A Happy Death
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.Nature and grace together establish an immutable necessity of dying. It is a law of nature that all mortal things owe their tribute...
View ArticleJesus through Mary
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.Having resolved from all eternity to give us Jesus through Mary, God was not content to make use of her as an instrument. Rather,...
View ArticleSaving Knowledge
“Hereby do we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments” (1 Jn 2:3).To know God and Christ seems to mean to live under the conviction of His presence, who is to our bodily eyes unseen. It is,...
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Father Longenecker's Favourite Novels
Favourite Novels: In the third of a series on a few of Fr. Dwight Longenecker's favourite things, Joseph Pearce asks him about his favourite novels.
View ArticleThe Work of God
Froh erfülle deine Pflicht. It was twenty years ago that I saw this German phrase in needlepoint in an antique shop in the Shenandoah Valley. “Do your duty cheerfully” is close enough to its literal...
View ArticleMatthew 19:16–17, 20–21 with St. John Paul II
“And behold, a man came up to him, saying, ‘Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?’ And he said to him, ‘Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you...
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Father Longenecker's Favourite Poems
Favourite Poems: In the fourth and final part of a series on a few of Fr. Dwight Longenecker's favourite things, Joseph Pearce asks him about his favourite poems.
View ArticleThe Mission of St. Philip Neri
His times were such as the Church has never seen before nor since, and such as the world must last long for her to see again; nor peculiar only in themselves but involving a singular and most severe...
View ArticleJohn 14:23 with St. Gregory the Great
“Jesus answered him, ‘If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.’”John 14:23 is short and sweet. St. Gregory the Great...
View ArticleOn the Holy Spirit
This excerpt is taken from the ninth chapter of St. Basil the Great’s (c. 330-379) On the Holy Spirit. St. Basil is a doctor of the Church and this work is one of the first to meditate at length on the...
View ArticleSt. Joan of Arc
The story of Joan of Arc is preposterous. In what reality could a teenage girl approach the would-be king of her country with an account of angelic and saintly visitations and persuade him to give her...
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Paganism with Father Longenecker
Paganism: Fr. Dwight Longenecker and Joseph Pearce discuss paganism, what it is and what it isn't.
View ArticleJohn 5:13 with St. Thomas Aquinas
“Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the place.”In John 5, Jesus heals a man who is unable to walk and then quickly slips away,...
View ArticleAn Interview with Fr. Daniel P. Moloney
Faith & Culture presents an interview with Fr. Daniel P. Moloney, Ph.D., chaplain at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and author of Mercy: What Every Catholic Should Know (Augustine...
View ArticleMatthew 26:26–27 with St. Irenaeus of Lyons
“While they were eating, Jesus took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and giving it to his disciples said, ‘Take and eat; this is my body.’ Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them,...
View ArticleThe Eucharist and True Sacrifice
A true sacrifice is every work which is done that we may be united to God in holy fellowship, and which has a reference to that supreme good and end in which alone we can be truly blessed. And,...
View ArticleThe Marvel of the Eucharist
We need to understand the marvel of the Eucharist—what it is, why it was given, and what is the profit of its celebration: we become one Body, and members of His flesh and of His bones. Let those...
View ArticleThe Manna and Coriander Seed
Recently, while reading through the book of Exodus, I came to the passage that describes the Israelites receiving the manna from heaven during their desert wanderings. I must have read this verse a...
View ArticleLuke 7:6–9 with St. Thomas Aquinas
“And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, ‘Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. Therefore I...
View ArticleAquinas on True Happiness
Now, one should note that many things are set down here about the beatitudes. . . Yet one should know that all complete happiness is included in these words: for all men desire happiness, but they...
View ArticleReading Sociology for the Sake of the Gospel
Could it be part of a Catholic’s duty to read works of sociology? As a professor of theology most of whose students work as evangelists and catechists, I believe that I should. As St. Paul taught, it...
View ArticleJohn 1:23 with St. Augustine
He said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”In the first scene of the fourth gospel, John the Baptist is questioned by...
View ArticleFrom the Pre-History of Twitter
In 1817, Louis de Bonald published a slim volume written in imitation of Blaise Pascal, Pensées Divers, or Thoughts on Various Subjects. The following selection from Bonald’s Thoughts is reprinted from...
View ArticleMark 12:14–17 with St. Augustine
“And they came and said to him, ‘Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone’s opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay...
View ArticleMark 10:29–30 with St. Teresa of Ávila
“Jesus said, ‘Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold...
