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February 26, 2020

Note from the Assistant Managing Editor:

We begin with a Lenten reflection from Pope Benedict XVI, who says that Lent is "not so much consistent with a law to observe as with the very Person of Christ."  It is not simply a season of sacrificial checklists, but a time when Christ asks each one of us to "keep watch with me for one hour" (Mt 26:40).

Even I have fallen prey to the recent Lenten trend of giving up bad habits (like complaining) instead of something I like, even if it seems small (like chocolate).  But "the notion of giving up sins as part of our Lenten resolution confuses the very nature or purpose of fasting, which is to deprive oneself of a good for the sake of a greater good — closeness to and ultimate union with God."

"Physical safety matters, but there are other threats of equal or greater importance — primarily to our real 'first priority,' the obligation to live in the truth."  Lent is also a time where we can move out of the comfort of safety and take big risks for God.  Why not get up a half hour earlier to pray?  Why not sign up for a weekly Adoration hour?  Why not start tithing 10% of your income?  See "Safety Last."

Bishop Paprocki has provided a pastoral guide on gender identity.  "Gender dysphoria is a real psychological condition, in which a biological male or female believes he or she is the opposite gender."  His words are a great mercy for us; we need leaders who will be clear, strong, and outspoken when it comes to the truth.

A blessed Ash Wednesday to you all! - Meaghen Gonzalez



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"The great mystery of our metaphysical situation is that we cannot even be wholly ourselves until we are reborn in Christ." - Dietrich von Hildebrand



New Resources


 
Beginning Our Lenten Journey - Pope Benedict XVI - from the General Audience

On this day, marked by the austere symbol of ashes, we enter the season of Lent, beginning a spiritual journey that prepares us for celebrating worthily the Easter Mysteries.


 
In Praise of — Real — Fasting - Helen Freeh - The Catholic Thing

A pamphlet at my local parish caught my eye recently.


 
Safety Last - Robert Royal - The Catholic Thing

A music critic once wrote about the Austro-American pianist Artur Schnabel that he was great because his motto seemed to be: "Safety last."


 
The Right One for You? The True Love Character Test - Thomas Lickona - from How to Raise Kind Kids: And Get Respect, Gratitude, and a Happier Family in the Bargain

Even in the current culture, most young people still dream of being happily married someday — of finding someone they'd like to share their life with.


 
Bishop Paprocki provides pastoral guide on gender identity - Bishop Thomas Paprocki - Catholic World Report

Bishop Paprocki expounded on the existing policy that schools and other diocesan institutions will recognize students and adults by the biological sex with which they were born.


 
Coming Out of the Closet - Father Jerry J. Pokorsky - The Catholic Thing

At times, priests reveal intimate secrets about themselves from the pulpit.


 
When priests look like coal miners - Father George W. Rutler - From the Pastor

I used to dread Ash Wednesday because of the endless lines of people coming for ashes.

Editorials of Interest:

Beyond Amazonia - First Things
More Than Our Appetites - First Things
Science, Sex, and Suicide - Public Discourse

Editorials of Interest


Archbishop Charles Chaput Retires - CNA

His stances led to him being branded as a "culture warrior" and "political." Yet, he explained that his public stances were required of him as a responsible Catholic leader in the public square.


Beyond Amazonia - First Things

A reflection on the priesthood and celibacy.


"Celibacy is not the absence of passion": Fulton Sheen on celibacy and the priesthood - CWR

In his many retreats for priests and bishops, Sheen often said that priestly celibacy is misunderstood as an undue burden. Rather, Sheen argued, celibacy is a gift from Christ to his priests.


First Mass since Reformation to be held in Swiss Cathedral - NC Register

The last Mass celebrated at the cathedral took place in 1535. After the Reformation, the building was taken over by John Calvin's Reformed Protestant Church.


Historic Iraqi church to be rebuilt - CNA

Al-Tahera church, in the old city of Mosul, was severely damaged after ISIS invaded the city in June of 2014.


Progressives and the problem of being more Francis than the pope - CWR

In many ways, I've been more intrigued by responses to Querida Amazonia than I have been by the document itself.


The English Restoration Has Begun - Crisis Magazine

Something is stirring in England.


Shedding Light on Progressivism's Dark Side - Public Discourse

A new book details the progressive movement's reliance on eugenics and race science as well as its effort to exclude the disabled, blacks, immigrants, the poor, and women from full participation in American society.


Suppress the Legion of Christ - Crisis Magazine

It shouldn't have been established in the first place, and the Vatican had more than enough reason to disband it twenty years ago.


How California's abortion mandate trampled on Catholic nuns - CNA

California could lose federal funds for requiring employer health plans to cover elective abortion.


More Than Our Appetites - First Things

While Fr. James Martin may not be teaching error on homosexuality, his work fails to express, or even take into account, Catholic teaching on a fundamental issue: what it means to be a person at all. The consequence of that failure is confusion.


L'Arche founder, Jean Vanier, guilty of abuse - CNS

Jean Vanier, founder of the ecumenical L'Arche communities used his status to have "manipulative" sexual relationships with at least six women, concludes an internal investigation commissioned by the organization.


Science, Sex, and Suicide - Public Discourse

Why would Scientific American urge a ban on therapies that may free some from an identity associated with greater depression and suicide, and yet never question "treatments" for gender dysphoria that lead to increased confusion, depression, and suicidal tendencies?


Uber/Lyft drivers on the abortion front lines - Catholic Stand

A woman came to the abortion clinic from nearly 2 hours away, and when her driver learned her drop-off point, he used all of those two hours to convince her to keep her child and choose life.


Confessions of a Former Freemason Officer, Converted to Catholicism - NC Register

Serge Abad Gallardo, a former senior official of the French government and venerable master of the Freemasons, reveals Freemasonry's anti-Christian spiritual and ideological roots and its impact on democratic political life.


On Trials and Spiritual Abandonment - Catholic Exchange

May the Almighty be blessed in all things, and may His judgments be adored, for His infinite wisdom knows how to turn to our advantage what seems to us the loss of all things.


When you stop falling, you'll be in Heaven - Catholic Stand

No act of sorrow, no promise to do better next time, however heartfelt it might sound, will do us any good if we do not resolve and seriously endeavour to do better next time around.


Make Architecture Classical Again - City Journal

President Trump should give traditional idioms priority in the design of federal buildings.


The History of the Color Blue: From Ancient Egypt to the Latest Scientific Discoveries - My Modern Met

Some scientists believe that the earliest humans were actually colorblind and could only recognize black, white, red, and only later yellow and green. As a result, early humans with no concept of the color blue simply had no words to describe it.


This illustrated periodic table shows how we regularly interact with each element - Mental Floss

The ability to name all of the elements on the periodic table from actinium to zinc is an impressive feat. Actually being able to explain how each element functions in the real world is a little more challenging.


Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman and
St. Justin Martyr, pray for us

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