By Auguste Meyrat, Crisis Magazine – It is highly unlikely that any Catholic Democrat would even entertain such an effort. But for Catholics who really do worry about their brothers and sisters around the world suffering persecution, deprivation, and constant strife, they should start considering what they can do personally and stop trying to foist unsustainable burdens onto their countrymen. If the calling is strong and persistent, God might be asking them to serve as missionaries or as the patrons of missionaries, not to engage in nihilistic agitation to erase borders and invite barbarism.
By Fr. John A. Perricone, Crisis Magazine – ’Tis a pity when a word dies. It is conceived in the womb of a certain culture, and it gestates in that culture until its meaning is set as firmly as the facets of a diamond. Words then become the privileged communication of truth to other men. If reckless men begin assigning different meanings to words, different from the meanings that they have borne over time immemorial, human communication comes to a halt. One man will mean one thing, still another man something completely different. Manipulating words weakens a culture, casts it into a spiral of disequilibrium. Chaos results.
By Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell, The Daily Signal – In his State of the Union address, President Donald Trump tapped Vance to lead the “war on fraud” throughout the country… Vance announced the first move in this war on Wednesday—withholding reimbursements for $259.5 million in Medicaid funds for Minnesota pending investigation… “The providers on the ground in Minnesota have actually already been paid. The state has paid those providers the money,” Vance said. “What we’re doing is we are stopping the federal payments that will go to the state government until the state government takes its obligations seriously to stop the fraud that’s being perpetrated against the American taxpayer.”
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Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations: Ask and You Will Receive from Your Father in Heaven
Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Matthew 7:7-12 – 7 “Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For every one who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or what man of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! …
Lent: February 26th Including Today’s Saint: St. Porphyrius, Bishop (RM) (February 26th)
Catholic Culture – The Roman Martyrology commemorates St. Porphyrius (d. 420), a wealthy Greek who became a hermit first in the desert of Skete in Egypt and then in Palestine on the banks of the Jordan. Much against his will he was raised to the see of Gaza, which he ruled with extraordinary energy, ability and success. He almost completely uprooted the remnants of paganism in his diocese. His biography written by his deacon Mark is one of the most valuable historical sources of the fifth century.
Evidence Puts America’s Mail-Order Abortion Policy on Trial, by Jacqueline O’Hara
By Jacqueline O’Hara, Catholic Herald – In recent years, the language of ‘medical consensus’ has been invoked to shut down debate over some of the most divisive ethical questions in America. Mounting legal challenges suggest that what is often described by partisans on one side of the debate as ‘settled science’ may, in fact, be shaped as much by politics as it is by evidence. Nowhere is this tension clearer than in the fight over mifepristone… Pro-abortion activists have spent years downplaying the serious and potentially life-threatening harms associated with mifepristone on the grounds that the medical community says the science of the abortion drug is ‘settled’. ….
The Disturbing Doctor Touring the Country to Promote Her Career of Third-Trimester Abortions, by Ellie Gardey Holmes
By Ellie Gardey Holmes, The American Spectator – Abortion doctor Shelley Sella is so proud of her 20-year career killing babies that she is traveling around the country in a sort of victory tour. Calling herself, in celebratory fashion, “the first woman to openly practice third-trimester abortion care in the U.S.,” Sella has spent the past year promoting her new book and evangelizing people into supporting late-term abortions. Her book, titled Beyond Limits: Stories of Third-Trimester Abortion Care, tells the stories of six babies she killed. And, yes, she herself calls them “babies.”
Why We Can’t Ignore the Growing Threat of Well-Funded Abortion Training Programs, by Michael Seibel
By Michael Seibel, Live Action News – As pro-life advocates celebrate hard-won victories in closing Planned Parenthood clinics across the country, a far more insidious threat has been quietly expanding under our noses… the Ryan Program—has grown into a nationwide network that trains thousands of doctors in abortion procedures, legitimizes the practice as “health care,” and embeds pro-abortion ideology deep within America’s medical establishment… If we continue to focus solely on defunding Planned Parenthood while ignoring this academic powerhouse, we risk losing the long-term fight.
