There Will Be Blood opens in 1897, 15 years earlier than its literary source, Upton Sinclair’s Oil! The shift is significant. In 1890 the Census Bureau declared that the American frontier had been closed and the expansion of the United States from the Atlantic coast to the Pacific had been com

Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.

On the spiritual rewards of business travel

I glanced at the clock on the small table between the bed and the rocking chair: 6:45 a.m. It was Saturday of Labor Day weekend, but every day felt drowned in the monotony of motherhood. The baby would need to be nursed soon. I rolled onto my back to say my morning rule of prayer, at least the parts

Tim Burtons Sweeney Todd, a wicked, bloody triumph of filmmaking, has caught the attention of both critics and audiences and has received numerous nominations and awards. There are, however, a couple of things one should know before buying a ticket. First, it is a musical, which neither the advertis

Do not fret because of the wicked; do not be envious of wrongdoers.... Trust in the Lord, and do good. —Psalm 37:1, 3 While we Catholics profess universality, the fact is that Catholic parishes can differ radically. I do not just mean culturally, in the way that a parish on the island of G