Faithful Adaptations

My wife and I began a new Christmas tradition a couple years ago, and we’re trying to spread it. There is a beer – a very remarkable beer – that’s named after the season’s favorite saint: Samichlaus .  Every year on December 6th, the Feast of St. Nicholas, the good beer brewers of of Austria begin … Read more

I Believe In Samichlaus!

My wife and I began a new Christmas tradition a couple years ago, and we’re trying to spread it. There is a beer – a very remarkable beer – that’s named after the season’s favorite saint: Samichlaus .  Every year on December 6th, the Feast of St. Nicholas, the good beer brewers of of Austria begin … Read more

Little House in Nazareth

This is pretty cool: Archaeologists in Israel say they have discovered the remains of the first home in Nazareth that can be dated to the time of Jesus. The dwelling and older discoveries of nearby tombs in burial caves suggest that Nazareth was an out-of-the-way hamlet of around 50 houses on a patch of about … Read more

Paul Krugman: Save the filibuster! Ban the filibuster!

The New York Times‘ house economist Paul Krugman is no fan of the filibuster… at least, when it’s used against the kinds of intrusive, big government legislation he promotes. In March 2005, he warned America that “extremists” were trying to eliminate the filibuster to push through their partisan (and pro-life) judges. But now that Obama … Read more

In Praise of Credulity

St. Thomas Aquinas was once tricked by his fellow students who cried out, “Look! A flying ox!” Thomas dutifully went to the window to look, and his peers all laughed at him heartily. Thomas’s reply (and one of the many reasons he’s a saint): “I thought it more likely that an ox would fly than … Read more

Poking Around Pandora

As an achievement in technical innovation, Avatar is phenomenal, a ride worth taking more than once, but as adventure movies go, it is impressively new in every way except the way that matters most. Its look will last. But its heart won’t go on. — Jeffrey Overstreet Deep down, Avatar is bone-headed, but it’s also … Read more

The Gospel According to James Cameron

Joseph saw Avatar this weekend so you wouldn’t have to — look for his review later today — but meanwhile, Ross Douthat has some reflections in the New York Times on what he calls “[director James] Cameron’s long apologia for pantheism,” that vague, naturalistic spirituality that he says has held sway with Americans for some … Read more

Spilt Religion

As my readers are probably aware that Christmas Day is approaching, I will flag another religious event that is indirectly related. This is not outwardly a Christian event, nor alternatively “multicultural” either; nor really “upcoming,” since it is already here. Nor is it an “event” in the sense of a holiday, holy day, or anniversary, … Read more

The increasingly unpopular healthcare bill

The more Americans know about the new healthcare bill before the Senate, the less they like it. That’s the unmistakable trend in polling on the issue. But as Michael Cannon at Cato notes, that’s not stopping the Democrats from moving at full steam. Rather than go back to the drawing board and write a better … Read more

QT

I’ve never seen this much snow in Maryland and I’ve lived here almost nine years. We had about two feet in Baltimore — our car was almost invisible under a pile of the white stuff, and everything was shut down. People are now digging out. There’s something magical about a snowstorm in the city. Everything … Read more

A big snow in Charm City

I’ve never seen this much snow in Maryland and I’ve lived here almost nine years. We had about two feet in Baltimore — our car was almost invisible under a pile of the white stuff, and everything was shut down. People are now digging out. There’s something magical about a snowstorm in the city. Everything … Read more

More saints come marching in…

On Friday, CatholicCulture.org reported that Pope Benedict met with Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints. At that time, the pope approved numerous miracles, allowing for the canonization of five Catholics and the beatification of five others. Additionally, ten people were declared “Venerable” — having lived lives of heroic virtue. Among … Read more

To Bart Stupak, On the Eve of Battle

Dear Representative Stupak, Your statement on Saturday following the decision of Sen. Ben Nelson to support the Senate health-care bill was a great relief to millions of Catholics in this country. Your comment that “the Senate abortion language is not acceptable” provided moral and religious clarity at a crucial moment in the history of our … Read more

Sunday Comics: The Jumble Shop pt. 6

Today, we have a quick bit on making jewelery.  This is something my dad once learned to do for my mom, doing everything from rock/gem polishing over to metal shaping.  Talk about romantic!  (Single Catholic lay men, take note.) As always, these pages come from Catholic University’s online archive of Treasure Chest. Next Sunday: The … Read more

Sen. Nelson Caves In to Democratic Party Pressure on Health Care

Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE), the last hope of pro-life forces, has caved in to Democratic Party and White House pressure to support the Senate Health Care Bill. He indicated today he would support the bill based upon the “manager’s amendment” containing the so-called “compromise” language on abortion funding negotiated by Sen. Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA), … Read more

Butterfly

Time for your Friday morning links: Former Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, who had been excommunicated for illegally ordaining priests and for marrying a Korean woman, has at last been defrocked as well. The top five YouTube videos of 2009. Number one might surprise you, in a good way. Gorgeous book cover designs. I want to hang … Read more

A Christmas Favorite

Time for your Friday morning links: Former Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, who had been excommunicated for illegally ordaining priests and for marrying a Korean woman, has at last been defrocked as well. The top five YouTube videos of 2009. Number one might surprise you, in a good way. Gorgeous book cover designs. I want to hang … Read more

Let the Santa Wars Begin

“How can you lie to your children?” one mom demanded of another on an online message board last week.   “How can you deprive your children of the magic of Christmas?” came the retort.   It happens every year — let the Santa Wars begin!   On one side, we have the Die-Hard Believers. These … Read more

Record number of journalist deaths in 2009

Time for your Friday morning links: Former Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, who had been excommunicated for illegally ordaining priests and for marrying a Korean woman, has at last been defrocked as well. The top five YouTube videos of 2009. Number one might surprise you, in a good way. Gorgeous book cover designs. I want to hang … Read more

Friday Free-for-All

Time for your Friday morning links: Former Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, who had been excommunicated for illegally ordaining priests and for marrying a Korean woman, has at last been defrocked as well. The top five YouTube videos of 2009. Number one might surprise you, in a good way. Gorgeous book cover designs. I want to hang … Read more

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