One of the great themes of Easter has always been New Creation - the death of our old selves which we leave buried in the tomb and a new beginning powered by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is undeniable that the darkness of...
The term "the New Evangelization" is repeated often in Catholic circles. But what precisely does this phrase refer to and what's "new" about this particular form of the preaching of the gospel?...
This excerpt from the 2nd century Letter to Diognetus explains to pagan readers how the Church is in the world and not of it, and why this is a cause of persecution. Christians, he explains, are to the world as the soul is to the...
The Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, known by its informal Latin title Dei Verbum, was one of the last documents to be approved by the Second Vatican Council and solemnly promulgated by Pope Paul VI on November 18, 1965. It deals with the sensitive topics...
The Church: From Paradox to Mystery by Henri de Lubac, S.J. [dropcaps type='normal' font_size='100' color='' background_color='' border_color='']I[/dropcaps]n his journeying through this world the Christian periodically asks himself, 'what is the Church?' It may seem to him no bad thing -- particularly if he is a theologian --...
The mystery of mercy revealed in the sufferings of Christ and our obligation to make that extraordinary mercy known to everyone. Our response must be not only prayer, but evangelization. The connection between the Eucharist in which which receive the blood of Christ...
The original meaning of Lent in the early Church and how Jesus' dialogue with the Samaritan woman at the well can help us add another dimension to our understanding and experience of the Lenten Season. In the early days of the Church, Lent was...
All Saints Day gives us the opportunity to honor and celebrate the multitudes of Christians who are in heaven yet who don't appear on the list of canonized saints or have a feast day in their honor. But it also provides us the chance...
Leo the Great on the famous passage from Matthew 16 in which Jesus gives Cephas the new name of Peter, meaning rock, along with the keys to the kingdom of heaven. It is read each year on the Feast of the Chair of...
St. Augustine explains how King Solomon was a prototype or symbol of Jesus Christ and how the Jerusalem Temple was likewise an image or figure of the Church. Only those who build with the Lord build up the church effectively. This passage is...