2019 Summer Reading Recommendations:The Little Prince (or en français) by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Certains livres nous apprivoisent. Ils créent des liens avec nous.Some books tame (befriend) us. They make connections with us. For me, Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince is one … Continue reading
Books
Faithful Justice
2019 Summer Reading Recommendations:On Faith: Lessons from an American Believer by Antonin Scalia On Faith: Lessons from an American Believer is a compilation of addresses, speeches, and excerpts from judicial opinions by the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, interspersed … Continue reading
Untangling Vipers and Draining Venom
2019 Summer Reading Recommendations:Vipers’ Tangle by François Mauriac The human heart is a mysterious thing. As Scripture says, “More tortuous than anything is the human heart, beyond remedy; who can understand it?” (Jer 17:9). A tangled mess of loves, the … Continue reading
An American Catholic Biography
2019 Summer Reading Recommendations:Lamy of Sante Fe by Paul Horgan Many of you have probably read, or at least know of, the classics of Catholic biography. Among autobiographies, few stand out more than The Confessions of Saint Augustine, the Apologia … Continue reading
All Things Work Together for Good
2019 Summer Reading Recommendations:The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni For your summer reading pleasure I thought I would recommend one of my favorite Catholic works of fiction, which you have probably never heard of: I Promessi Sposi (usually translated The Betrothed). … Continue reading
An Unequivocal Endorsement
2019 Summer Reading Recommendations:Conchita: A Mother’s Spiritual Diary by Marie-Michel Philipon, O.P. I seldom endorse books with unequivocal praise. Still less do I endorse authors in such wise, especially if I have not read most (if not all) of his … Continue reading
Liturgical Retreat
2019 Summer Reading Recommendations:The Spirit of the Liturgy by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger It would be easier if she had four arms, but alas, she has but two! Her towheaded boys were squirming and flailing all about the pew, not to … Continue reading
2019 Summer Reading Recommendations
I recently listened to a podcast in which the show host offered a provocative description of a public building that is somewhat distinctive to the American landscape and ethos. He said that public libraries are “temples of sharing.” This initially … Continue reading
May the Bell’s Ring Be Heard
To this day, I remain struck by the ending of Chris Van Allsburg’s children’s classic, The Polar Express, when Sarah, the narrator’s sister, finds one last gift under the tree and—lo and behold—it is the lost bell from Santa’s sleigh! … Continue reading
Suspense in the City of God
Much has been written about the growth of secularism in the modern world, the future of religion in public life, and the appropriate Christian response. I would like to offer another perspective, trying to deal not so much with the … Continue reading
Review: In Honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Tota pulchra es, Maria. Et macula originalis non est in Te.Thou art all beautiful, Mary. And the original stain is not in Thee. Mary is beautiful because God loves her. In love, God her Father created her. In love, God … Continue reading
The True Axis of the Earth
In C. S. Lewis’s The Great Divorce, dead souls ascend by bus from a hellish suburbia to the edge of heaven. For the dead souls, everything in this new land overwhelms. The leaves are heavy, the light blinding, even the … Continue reading
Dominicana Journal: Summer 2017 Is Here!
The newest issue of the print journal is now available. Focusing on the theme of the family, this issue of Dominicana takes as its inspiration the words of Pope St. John Paul II, “As the family goes, so goes the … Continue reading
A Voice I Did Not Know
God never appeared to me and told me in clear and audible words what I was supposed to do with my life. He never told me to be a Dominican. Or maybe He did, and I just didn’t recognize His … Continue reading
The Glamour of Evil
In the middle of the rite of Baptism, right before the water is poured, the parents and godparents are asked if they reject Satan and “the glamour of evil.” It’s a curious phrase. Their whole life ahead of them, young … Continue reading
The Presence of God
Homes are not beautiful if they are empty. Things are beautiful by the presence of God. —St. Thomas Aquinas on Psalm 25 So many today never think of God, and some, even when they do think of God, consider him … Continue reading
Lent, Subterranean
Yesterday, Ash Wednesday, we planted the seeds of our Lenten observance. We committed to prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. We resolved to give something up. Today is our first chance to check in on our progress. How’s it looking? We evaluate … Continue reading
A Song Beneath
Kino heard the little splash of morning waves on the beach. It was very good—Kino closed his eyes again to listen to his music. Perhaps he alone did this and perhaps all of his people did it. His people had … Continue reading
The “Secret” Catholic Weapon
As Mother Teresa passed through the airport security checkpoint, she had to endure that embarrassing procedure that is part and parcel of our troubled times: “Any weapons on your person?” Unexpectedly, the childlike yet remarkably bold sari-clad woman replied in … Continue reading
Tolkien and Hope
Throwback Tuesday I sit beside the fire and think of all that I have seen,of meadow-flowers and butterflies in summers that have been; Of yellow leaves and gossamer in autumns that there were,with morning mist and silver sun and wind upon my hair. I … Continue reading
The Dissolving and Splitting of Solid Things
Throwback Tuesday He stood alone on the stones, his mess-tin spilled at his feet. Out of the vortex, rifling the air it came – bright, brass-shod, Pandoran; with all-filling screaming the howling crescendo’s up-piling snapt. The universal world, breath held, … Continue reading
As You Wish
You are my friends if you keep my commands. (Jn 15:14) Although we can be obedient out of fear, perfect obedience is the result of love. We obey those whom we love. The Princess Bride begins by introducing Westley and … Continue reading
Tsk tsk tsk
“If it’s one thing I am,” Mrs. Turpin said with feeling, “it’s grateful. When I think who all I could have been besides myself and what all I got, a little of everything, and a good disposition besides, I just … Continue reading
The Standing Now
In a few days we will celebrate Christ the King, which anticipates the moment when Jesus returns, time ends, and eternal life begins. But what do we mean by “eternal”? Is it the same sort of eternity as a traffic … Continue reading
Straightening Out the Golden Rule
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” We’ve all heard the Golden Rule a thousand times. We’ve all told people to remember the Golden Rule another thousand times. It seems, though, that nine times out of … Continue reading