nbsp Cambridge MA There is hardly a day left before Christmas little time to stop and ponder the wisdom of the 4th Sunday of Advent but today 39 s Gospel is too important to let go by without comment ldquo In those days Mary set out and went with haste to a Judean town in the hill country w

Fate and forgiveness in ‘Les Misérables’

nbsp The Smart Samaritan1 Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus nbsp ldquo Teacher rdquo he said ldquo what must I do to inherit eternal life rdquo nbsp 2 Jesus said to him ldquo What is written in the Law What do you read there rdquo nbsp He answered ldquo You shall love the L

The wonder of Henri Matisse is that he could render paintings that appear spontaneous.

nbsp No theologian should have the temerity to rewrite revelation It can rsquo t be edited for two reasons First because we confess that revelation is divine in origin The creature cannot correct the creator Secondly revelation can rsquo t be redrafted because revelation is more than a text

nbsp A member of the Knights of Columbus writes on the Washington Post rsquo s website that the fraternal organization led by a former Reagan staffer is suffering from an image problem and misplaced priorities a situation putting the future of the organization at risk Anthony Stevens-Arroyo wri

nbsp By my count today 39 s Gospel Luke 1 26-38 appears four times during Advent nbsp So perhaps it 39 s worth a bit of reflection nbsp What does the Annunciation such a beautiful and strange story have to teach us today nbsp What is it about the Annunciation that is so captivating H

nbsp If good can come out of evil then it has done so with the transformation of President Barack Obama from the sealed-lips on gun control to the saddened eulogist at Sunday rsquo s memorial service in Newtown Conn for the 27 victims mostly grade-school children slaughtered by a gun-wielding

The budget deal may send the rich empty away, but will it fill the hungry with good things?

The Catholic Church in the US made the front-page many times in 2012 With a presidential election in November it was no surprise that many of the stories that grabbed our attention related to politics I asked a group of Catholics mdash priests nonprofit heads campus ministers students writers

nbsp Before seeing the movie quot Flight quot the last time I saw Fordham grad and benefactor Denzel Washington was in the movie quot Elie quot He had just relinquished his license to kill and at death rsquo s door had a religious experience worthy of any of the saints So it was jarring to

nbsp The story of Hannah in the first book of Samuel always tears my heart a little when I hear it Hannah is childless is almost past hoping for a child Yet she persists in praying for a baby Her prayer is answered and she becomes pregnant She promises to repay God for the favor The price

There was once an Advent of some thousands of years.

Gun control is about the defense of life.

No one who preached this Sunday could ignore the tragedy at Newtown Here is a revision of my homily for Gaudete Sunday The original was posted on Thursday of last week They were a middle class family with middle-sized dreams and cares And of course their own holiday traditions One Christmas cu

Anyone with a desire to preserve our planet has no choice but to see Chasing Ice, the gorgeous, inventive documentary released last month. As of this writing it has been shown to selected audiences but has yet to reach the popularity of a film like “An Inconvenient Truth.” Give it time,

Two new collections from Catholic poets have a mystical, almost sacramental quality