Recently, Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco made the pronouncement that the Catholic Speaker of the House was to be denied reception of the Holy Eucharist because of her support of abortion. Cordileone stated that the Speaker was not to…
Banning People From the Eucharist
More Than Roe: Winning Hearts For Life
As of this writing, it looks very likely that Roe v. Wade will soon be overturned. This was the landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized the scourge of abortion in all 50 states. The decision declared that a woman’s right…
The Company You Keep
“Company, villainous company, hath been the spoil of me.” In this comedic line, Falstaff blames the people around him for his vices. While he may be stating this simply to deflect his own personal guilt, there is great truth in…
Embrace the Cross
One of the most famous images of Our Lord is the one where He carries the cross up to Calvary. We have all seen this very common image of the the entire cross laid on Jesus’ shoulder as He labors…
Why the Pure in Heart Shall See God
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8) One of the most important thing to remember about the Beatitudes from which this line is taken, is that they are not external rewards. God does not…
We Are the Crowd
On Palm Sunday, we will gather in Church to listen to the Gospel account of the Passion. In most churches, this reading will be in dialogue form, with different people reading the lines from the Gospel. Normally as part of…
Lent: Peace and Plenty are Not the Norm
A passage from JRR Tolkien has always stuck out in my mind since I remember encountering it: “The Hobbits named it the Shire, as the region of the authority of their Thain, and a district of well-ordered business; and there…
Be a Valentine
The popular devotion to St. Valentine as a day to celebrate romantic love did not come about until around a 1000 years after his death. Much of his life is lost to us. The popular legend is that St. Valentine…
The Soul and the Brain
I had a student say to me in class recently, “Mr. Grayson, isn’t it strange that the brain is the only organ of the body that named itself.” I thought about what he said for a moment, but then I…
The Meaning of the Wedding at Cana
The Gospel reading from this past Sunday’s mass was the story of the Wedding at Cana. It is very intersting that the very first public miracle Jesus performed was a simple favor to a bride and groom at a wedding…