History and Ash Wednesday illustrate a mutual truth: Ideas are much easier to suggest than to suppress.
History
The Irish priest who outwitted the Nazis
My Father’s House centers on Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty, a real life Irish priest who, with the help of an electic group of accomplices, helped shuttle escaped prisoners of war captives to safety.
Review: A Jesuit cardinal in Roman high society
A new collective tribute by a baker’s dozen of erudite specialists adds up to an erudite, if in some parts abstruse, overview of the remarkable life and ecclesiastic career of Cardinal Sforza Pallavicino.
Slavery and the Catholic Church: It’s time to correct the historical record
The history of the church was nothing close to a steady, if interrupted, march to eliminate slavery.
Uncovering the Jesuit influence on Vermeer, one of the Netherlands’ greatest painters
Johannes Vermeer’s renowned use of light may have been more than just an artistic statement; it seems likely it was a spiritual one, as well.
Podcast: Catholics and the crisis of white Christian nationalism
This week on “Jesuitical,” Zac and Ashley talk with Brad Onishi, the author of ‘Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism — And What Comes Next.’
Ignatian spirituality, Alcoholics Anonymous and the inspiring ministry of Father Ed Dowling
How the spiritual sponsor of A.A.’s Bill W. began his ministry
History will not remember your prayers, but they still matter
Before faith becomes a list of what is believed, it is an actual experience of the living God. Our emotions, desires, joys or sorrows are, as we say, touched by grace.
From 1936: Fulton Sheen on Catholicism, Communism and the need for intolerance
If the world is to be saved from the evils of communism, Archbishop Fulton Sheen argued, only the Catholic Church, with its intolerance for falsehood, is up to the task.
French playwright Moliere’s fraught relationship with the Catholic Church: A fresh look on his 400th birthday
Molière faced opposition from church figures during his life over his controversial works. Four centuries after his birth, what religious themes and tensions can be found in his plays?
