“The man to whom all things are one, who bringeth all things to one, who seeth all things in one, he is able to remain steadfast of spirit, and at rest in God” — Thomas a Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, Book 1, Ch. 3. 15th century + Laity, Obedience and the Pope
C. S. Lewis’ witty and insightful criticisms of scientism, of the notion that the scientific enterprise alone can discover truth, that it can take the place of religious authority, of philosophical insight, and in fact of the whole tradition of humane wisdom, is well known.1 What has been less noted is the critique which he… Read More C.S. Lewis’ Critique of Scientific Knowledge by Thomas Storck
By Gary Potter. The subject here is a movie, one I think could be the most important made in my lifetime, at least in terms of cinema’s future. Its importance doesn’t make it a favorite nor even that I have especially enjoyed seeing it. Do we “enjoy” seeing, say, Shakespeare’s Richard III? A particular production… Read More Terrance Malick’s “The Tree of Life”
Karol Wojtyla (JPII) wrote, “A non-Catholic philosopher once said to me: ‘You know, I just can’t stop myself reading and rereading and thinking over the first three chapters of Genesis.’ And indeed it seems to me that unless one does so reflect upon that fundamental Ensemble of facts and situations it becomes extremely difficult if… Read More John Paul II on the Most Decisive Confrontation —and History’s ‘Last Lap’
“Everything which comes to pass has been foreseen by God from all eternity, and has been willed or at least permitted by Him“. ”Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” (Prov. 19:21) Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange “Nothing comes to pass either in the material or in the spiritual… Read More Garrigou-Lagrange: Everything Which Comes to Pass Foreseen…
Taybeh Ramallah. 1300 Christians still live here: cf. John 11:54 (Eprhaim) CNA 7/1/25 “Father Bashar Fawadleh, parish priest of the Church of Christ the Redeemer in Taybeh, told ACI MENA: “The town, which the Gospel of John (11:54) refers to as ‘Ephraim’ — the place Jesus withdrew to before his passion — is no longer… Read More Priest: Israeli settlers brutally attacking Christians in Jesus’ backyard…
Understanding the Epistemological Foundations of Scientific Totalitarianism. by Phillip D. Collins. Scientific totalitarianism is certainly not a new topic in the halls of political science and history. Given its bloody legacy of democide (i.e., state-sanctioned genocide, mass murder, and politicide) and its prolific spread throughout the world, scientific totalitarianism remains a preoccupying sociopolitical phenomenon of… Read More The Faustian Face of Modern Science
“Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again; for forgiveness has risen from the grave.” Are there any who are devout lovers of God? Let them enjoy this beautiful bright festival! Are there any who are grateful servants? Let them rejoice and enter into the joy of their Lord! Are there any… Read More Let No One Despair! Forgiveness is risen! St. John Chrysostom. St. Francis de Sales.
Alas, it’s been a tough winter here in New England where I live. A couple of weeks ago, while shoveling some of our winter snow, I slipped on hidden ice and took an impressive fall. I immediately knew my right shoulder was likely broken. For about ten minutes I was alone on my back on… Read More A Last Things Podcast
“Man cannot get back onto his feet unaided: he needs the help of the Holy Spirit. If he refuses this help, he commits what Christ called “the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit”, “the sin which “will not be forgiven” (Mt 12:31). Why will it not be forgiven? Because it means there is no desire for… Read More Pope John Paul II on the Unpardonable sin
“We, the Ordinary People of the Streets“. The words express the core of Madeleine Delbrel’s vision: These are the people who have an ordinary job, an ordinary household, or an ordinary celibacy. People with ordinary sicknesses, and ordinary times of grieving. People with an ordinary house, and ordinary clothes. These are the people of ordinary… Read More We the Ordinary
Technology, being neutral in itself, can be used for good or evil. But with the development of the Atomic Bomb near the end of WWII and the proliferation and spread of all subsequent weapons of mass destruction, human kind entered a new phase of evil.+ Today additional technological advances, including total surveillance grids, appear more than… Read More The Dark Technological Grid Blanketing the Heavens and the Earth
The Battle for Britain and Beyond Jacob Rees-Mogg hosts John Anderson in his home for this Conversation. They discuss the roots and future of conservatism, British politics and economics, the role of the West in global affairs such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the Chinese Communist Party, as well as diving into what motivates Jacob… Read More More Rees-Mogg. “The Family Precedes The State”.
