“But who do you say that I am?” (Mt 16:15). Only the faith proclaimed by Peter, and with him by the Church in every age, truly goes to the heart, and touches the depth of the mystery: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16). How had Peter come to this faith? And what is asked of us, if we wish to follow in his footsteps with ever greater conviction? Matthew gives us an enlightening insight in the words with which Jesus accepts Peter’s confession: “Flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my... Read more
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Articles Under: Saints and Holy Men & Women
The ‘realization’ of the Christian ideal in Newman’s sense is but another name for a continual effort for the renewal of personal and community life in the spirit of the Gospel and in accordance with the just demands of the present moment of history. ‘Realizing’ our Christian vocation means, in Newman’s view, making the truths of our faith a living reality, full of practical consequences for daily life; it means becoming true followers of Christ. And, in the lofty and arduous task to which this Holy Year urgently calls us, the thought and example of John Henry Newman bring a... Read more
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Six years ago we gathered in this Square to celebrate the funeral of Pope John Paul II. Our grief at his loss was deep, but even greater was our sense of an immense grace which embraced Rome and the whole world: a grace which was in some way the fruit of my beloved predecessor's entire life, and especially of his witness in suffering. Even then we perceived the fragrance of his sanctity, and in any number of ways God's People showed their veneration for him. For this reason, with all due respect for the Church's canonical... Read more
George Weigel’s second volume of John Paul II’s biography is entitled: The End and the Beginning. In the book’s penultimate chapter he reviews Karol Wojtyla’s life through ‘the prism of the three theological virtues’. 1 By divine symmetry, John Paul II’s General Audience reflections commences where his predecessor, John Paul I, concluded his teaching, on the first three ‘lamps’ of Sanctification’ as John XXXIII called them: Faith, Hope and Charity. The triple grace of baptism Weigel speaks of the threads of John Paul II’s life as being woven into a tapestry of ‘ongoing’ intellectual, moral, psychological and emotional conversion. Through... Read more
An Image for the Faithful We raced from the Mexico City airport, threw our bags in the hotel room, and ran to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe before it closed for the evening. As I stood before the breathtaking image before me I felt…nothing. I could not believe it. I love Our Lady of Guadalupe! I have her picture in my bedroom! Why did I not feel anything as I stood before the actual image? Part of the answer is that she was familiar; I did have her picture in my bedroom, and in my office, and in... Read more
Fr. Peter Conley highlights the importance of saints in catechesis and calls on us not to overlook some of their more unexpected sides. Cardinal John Henry Newman, in his Fragment of a Life of St Philip , has left us an unexpected (and often overlooked) hermeneutic key to unlock the nature of holiness in both canonised saints and those in the making. ‘…a saint’s life may often have in it things not directly and immediately spiritual. To find a saint sitting down to cards, or reading a heathen author, or listening to music or taking snuff, is often a relief... Read more
Fr Peter Conley reminds us of the catechetical qualities of the Pope who had the shortest Pontificate in history. I feel sure John Paul I would have incorporated the title of pop singer Taja Seville’s hit, ‘Love is Contagious’, in one of his Addresses. After all, he did suggest that we should ‘inject others with a goodness imbued with meekness and love taught by Christ’.1 His successor, John Paul II, spoke of him unleashing a ‘torrent of love’2 during his brief reign. The ‘Smiling Pope’ or ‘God’s Candidate’ to use Cardinal Basil Hume’s phrase, implored his audience to ‘throw me... Read more
Sean Innerst helps us respond to the Church’s call to place Christ at the center of our narration of salvation history. The General Directory for Catechesis (GDC) at number 39 says, ‘Catechesis, for its part, transmits the words and deeds of Revelation; it is obliged to proclaim and narrate them and, at the same time, to make clear the profound mysteries that they contain’ ( emphases added ). That is only the first of several references in the GDC to a form of catechesis, the narratio or narration of salvation history, that was a standard part of the initiatory practices... Read more
It is deeply enriching to present the Church’s doctrine on Christ through Mary. The Second Vatican Council taught that ‘Mary unites and mirrors within herself the central truths of the faith’ ( Lumen Gentium 65). Mary is described as a mirror. This is a very helpful image. Mirror When one holds up a mirror one can see, reflected in it, the items in a room. A mirror does not reveal itself, does not show itself. A mirror reflects , it shows realities other than itself that are present. A mirror is supremely self-effacing. We might want to say: a mirror... Read more
Six years ago we gathered in this Square to celebrate the funeral of Pope John Paul II. Our grief at his loss was deep, but even greater was our sense of an immense grace which embraced Rome and the whole world: a grace which was in some way the fruit of my beloved predecessor’s entire life, and especially of his witness in suffering. Even then we perceived the fragrance of his sanctity, and in any number of ways God’s People showed their veneration for him. For this reason, with all due respect for the Church’s canonical norms, I wanted his... Read more