Catholic Church

By Michael Heinlein, Editor, OSV’s Simply Catholic - It’s a big year for Archbishop Fulton Sheen and all who love him. It all began in June with the long-awaited transfer of his remains from St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City to Peoria’s Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception. In July, an alleged miracle attributed to his intercession was approved by the pope, clearing the way for his beatification, which is expected sometime in 2020.

Bishop Thomas John Paprocki, Diocese of Springfield in Illinois - “Father Martin’s public messages create confusion among the faithful and disrupt the unity of the Church by promoting a false sense that immoral sexual behavior is acceptable under God’s law. People with same-sex attraction are indeed created and loved by God and are welcome in the Catholic Church. But the Church’s mission to these brothers and sisters is the same as to all her faithful: to guide, encourage, and support each of us in the Christian struggle for virtue, sanctification, and purity. 

By Msgr. Charles Pope - There is a text from the Acts of the Apostles that sets forth quite well some of the qualities of the Sacred Liturgy. Although the “liturgy” cited in this passage is not a Mass, the description should apply to all our liturgies; from the Liturgy of the Hours to baptism, from a penance service to a full sung Mass. Let’s look at the passage and learn from it the power of liturgy to deliver, instruct, and transform us and the world.

By Casey Chalk, Crisis Magazine - First Things has been running a fascinating and provocative series of articles that question the principles and beliefs of most of its readers. In May, it published “Why I Became Muslim” by one Jacob Williams, a Brit who grew up Anglican and then converted to Islam. More recently, the magazine published “Catholicism Made Me Protestant,” a reflection by Onsi A. Kamel, who grew up a “non-denominational, baptistic evangelical,” then seriously considered Catholicism before returning to Protestantism, though one more self-consciously Reformed.