Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Matthew 8:23-27 – 23 And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. 24 And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. 25 And they went and woke him, saying, “Save, Lord; we are perishing.” 26 And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O men of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea; ….

By Robert Royal, The Catholic Thing – Like many Americans, I’ve been refreshing my knowledge of the American Revolution in anticipation of July 4 this year. And, at the same time, I’m finding myself comparing the Founders’ notions of human dignity with the way the term is frequently being used these days, even within the Church… Like most pre-modern thinkers, the Founders believed that, in each of us, there is something divine (“Men have been endowed by their Creator. . .”).

By Ashlyn Thomas, Catholic Exchange – Catholic educators are now revisiting questions concerning the nature and purpose of education, as seen in the recently released Front Royal Statement. Perhaps among these questions should be whether the near-universal adoption of coeducational schooling has served the distinct educational needs of boys and girls as effectively as earlier Catholic models.

By Dr. Margaret Harper McCarthy, Catholic World Report – This 250th year of U.S. independence is an excellent occasion for Christians, especially Catholics, to consider the values central to the American identity, especially freedom and equality… The current debate over the Christian origins of feminism is a lot like the one over the Christian origins of America. It is argued that the Founders of America and the “first wave” feminists were mostly good Christian gentlemen and good Christian ladies, that they sought inspiration from the Christian Scriptures, and that, therefore, their ideas were essentially Christian, or at least compatible with it. …

By John C. Eastman, The Federalist – Just minutes apart Monday morning, Chief Justice John Roberts handed down two of the most consequential separation-of-powers opinions of the Supreme Court’s October 2025 term… In one, he overruled one of the New Deal’s foundational precedents and dramatically restored presidential control over the executive branch. In the other, he preserved the independence of the nation’s most powerful economic institution by denying the president authority to remove a Federal Reserve governor at will. Both opinions were written by Roberts.

By Matthew Bunson, National Catholic Register – Charles and John Carroll, St. Junípero Serra, St. Frances Xavier Cabrini and Venerable Fulton Sheen profoundly affected the United States and its citizens… As the United States celebrates the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, American Catholics are able as well to reflect on an important truth: We live and pray and work as heirs — sons and daughters — inheritors of faith, successors to holy and extraordinary men and women who made timeless contributions to the life of the Church and of America.

By S.A. McCarthy, The American Spectator – The USCCB speaks eloquently about migrants’ dignity but too seldom about the safety and dignity of Americans… First of all, as the name suggests, TPS is not exactly the same thing as legal status, properly understood. Instead, TPS is intended to be temporary, which is exactly what the Supreme Court and the Trump administration agreed on. Second of all, returning to Haiti is in no way an unsafe or unreasonable option for Haitian nationals.

The Editors, National Catholic Register – A pair of fevers swept across America a half-century ago. The first was disco, the irrepressible craze that got Americans of all ages into polyester pants and out on the dance floor. The second was the U.S. bicentennial, which triggered a surge of patriotism the nation wouldn’t experience again for another 25 years, following the 9/11 terror attacks.

By Fr. Paul D. Scalia, The Catholic Thing – What is a thing worth? In economics, it’s relative. Prices fluctuate. Markets rise and fall. A thing is worth what someone’s willing to pay for it. Back in the 1980s, my LPs were worth a lot. With the arrival of CDs, they were worth almost nothing. Then, when vinyl became cool again, they had new worth… The problem is that we apply the same economic, relativistic thinking to other areas. We fail to recognize the intrinsic worth of anything. Thus, our leaders don’t treat their offices as worthy of respect. Instead of yielding to an office, they twist it for their own purposes.

By John M. Grondelski, Crisis Magazine – A father is not just a sperm manufacturer; his body is not just a factory. Fatherhood is a bond of persons, a communion to which both persons—father and child—have a right. The consequences that follow from paternity without the presence of the father are an injustice, whether they stem from parental abandonment or making a child from a corpse.

By Kevin Killough, Just the News – As media outlets shut down their climate desks, corporations retreat from climate targets, and polls of voters show they rate climate change lowest on their priorities, critics of the “climate crisis” narrative are saying it may be time to move on… American climatologist Dr. Judith Curry on Tuesday announced that she would no longer maintain her influential blog, “Climate Etc.”… “It’s time to declare victory against climate stupidity and move on,” said in her final post.

By Father Jerry J. Pokorsky, Catholic World Report – “Visualize World Peace.” It’s a noble sentiment, but Original Sin often gets in the way of our imaginings… Rather, let’s imagine political parties that seek healthy bipartisanship serving the common good. But the troubles in the Middle East, culminating in the War in Iran, have shattered the traditional political divide of the United States, and events promise to redefine the political/religious spectrum.

By Bruce Fein, The American Conservative – The American Declaration of Independence was thus a miracle.  The 56 signatories celebrated freedom. They signed their death warrants to secure unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness secured by government by the consent of the governed. They denounced taxation without representation. They proclaimed a duty to overthrow tyrannical governments to “institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”

By Matthew Plese, OnePeterFive – Ss. Peter and Paul Are Always Mentioned Together – Ss. Peter and Paul is an interesting feastday as it honors both St. Peter and St. Paul. Interestingly, in the Church’s rubrics, any collect of St. Paul is always followed by one for St. Peter, and vice versa. This custom extends back to the Middle Ages. The Rubrics for the Roman Breviary and Mass, published in 1960, state the following as rubric #110 ….

By Vic and Judy Sower, Catholic Exchange – (My) confessor assigned me the penance of finding and praying the Litany of Trust, and within a few minutes of arriving home, I found it on The Sisters of Life website… When I prayed the Litany for the first time that evening, two verses spoke to me: “That You always hear me and in Your goodness always respond to me.” Jesus, I trust in You. The next verse was “That Your plan is better than anything else.”