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The Glory Of The Kingdom

December 24, 2019 Featured Today Comments Off on The Glory Of The Kingdom

By FR. MICHAEL P. ORSI The Bible says a lot about kingdoms. We heard an abundance of kingdom references in the readings for the Feast of Christ the King. In the Gospel (Luke 23), one of the criminals being crucified with Christ (the so-called “Good Thief,” known in tradition as St. Dismas) asks Jesus to “remember me when you come into your Kingdom.” Luke tells this story in a way that emphasizes Jesus’ kingly role, and to show that the new order Christ established among His followers — this assembly (Greek: ecclesia), or church — was indeed a new Kingdom. In setting forth such a description Luke is making a powerful statement that’s every bit as political as it is…Continue Reading

The Magical Journey

December 23, 2019 Featured Today Comments Off on The Magical Journey

By DEREK BECHER So many years have passed so quickly, quietly, somehow without notice. And though I’ve never returned to the wonderful, still countryside I called home throughout my youth, like yesterday, I remember being there, breathing, living there. And while my mind constantly strays to many of those marvelous memories, and my heart coincidentally feels the warmth of each, the fondest recollections I cherish now are of my childhood Christmases. Of these, the one I remember so vividly and right was our trip home every year from the Christmas Eve service. Small though it was, our church was always full, particularly on Christmas Eve. Friends and relations from miles around would gather to warm the church with their presence;…Continue Reading

Li’l Evergreen

December 22, 2019 Featured Today Comments Off on Li’l Evergreen

By DEREK BECHER Li’l evergreen, you sparkle bright, Enlightening dark winter’s night; Your shadows shed upon the walls, And stretch among the house’s halls. For years I’ve set you in your stand At Christmas, with a caring hand, So you could fill my heart with cheer, Making dark midwinter clear. The tiny lights and balls you hold, Glimmer green, red, blue and gold. Your shiny needles — stretching long Wish to dance with Christmas songs. Your branches, some are crooked so, But still, on you, the garland flows. In my eyes, you’re the finest tree To place o’er my nativity. For many days above the gifts Your joy is spread, like snowy drifts; Visitors throughout the season Find your beauty…Continue Reading

Anna’s Wish

December 21, 2019 Featured Today Comments Off on Anna’s Wish

By DEREK BECHER Anna lay still on her hospital bed, which was tilted slightly upwards, while she slept. Her parents sat beside her, with their hands clenched together, sharing a prayer as they watched their only child laboring with each breath. She had only just turned nine, but the brave little girl had fought the dreadful disease with the fervor of a healthy adult, impressing her family and surprising her doctors with her will to live. Outside the window, snow fell gently in the December night. It was and always had been her favorite time of year. Anna loved the snow; she would lie in its softness and move her arms and legs to make perfect little snow angels. She…Continue Reading

As General Election Nears… Bishops Across UK Stress Right To Life

December 20, 2019 Featured Today Comments Off on As General Election Nears… Bishops Across UK Stress Right To Life

LONDON (CNA) — Every voter and politician must resist attacks on the right to life, and Catholic politicians must do so as both a human rights matter and as a “fundamental matter of our faith,” Northern Ireland’s Catholic bishops said ahead of the December 12 UK general election. (Wanderer Editor’s Note: The Wanderer went to press this week on December 12.) “We have consistently said that the equal right to life, and love, of a mother and her unborn child is so fundamental to the common good of every society that citizens deserve the fullest participation in the democratic debate about the legislation which governs it,” Northern Ireland’s bishops said December 5. Northern Ireland’s strong laws against abortion were drastically…Continue Reading

Atheist “Grinch” Organization… Targets Children’s Live Nativity In Oklahoma

December 19, 2019 Featured Today Comments Off on Atheist “Grinch” Organization… Targets Children’s Live Nativity In Oklahoma

EDMOND, Okla. — An atheist “Grinch” organization has bullied an Oklahoma school district into telling third-grade children they cannot participate in a live Nativity scene during their school’s annual Christmas production. Liberty Counsel sent a letter to the Edmond Public School superintendent after Mary, Joseph, and the Baby Jesus were dropped from Chisholm Elementary School’s concert after school officials received a threatening letter from the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF). The FFRF’s claims that the school’s live Nativity would violate the U.S. Constitution were false and simply made to frighten the school district into compliance. Liberty Counsel is offering pro bono defense if the school chooses to resume a live Nativity in the school Christmas program. Liberty Counsel Founder and…Continue Reading

New Jersey Litigation Window Opens… New Lawsuits Filed Against McCarrick

December 18, 2019 Featured Today Comments Off on New Jersey Litigation Window Opens… New Lawsuits Filed Against McCarrick

By MATT HADRO NEWARK, N.J. (CNA) — Two new lawsuits were filed against Theodore McCarrick and New Jersey dioceses the first week of December, after the state temporarily lifted its statute of limitations on sexual abuse allegations. The two lawsuits allege that McCarrick sexually assaulted two males while he was bishop of Metuchen and archbishop of Newark, in some cases at the cathedral rectories. One of the males was a minor at the time of the assault. The other male was James Grein, who originally went public with his allegations against McCarrick in July of 2018 in The New York Times. Grein said he was abused by McCarrick, a family friend, beginning at age 11 when McCarrick was a priest…Continue Reading

Marian Consecration… Reflections For The Month Of December

December 17, 2019 Featured Today Comments Off on Marian Consecration… Reflections For The Month Of December

By DONAL ANTHONY FOLEY December is not only the time when we prepare for Christmas, but also the month when we celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. The belief underlying this feast, that our Lady from the first moment of her existence was, unlike the rest of humankind, free from original sin, goes back to the early days of the Church. But it was only officially dogmatically defined by Pope Pius IX in 1854, in the bull Ineffabilis Deus, which declared it to be an article of faith for Catholics. Four years later, when the Blessed Virgin appeared to St. Bernadette at Lourdes, she told the young seer that she was the “Immaculate Conception.” But even before Lourdes, during…Continue Reading

A Book Review… Two Useful History Books For Teachers, Parents, And Catechists

December 16, 2019 Featured Today Comments Off on A Book Review… Two Useful History Books For Teachers, Parents, And Catechists

By JAMES BARESEL The Early Church (33-313) by James Papandrea, Ave Maria Press, 2019. The Church and the Roman Empire (301-490) by Mike Aquilina, Ave Maria Press, 2019. Both books are available at amazon.com. Twenty years ago, when I was in high school and developing a serious interest in Catholicism, those looking for orthodox introductory books on theology and Church history were, with some notable exceptions, largely forced to rely on works which were at least half a century old, though often available in reprint editions. Matters have dramatically improved since then, with more new books of theology and Church history by faithful writers coming out each year than can easily be kept track of, books which range from the…Continue Reading

House Democrats Don’t Want To Know The Truth

December 15, 2019 Featured Today Comments Off on House Democrats Don’t Want To Know The Truth

By TERENCE P. JEFFREY In April 2014, then-President Barack Obama signed a law authorizing loan guarantees for Ukraine. That same month, then-Vice President Joe Biden went to Ukraine and made these points: The Obama administration was going to guarantee $1 billion in loans to Ukraine, and the United States was going to help Ukraine develop its energy industry. “Just last week the United States government signed a bill proposed by our administration for a $1 billion loan guarantee agreement with Ukraine,” Biden said in Kyiv. “With the right investments and the right choices,” Biden said, “Ukraine can reduce its energy dependence and increase its energy security. We will stand with you to help in every way we can for you…Continue Reading