There is, to be sure, a stress within the Biblical tradition that God is radically other: “Truly, you are a God who hides himself, O God of Israel, the Savior.” (Isaiah 45:15) and “No one shall see [God] and live” (Exodus 33:20).
Growing up as a Roman Catholic, like the rest of my generation, I was taught a prayer called, The Act of Contrition. Every Catholic back then had to memorize it and say it during or after going to confession. The prayer started this way: Oh, my God, I am truly sorry for having offended thee, and I detest all of my sins because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of hell.
Last week, I gave a presentation at the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops Spring Meeting in Baltimore. My topic was what I identified as the second greatest crisis facing the Church today—namely, the massive attrition of our own people, especially the young.
The account of St. Paul’s address on the Areopagus in Athens, found in the 17th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, is a sort of master class in the evangelization of the culture, and anyone engaged today in that essential task should read it with care.
One of the most-watched reality television programs is the hugely popular “America’s Got Talent.” Each episode features several contestants who try to impress a panel of judges with their singing, dancing, comedy or other talent.
During the years that I served as a religious superior for a province of Oblate Priests and Brothers in Western Canada, I tried to keep my foot inside the academic world by doing some adjunct teaching at the University of Saskatchewan.
There were more Christian martyrs in the 20th century than in all of the previous 19 centuries combined. Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot, and many of their lesser-known totalitarian colleagues put millions of Christians to death for their faith in that terrible 100-year period.
A few years back, I gave a talk entitled “Thinking Through the Transgender Question” at a local parish.
Where should we be casting our eyes? Upward, downward, or just on the road that we’re walking?
Recently a new movie titled Unplanned was released in theaters. It is a story about Abby Johnson, former director of a Planned Parenthood clinic in Texas, who one day saw the ultrasound image of a baby during a vacuum aspiration procedure.