The Narthex

The Protestant Revolution was not the only revolution of the 16th Century.  Just three years prior to Luther’s presentation of his 95 Theses there was an even more earth shattering revolution started by Nicolas Copernicus.  The Copernican revolution posited that the Earth was not the center of the cosmos but…

It was 1953 when I found myself at 11 years old tuning into Bishop Fulton J. Sheen’s weekly Tuesday night commentaries on our black and white television. I don’t know how I got motivated to watch him every week, because my parents weren’t into Catholicism. I was raised a Catholic,…

This time I kept my sign. Heck, I could have been the model for it. On one side there’s a silhouette of a “senior” wearing what looks like my cap. His cane is like one we keep handy at home. On the other side, there’s a Gospel truth: Toda Vida…

For three days in the winter of 1077, King Henry IV of Germany knelt barefoot in the snow, clad in a coarse wool shirt, outside a castle gate in northern Italy.  Inside the castle was Pope St. Gregory VII.  The king desperately wanted the Pope to hear his confession and…

A few preliminaries. I myself, personally, am not that old. Now my friend, and NOR stalwart, Jim Schall, SJ, is really old. He's 91 and counting. Pero como anciano sereno, no viejo nervioso. Still, a week ago on my birthday my little sister sent me a “chipper” card that read: “May your…

Since its promulgation in 1995, St. John Paul II’s encyclical Evangelium Vitae has become like a pro-life manifesto.  It is often cited not just for its eloquence but for its passionate defense of the great dignity of human life.  The saintly pontiff is quick to point out not just the…

My daughter’s coffee cup is big and brightly colored, with a charming picture of a girl on a bicycle holding a flower bouquet. What’s the message on the cup? It’s the heartening sentiment that “Life is a journey!” Hold on, now. Is there a question on the tip of your tongue?…

Cardinal Marx has called for "new thinking" on sexual issues, including celibacy. His liberal perspective reflects pressure to end mandatory priestly celibacy, a contested issue since sexual freedom has become a core principle of modern German culture. Catholics there have become skeptical of celibacy. Last November, the lay Central Committee…

In an interview for CBS’s 60 Minutes, one of the world’s leading experts on artificial intelligence, Kai Fu Lee, predicted that within 15 years robots and associated technologies will displace about 40% of the jobs in the world.  We might quibble over the actual percentage or the rapidity at which…

My brother and his wife, a cousin and I ate at the Yellow Deli in Vista, California, on Monday evening, just before their departure back to New Hampshire. We had spent the day touring the restored Mission San Luis Rey and the nearby Prince of Peace Abbey. After eating, we…

"The Glory of God is Man Fully Alive!" So read an outsize banner hanging in the gymnasium at an Institution of Higher Earnings. Once upon a time I taught there. From the start, the banner’s placement gave me pause. Is the idea that the fitter the student the greater is…

There’s a nasty cold making the rounds. Flu season has officially started. Was that you sneezing? Bless you! Maybe I’ll add gesundheit! Or maybe not, since gesundheit only means “good health,” and once upon a time it signaled a toast. But a blessing is decidedly different, isn’t it? Let’s see…

2018 will be hard to forget. TV specials remind us of “revolting developments” that we’d rather forget. Never mind! Most of us are full of resolve, and other things as well. Por ejemplo, frijoles. To send the old year on its way, I bought a new broom. Maybe it will…

In a tweet earlier this month, Minnesota State University Professor Eric Sprankle criticized the biblical account of the Annunciation saying that Mary did not give her consent.  When the verses containing her fiat were pointed out to him, he walked it back saying that because of the power chasm existing…

Always and everywhere we have high hopes, and they reflect the Birth of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! In our time and place we have particular hopes because of special people -- ordinary people doing ordinary things in extraordinary ways. Last week I met one of them, thanks to…