Thomas Hobbs writes. “In the introductory voice-over to Woody Allen’s film You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (2010), the narrator quotes Macbeth’s lines: “Life is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” In an interview with Commonweal just after the release of the film Whatever Works (2009) and… Read More Nihilism and Guilt American Style Revisited
Jeffrey Dahmer murdered 17 men between the late ‘70s and early ‘90s, killing them in the most horrendous ways. His killing spree involved rape, dismemberment, necrophilia, and cannibalism. Few crimes in modern history are seen as disgusting and evil as Dahmers’. Police discovered mutilated bodies, refrigerated skulls, a shrine and a barrel with headless torsos,… Read More Jeffrey Dahmer’s Confession
“Sexual expression, whether visual or written,” he speciously says, “can be a legitimate form of artistic expression,” proving he’s no better or more conservative than the rest of them, despite how giddy with pride he makes many conservatives feel, especially those who wrap their egoism in blockbuster podcasts touting American Patriotism and righteousness. Even Catholic… Read More Elon Musk’s X Deploys American “Liberty” for More Sex
“Each According to Its Kind”.by Dr. Werner Gitt. From the creation account, it is clear that all living beings were created in clearly separate groups—each according to its kind. For biologists, kinds of organisms are the fundamental building blocks, just as the chemical elements are for a study of chemistry. Rolf Siewing defines “kind” according… Read More “Each According to Its Kind’
Only Christians know what this “rabbit hole” really is, and how deep it goes. The biblical view of history alone (which the writers of The Matrix could only incompletely sense in some aspects), tells what is happening in its revelations about both good and evil —and where history is headed. WSJ: “The 1999 sci-fi classic… Read More WSJ: “25 Years Later, We’re All Trapped in ‘The Matrix’”
Most truly moral people are shocked at the thought that leaders of a nation could engage in unnecessary wars, kill many hundreds of thousands of people, very likely millions (1) in the process, and still sleep at night and smile on the golf course for the cameras. Leroy Fletcher Prouty (January 24, 1917 – June… Read More Malthusian Wars. Fletcher Prouty.
81% of Enlightenment Americans approve. Divorce in America Gets a glow Up.Axios. Jan 27, 2024. Divorce has become a major life milestone replete with specialized parties, large support networks and a whole industry ready to capitalize on the big change — just like weddings. Why it matters: Cultural attitudes toward ending a marriage have become… Read More Divorce in America Gets a Glow Up
… in the face of Tribulations. The great modern Thomist, Josef Pieper, writes, “Fortitude … does not mean mere fearlessness. That man alone is brave who cannot be forced, through fear of transitory and lesser evils, to give up the greater and actual good, and thereby bring upon himself that which is ultimately and absolutely… Read More Christians, Called to Endure
Conversion to Truth, while totally fulfilling, is never a light matter (Jn. 14:6; Mt. 11:28-39), because the Truth is the Cross, and the Cross is no picnic. “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” — Jn. 16:33 Jn. 15:20,21 “Remember the word that I said to you,… Read More Converts who take root learn fast that the Church and the Cross are one.
As a Christian I’ll eagerly go as far “Left” as seeking to meet the needs of a person’s physical hunger, injury or homelessness; but never so far “Left” as approving absolute “equality” (so-called “equity” today!) in wages; or approving promiscuous immigration, or the supposedly “equitable” availability of abortion, automobiles, personal video games, pornography, sex changes,… Read More Going Left
Updated. Nancy Pelosi vowed to reverse the end of Roe v. Wade ‘one way or another’ By Anders Hagstrom | Fox News Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., urged her fellow Democrats to put the abortion issue front and center in their 2024 campaigns, arguing Republicans will lose big on the issue across the country. Pelosi appeared… Read More Pelosi says abortion is Democrats’ ticket to victory in 2024, accuses Republicans of ‘disrespect for women’
Human Beings have certain rights, moral values, and responsibilities that are inherent in human nature. Natural law teaching is based on the idea that natural laws are universal concepts and are not based on any culture or customs. Still, it is a way society acts naturally and inherently as human beings. “Few ideas have been… Read More The Essential Natural Law. Dr. Samuel Gregg.
“Do you know that we are tremendously powerful already? … I’ve reckoned them all up: a teacher who laughs with children at their God and at their cradle is on our side. The lawyer who defends an educated murderer because he is more cultured than his victims … is one of us…. The juries who… Read More Dostoevski on the Revolutionaries
by Dietrich von Hildebrand. “Although the dethronement of truth manifests itself in the most drastic and radical way in Nazism and Bolshevism, unfortunately many symptoms of this spiritual disease are also to be found in democratic countries. In discussions we sometimes hear the following argument: “Why should your opinion be more valid than mine? We… Read More The Dethronement of Truth
“The Saint is a medicine because he is an antidote. Indeed that is why the saint is often a martyr; he is mistaken for a poison because he is an antidote. He will generally be found restoring the world to sanity by exaggerating whatever the world neglects, which is by no means always the same… Read More Saints of Flesh and Blood
Thomas Storck | New Oxford Review A specter is haunting the Catholic world — the specter of integralism. The most opposed groups — both Catholic conservatives and Catholic liberals, as well as some less informed Catholic traditionalists — unite in opposition to and even fear of it. But what, exactly, is integralism, and what can be… Read More What Is Integralism?
Understanding the Epistemological Foundations of Scientific Totalitarianism by Phillip D. Collins 2009 Scientific totalitarianism is certainly not a new topic in the halls of political science and history. Given its bloody legacy of democide (i.e., state-sanctioned genocide, mass murder, and politicide) and its prolific spread throughout the world, scientific totalitarianism remains a preoccupying sociopolitical phenomenon… Read More The Faustian Face of Modern Science
Catholic Critique 