View ArticleLuke 8:24–25 with St. Augustine
“And they went and woke him, saying, ‘Master, Master, we are perishing!” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and the raging waves, and they ceased, and there was a calm. He said to them, “Where is your...
View ArticleStones
The life of St. Francis of Assisi has produced some of the most colorful and inspiring stories in the Catholic tradition. One of the most famous recounts his mystical experience at the chapel of San...
View ArticleTrue and False Progress
In 1864, Frédéric Le Play published his magnum opus, Social Reform in France, which offered a comprehensive response to the progressive social theories of the Enlightenment rooted in his extensive...
View ArticleLuke 12:32 with St. Thérèse of Lisieux
“Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”St. Thérèse of Lisieux uses this gospel passage to help her interpret one of the most dramatic events in her...
View ArticleThe Life of St. Benedict
This selection is taken from chapters 33-34 of The Life of Saint Benedict by Gregory the Great. St. Benedict (d. 547) is considered the founder of Western monasticism, and many forms of religious life...
View ArticleLuke 1:28–29 with St. Bonaventure
“And he came to her and said, ‘Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you!’ But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.”In reflecting on...
View ArticleCourtesy
With this lovely poem by Belloc in honor of Our Lady, Faith&Culture begins a series of reflections upon the nobility of the human face. Of Courtesy, it is much lessThan Courage of Heart or...
View ArticleI am a Christian
Our earliest literary record of Christianity in North Africa is a court record. It is very short and straightforward. On July 17, 180, Publius Vigellius Saturninus, the proconsul of Africa, was saddled...
View ArticleAmericanism and America
In 1899, Pope Leo XIII issued an apostolic letter, Testem benevolentiae, in which he expressed concern regarding the development of “those views which, in their collective sense, are called by some...
View ArticleLuke 2:25–29 with Origen of Alexandria
“Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him...
View ArticleA Face to Contemplate
Faith&Culture offers this selection from St. John Paul II’s apostolic letter Novo Millennio Ineunte (January 6, 2001) as part of its ongoing reflection on the nobility of the human face. “Your...
View ArticleLuke 10:2 with St. Bonaventure
“And he said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.’”Jesus launches his disciples on a...
View ArticleMatthew 17:19–20 with St. Thérèse of Lisieux
“Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, ‘Why could we not cast it out?’ He said to them, ‘Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard...
View ArticleThe Revelation of God’s Face
Faith&Culture offers this selection from Benedict XVI’s General Audience Address of January 16, 2013 as part of its ongoing reflection on the nobility of the human face.[*] I would like to dwell on...
View ArticleLuke 16:19–20 with St. Bonaventure
“There was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores.”In this powerful parable,...
View ArticleLuke 14:10 with St. Teresa of Ávila
“But when you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place, so that when your host comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at table...
View ArticleAugustine as Patron of the New Evangelization
As we approach the fifteenth anniversary of the Augustine Institute, it might well occur to readers of Faith and Culture to ask: why is St. Augustine the patron of an Institute dedicated to the New...
View ArticleMatthew 25:40 with St. Teresa of Calcutta
“And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’”Mother Teresa became well known for speaking about “the Gospel on five...
View ArticleMark 3:13 with St. Thérèse of Lisieux
“And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him.”St. Thérèse opens her Story of a Soul with a reflection on this verse. She says that the verse contains...
View ArticleThe Angelic Salutation
Ave, gratia plena.Hail, full of grace.Luke 1:28 Throughout the whole world, the ancient Church was of one mind, always addressing the Mother of God in the words of the angel: Ave Maria, gratia plena....
View ArticleSoporific Power
“Why does opium make us sleep? Because of its soporific power.” So ran Molière’s send-up of self-important Parisian physicians. Sohrab Ahmari’s “The Trouble with Christian Leftism” invites a similar...
View ArticleMale and Female
Faith&Culture offers this selection from St. John Paul II’s Letter to Families (1994) in homage to the incomparable gift that was his pontificate.The universe, immense and diverse as it is, the...
View ArticleA Holy Kiss
Faith&Culture offers this selection from St. Francis de Sales’s Treatise on the Love of God (1616) as part of its ongoing reflection on the nobility of the human face. In a delightful and admirable...
View ArticlePiety and Criticism
In the present time of trial, Catholics need examples of piety and of the critical exercise of reason. These two complementary excellences are on display in the late Fr. Marvin R. O’Connell’s Telling...
View ArticleAsk Great Things of Him
“’All these things shall be added unto you’ ‘He knoweth that ye have need of these things.’ St. Teresa of Avila says we should not trouble our Lord with such petty trifles. We should ask great things...
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