The Bishop Who Predicted Today’s Culture of Death — 50 Years Ago, by Donald DeMarco
By Donald DeMarco, National Catholic Register – Archbishop John Aloysius Murphy (1905-1995), whose life, like that of St. John Henry Newman (1801-1890), spanned the better part of the century in which he lived, is a man worthy of remembrance for several reasons… During his tenure as archbishop of Cardiff, Wales, from 1961-1983, he became rightly known as “The Builder.” When he arrived in Cardiff, there were only two Catholic secondary schools in the whole of South Wales… Before the end of the decade, the archdiocese had established 14 comprehensive schools to meet the needs of the thousands of Catholic children in the region. …
“We Need to Know Where We Are Going”: An Interview With Bishop Erik Varden, by Carl E. Olson
By Carl E. Olson, Catholic World Report – Bishop Varden is the author of numerous essays and several books, including The Shattering of Loneliness: On Christian Remembrance and Chastity: Reconciliation of the Senses. He corresponded with me recently about conversion, Catholicism in Norway and the United States, chastity, synodality, and more… CWR: In The Shattering of Loneliness: On Christian Remembrance, you write: “The mystery of God was made manifest to me in veiled ways, densely embodied. I have lived my way from one stage of awareness to the next.” With that in mind, can you share a bit about your conversion and your journey to and into the Catholic Church? What were some essential moments, insights, and decisions? …
Brother Marco in Munich, by Michael Pakaluk
By Michael Pakaluk, The Catholic Thing – Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s speech two weeks ago at the Munich Security Conference has been praised for its conciliatory tone, and even for its putative revival of grand political oratory. Looked at from the point of view of recent papal commentary on Europe, its origin and destiny, Rubio’s remarks were welcome, but incomplete. Yet he cannot be faulted for that; Europe has left him little choice in the matter… Gabriel Marcel used to say that life in general has an existential character. You must seize the moment, or risk being like some sad ticket holder on the platform who just missed his train. …
SOTU 2026: Now There Are Truly Two Americas, by Scott McKay
By Scott McKay, The American Spectator – And it was on display during this year’s State of the Union… Leading up to President Trump’s State of the Union address Tuesday night, a speech intended to celebrate 250 years — a quarter-millennium — of American success, there hadn’t been this much caterwauling about an elected president by Democrats since Richard Nixon… And when Trump entered the House chamber for the speech, the horrific Al Green held up a sign telling Trump that “Black people aren’t apes,” a reference to a funny AI video a week or two earlier, which had surfaced depicting the political class as animals on the African Serengeti, with Barack and Michelle Obama as a gorilla and an orangutan. …
Trump Touts Economic Turnaround, Border Security, Peace Efforts in State of the Union Address, by Mary Rose
By Mary Rose, Zeale – President Donald Trump declared Feb. 24 that the United States has achieved “a turnaround for the ages,” making a case during the longest State of the Union address in history that his return to office has reversed economic decline, border chaos, and global instability… “When I last spoke in this chamber 12 months ago, I had just inherited a nation in crisis,” Trump said, citing “a stagnant economy, inflation at record levels, a wide-open border,” and “wars and chaos all over the world.”… “But tonight… after just one year, I can say with dignity and pride that we have achieved a transformation like no one has ever seen before — and a turnaround for the ages.”
Pope Declines Invite to America’s 250th Despite Vance’s ‘In-Person’ Invite, by Adam Lynch
By Adam Lynch, MSN – Pope Leo XIV has officially dissed Catholic JD Vance’s formal invitation to the upcoming July 4th 250th festivities in the United States. Instead, the Pope, formerly of Chicago, will be celebrating that day “on the tiny Italian island of Lampedusa — a migrant gateway in the Mediterranean,” reports Christopher Hale, who chronicles the Vatican’s doings with his “Letters from Leo” reports… “… [B]ack in May 2025, JD Vance personally invited Pope Leo to take part in the anniversary celebrations. Many assumed Trump and Vance would welcome the first American pope with open arms during this historic jubilee. But Pope Leo never accepted the offer,” reports Hale, adding that the rejection came days after the Vatican also rejected an invitation to President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace.”
Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations: The Sign of Jonah for an Evil Generation
Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 11:29-32 – 29 When the crowds were increasing, he began to say, “This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Jonah. 30 For as Jonah became a sign to the men of Nineveh, so will the Son of man be to this generation. 31 The queen of the South will arise at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. …
Today’s Saint: St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows
By Catholic Apostolate Center – St. Gabriel Possenti was born in 1838 in Italy and spent much of his teenage years pursuing girls and social recognition. After great tragedy struck his family at the end of his teenage years, he decided to enter the Passionists because of his new devotion to Christ in the Passion. He took the name Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows because his own grief led to a growing devotion to the sorrows of Mary. …
Encouraging One Another in Dark Times, by James Jeffrey
By James Jeffrey, Catholic Herald – One of the more surprising lines of scripture that I have come across is Hebrews 3:13, which simply states: “Keep encouraging one another as long as the day lasts.”… Perhaps it is just me, but I find that short line both striking and rather moving in its simplicity: it is not about God or warning us to pray or about anything obviously related to religion. Rather, it gives a simple message about how we should engage with each other…
Rev. Bryce Sibley: 9 Qualities of an Intellectually Well-Formed Seminarian
By Bryce Sibley, University of Notre Dame – Seminarians often conflate intellectual formation with academics, and while the two do overlap, they are distinct categories. Intellectual formation is more than passing exams or making good grades; it is about forming the seminarian so that he can think with the mind of Christ and the mind of the Church. This formation is about working to develop habits that allow him to study better and to communicate what he has learned. While these are not necessarily measurable, they must be qualities that the formation staff can evaluate.
Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations: Ask and You Will Receive from Your Father in Heaven
Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Matthew 7:7-12 – 7 “Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For every one who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or what man of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! …
Founder’s Quote
Patriot Post – “There exists in the economy and course of nature, an indissoluble union between virtue and happiness; between duty and advantage; between the genuine maxims of an honest and magnanimous policy, and the solid rewards of public prosperity and felicity.” —George Washington (1789)
Lent: February 26th Including Today’s Saint: St. Porphyrius, Bishop (RM) (February 26th)
Catholic Culture – The Roman Martyrology commemorates St. Porphyrius (d. 420), a wealthy Greek who became a hermit first in the desert of Skete in Egypt and then in Palestine on the banks of the Jordan. Much against his will he was raised to the see of Gaza, which he ruled with extraordinary energy, ability and success. He almost completely uprooted the remnants of paganism in his diocese. His biography written by his deacon Mark is one of the most valuable historical sources of the fifth century.
