it is in this perspective that we meditate on the words of Sister Lucia with which we opened, and with which we will conclude: “Father, there will come a moment in which the decisive battle between the Kingdom of Christ and Satan will be over the family. And those who will work for the good of the family will experience persecution and tribulation. But there is no need to be afraid because the Blessed Mother has already crushed the serpent’s head.”… This is what the Madonna promised at Fatima, and we, with immense faith, believe her.

By Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap., Catholic Philly – Father James Martin, S.J., spoke at St. Joseph’s University earlier this week on themes related to his book Building A Bridge. And as I expected, quite a few emails arrived in my inbox questioning his teaching on same-sex related issues and urging me to prevent his appearance. A local bishop is typically unable to do that, since most Catholic universities operate under the authority of the religious community that sponsors them… Father Martin has also, at times, been the target of bitter personal attacks. As I’ve said previously, such attacks are inexcusable and unChristian.

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – Democrat presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg finally spoke out about the abortionist from his hometown who hoarded 2,246 aborted babies and kept them as trophies. He said he hoped the shocking discovery of the 2,246 human souvenirs would not stop women from getting abortions, which kill unborn babies, that they supposedly need… Attorneys General in the states of Illinois and Indiana say they will investigate the gruesome discovery of over 2,200 preserved aborted babies found in the home of abortionist Ulrich Klopfer after he died earlier this month.

By Mark Regnerus, Public Discourse – A new study purports to prove the harms of “conversion therapy” for those who identify as transgender. But there are at least four good reasons for being leery of the results appearing therein… In a “study” that arrived to much media fanfare last week in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, researchers affiliated with Harvard University and Massachusetts General Hospital purported to offer convincing proof that “conversion therapy” predicts longstanding toxic outcomes among Americans who self-identify as transgender, including greater recent suicidality and more severe psychological distress in the past month.

By Marc Massery, Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception – Serving as the assistant rector at the National Shrine of The Divine Mercy at the time, Fr. Donald presided over the 7:15 a.m. Mass the following day. “During the Consecration, I had tears in my eyes,” he said. “Afterward, a woman came up to me and asked if I saw the movie last night. She could tell that I was emotional on the altar. It was pretty obvious I had just seen the film.”… He was most impressed by Jesus, portrayed by actor Jim Caviezel. “I don’t think they could’ve gotten a better person than Jim Caviezel to play Jesus,” he said.

By Kristine Canavan, Church, Militant – In an exclusive interview with Alex Marlow, editor-in-chief of Breitbart News, that was broadcast on Sirius XM Patriot’s Breitbart News Daily, Malkin described Bp. Rice’s reaction: I simply mentioned that [the connection between the USCCB and illegal immigration], and as punishment, a bishop in that state of Missouri threatened the funding of the organization that I was speaking to unless they disavowed the 40 seconds out of a 40-minute speech that I had given to this pro-life group.

By Most Reverend Daniel R. Jenky, C.S.C., The Catholic Post – I am releasing my 2020 Festival Letter at this early date in the hope that it may at least in some ways assist a renewed witness regarding the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Most Blessed Sacrament. While every doctrine of our Faith is important, faith in the Eucharist is clearly foundational for Catholic Christianity. I therefore ask that this year and in coming years, at parish councils, religious houses, faculty meetings, chaplain meetings, RCIA and catechetical meetings, that our entire Local Church look for ways to reinforce our teaching and witness regarding the Blessed Sacrament.

By Dr. Michael Brown, The Stream – The Number of Abortions in America Continues to Drop… To be sure, this news is hardly all positive, since hundreds of thousands of babies are still aborted every year in the USA. How excited would we be about a hypothetical headline during World War II that stated, “The number of Jews being slaughtered is declining”? Or, in 1850 in America, “The number of slaves is less today than 20 years ago”?

By Jennifer Roback Morse, LifeSiteNews – Advocates of “unalienable rights,” or “inalienable rights” of the kind found in the US Declaration of Independence, ground their understanding of rights in undeniable and universal truths about the human condition. This is a basic starting point of natural law thinking… Sexual revolutionaries sneer at natural rights and natural law, treating these as self-evidently terms of derision. They seem to think that anything using the word “natural” is a strictly theological concept… But, advocates of the Sexual Revolution often use an expansive understanding of “human rights” to promote their values and visions. Describing “marriage equality” as a “human right” allows them to sidestep the many troubling consequences of redefining marriage. Labeling abortion as a “human right” puts defenders of the unborn on the defensive.

By Dr. Paul Kengor, The Stream – Socialism is, in Marxist theory, the final transitionary step to communism… Here today, I’ll offer merely a snapshot from Vladimir Lenin himself — who, for the record, was a Social Democrat… And what did Lenin say about religion? “Religion is opium for the people,” wrote Lenin in December 1905, echoing his hero, Karl Marx. “Religion is a sort of spiritual booze.”… Sticking to this 1905 statement, Lenin saw socialism as incompatible with religious belief: “Everyone must be absolutely free to … be an atheist, which every socialist is, as a rule.” He declared: “Complete separation of Church and State is what the socialist proletariat demands of the modern state and the modern church.”