The Washington Post has an interesting nbsp profile of Msgr Guido Marini the Vatican s Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations a nbsp Vatican nbsp post nbsp whose nbsp influence lies in among other things nbsp its capacity to influence liturgical practices worldwide given how closely papa

Several months ago America reported on the Gender Gap for Development Goals in Central and South America especially countries like Panama Venezuela Brazil and Mexico--where more than half of women who work in non-farm jobs have no benefits or security One reason for this of course is lack o

The mere mention of The Boston Globe causes terror and anxiety in some Catholic circles so it was a pleasant surprise to read not one but two uplifting stories in this past Sunday s edition Both focused on the ministry of Boston s leader Cardinal Sean O Malley The first appearing above the fol

Check out Chris Wallace s interview of Washington s Cardinal Donald Wuerl on Fox News Sunday Wuerl highlights his efforts at new evangelization and the need for respect in discourse as well as Don t Ask Don t Tell of which he says that there is no official Church stance Have a look below

Not long ago two young children helped me see the Nativity of Jesus in a new way Their presence in my life made the Christmas story an entirely new experience When I first started meditating on the Nativity passages as a Jesuit novice more than 20 years ago my prayer and reading focused largely

nbsp Here in the UK we have been treated to a wonderful four-part dramatization of the Nativity broadcast on BBC TV in prime time each evening this week The Nativity is writtten by Tony Jordan who is something like royalty in the world of soap scriptwriting It is co-produced by the BBC an

When I was 5 or 6 years old I convinced my mother that I should sleep under the Christmas tree so that I could wait for Santa and greet him when he arrived at our house I don rsquo t recall much of the rest of that night but I have always been a fitful sleeper and I rolled into the tree and crash

A perfect two-minute reflection on the true meaning of Christmas Enjoy and Merry Christmas

Pope Benedict XVI s historic three-minute BBC broadcast this morning nbsp -- see yesterday s post -- can be heard and read here nbsp It began with words of fond recollection of his UK visit in September and ended with warm assurances of his prayers for the English-speaking people of the world wi

Every one of the canonical Gospels insists on starting its story with the identification of Jesus as divine nbsp It is Matthew by linking Isaiah with the child conceived through the Holy Spirit who uses the word Immanuel of him nbsp imm with anu us el God nbsp As Matthew draws the r

Cambridge MA Taking a deep breath at semester rsquo s end mdash nbsp a semester that has in some ways seemed an eternity mdash nbsp I had the opportunity to look into Pope Benedict rsquo s Light of the World a series of conversations with journalist Peter Seewald that for various reasons has

Tomorrow morning London time 0745 Christmas Eve a little bit of history will be made It s not clear for whom it is more momentous the BBC or the papacy It may be just a one-off but it s still a milestone in church communications When Pope Benedict XVI tomorrow gives a three-minute 2 40 mi

The claim that Christians chose December 25th as Jesus' birthday because it coincided with pagan celebrations is probably incorrect.

Each year at Christmastime the 35 or so of us who comprise my extended family gather at an old mansion of sorts on the Rhode Island coast to celebrate the season spend time with one another and as we grow a bit older catch up on what we are doing with our lives As many headed to bed and the res

If we fail to consider the difficulties faced by the Holy Family, we can be lulled into thinking that the first Christmas was a familiar, even cozy, affair.

When I began writing for In All Things in the Spring I hoped to get across a few ideas on psychology and Catholicism but the task has grown greater and more enjoyable I m very grateful for everyone who has read my thoughts offered responses and challenges and shown interest in other topics pl

Following up on Jim Keane s post below don t miss Grant Gallicho s post over at Dotcommonweal on Bishop Olmsted s decision to strip St Joseph s Hospital of its Catholic status nbsp It s a lot more nuanced than today s New York Times editorial which referred approvingly to the hospital s aborti

This O-antiphon explicitly looks to the universality of Jesus nbsp Thus King of the nations is a title which brings up the subject of the Gentiles within Jewish thinking nbsp A few brief remarks about this are in order First as Acts points out the acceptance of Gentiles into the Christian c

This is a repost of a nbsp post that was accidentally deleted when I pushed the wrong button nbsp Here rsquo s a line from The Catechism of the Catholic Church that is not I would wager particularly well known nbsp It has to do with the overall treatment of gays and lesbians in modern societ

In the midst of this blog s focus on Advent properly I might say and the liturgical year in general which is the focus of the Catholic Church s activities the year round an interesting challenge of sorts comes from the blog nbsp Inhabitatio Dei in the post The Impotence of the Liturgical Year