January 24, 2017
During these days of transition in government, temperance in expectations is a wise policy based on experience. Calvin Coolidge said, “It is a great advantage to a president, and a major source of safety to the country, for him to know he is not a great man.” The Yankee farmer was frugal with words, but they were not cheap.
January 17, 2017
We do not need Einstein to tell us that time is variable, or can “bend.” A half hour having a tooth pulled is much longer than a half hour having a drink with friends. Here in New York on New Year’s Day, the Q line extension on Second Avenue was opened, saving subway commuters a couple of minutes to travel about two miles. It cost billions of dollars, as did the Number 7 extension that saved a few minutes from
January 10, 2017
Painting landscapes in the classical academies was done indoors, to “improve upon nature” the way formal gardens arrange flowers according to geometry. In the nineteenth century, the painters of
December 27, 2016
Thomas Sowell is one of the most incisive economists of our times and has been a weekly syndicated columnist for over a quarter of a century. This week he bids farewell to his readers to, at age 86, pursue other passions that include
December 25, 2016
In the days before computer screens, when parchments and wax tablets were costly, the writing on them could be scraped off and replaced with new script. That which replaced the old was a “palimpsest,” and sometimes bits of the old text could still be seen under the new.
December 13, 2016
It has been a wonderful year. I can say that now, I could not have before knowing the results of the Presidential election. There is still much unknown about the
December 6, 2016
Brush off those memories of college and young adult days. What things did you do, or think, or say, that make you wince today? Think back just three months ago… I bet you’ll find a few things for which you’d like to call a mulligan (or maybe you already have done that, through the blessed sacrament of Confession). Even in business, how many times have you wished you knew then what you know now?! The truth is, we are human, not angels. We live in the physical world; soul AND body. It’s a precarious path we tread, every minute of our lives, and yet we take so much for granted. But two realities put the matter into sharp
It was a privilege years ago to know the English theologian Alec Vidler, a colorful and even eccentric character whose long beard amused the Queen when he was her chaplain and whose religious views irritated many. He was a good friend of C.S. Lewis and, especially, Malcolm Muggeridge, who agreed to disagree with him.
November 27, 2016
In the winter months, it would be salutary for people young and old to put down their iPods and other electronic devices and tell each other stories. Any subject will do, and I submit as an example the curious saga of the
November 22, 2016
VENTURA, CA—Los Angeles Archbishop José H. Gomez has appointed Bishop Robert E. Barron to serve on the board of The Institute for Catholic Liberal Education (ICLE), a Ventura-based nonprofit dedicated to serving Catholic educators nationwide through an understanding and appreciation for the riches of authentic Catholic education.
November 18, 2016
While reading a daily devotional on election day a single sentence caught my attention because of its simple yet profound accuracy, “As Christians we know asking Jesus for help is the best way to fix our problems”. Literally millions of prayers were answered with the defeat of Hillary Clinton for President of the United States and the rejection of the policies of Barack Obama. In he
November 17, 2016
Experience can be a valuable teacher, but only if one learns the right lessons. Let’s make sure we learn the right lessons from the latest presidential campaign so America can move forward. Far too many people are drawing the wrong conclusions.
One such errant interpretation came from
November 13, 2016
The schedule for putting together a parish bulletin requires that I write this before Election Day. But as in all decisive moments, the words of Winston Churchill after the Battle of Egypt in 1942 have generic application: “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”
The same may be said of each important decision in anyone’s life. Churchill spoke on a day in
November 9, 2016
In a crushing defeat for pro-abortion advocates, mainstream news reporters and their pollsters, Donald Trump becomes the 45th President of the United States of America, and Michael Pence, the nation’s Vice President-elect. “The forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer,” says Trump in his call for
November 8, 2016
Regardless of who we like or don’t like, as a Catholic and as a citizen of the United States of America, it’s our civic duty—and our great privilege—to cast our vote today. As a Catholic, it’s also our moral, religious and common sense duty to vote with integrity and with a well-formed conscience, putting resepect for each individual human life—especially the innocent, defenseless unborn—first and foremost.
Think about it. You and I had no say whether or not we would be born. We had no say who our parents or siblings or relatives would be. We had no say in which part of
November 6, 2016
Today a long-forgotten crucifix will be placed once again in the Basilica of Saint Peter in Rome. It will hang in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel near Bernini’s great tabernacle. Bernini himself would have admired the work of the anonymous artist, for its mediaeval style anticipated the spirit of the more exuberant
November 2, 2016
Exactly eight years ago I wrote a column titled “The One We Were Waiting For” in which I referred to a book by Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson, The Lord of the World. That dystopian novel has been cited by Pope Benedict XVI, and Pope Francis said he has read it several times.
November 1, 2016
In an historic action, just two weeks before the election, 26 prominent African-American church pastors and religious leaders delivered a letter to Hillary Clinton on Monday. The 26 signees include Jacqueline Rivers of the Seymour Institute for Black Church and Policy
November 1, 2016
In a triumph of investigative journalism, the BBC has released a Report, “China’s forbidden babies still an issue,” conf
October 25, 2016
Catholic business professionals of the Catholics at Work OC business club in Orange County, California, integrated more than business and faith this month. As part of a membership drive, the innovative club sponsored the an event that included a private screening of the film “Hacksaw Ridge,” a reception hosted by the Orange Catholic Foundation, and a live taping of “Storyented” with EWTN’