Catholic Stuff
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I said this several days ago in a comment on the Caelum et Terra blog, and after a day or two decided that it's pretty much my considered opinion: But really, I think we’re all, whatever our opinion of the remarks, making too much of them. They’re only remarks. As my wife said, he’s “sort of…
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I think that’s the question–not “did it do any damage?” Rod Dreher, in the New York Times, thinks it was a lot: Whatever the evangelical merits of Pope Francis’s game-changing interview, there can be no doubt that the pontiff has decisively undercut the efforts of American Catholic politicians and Catholic bishops on issues related to…
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My wife's typically brief and accurate take: "He's sort of loosey-goosey when he talks, isn't he?" Someone else, whom I'll refrain from identifying but who can speak up if he or she sees this and wishes to: "We've got Paul VI again." It was a brief conversation, but what I took the Paul VI comparison…
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I really do want to like this pope. And I really do like many of the things he's said (I especially loved the remark that shepherds should smell like their sheep). But his admirers in the secular media are making it difficult. I know, they always distort things where the Church is concerned, and he…
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It's focused on her connection to two other people: the writer of the profile, and the little-known '60s pop musician Curt Boettcher, who holds a deep fascination for both of them: "She Told Herself She Couldn't Die Because She Had to Write His Story." It's extremely interesting, and a little surprising for the NYT in…
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Time continues to speed up unacceptably. And yet I am obliged to accept it. I thought it was about three weeks ago that pasted the URL for this piece on America's web site into a blog post template intending to write about it later. Actually it was almost two months ago, on June 28. But…
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Found, apparently.
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You've probably heard the story about the priest who appeared at the scene of a wreck in rural Missouri at a crucial point in the rescue of a young woman trapped in her car, prayed, anointed the young woman, and disappeared. No one knows who he is; he's not known in the area. I generally…
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Not about, but by! In case you don't read All Manner of Thing, which you should: it's a prayer diary written in her early 20s, and will be published in November. I'm sure she would never have wanted it published, but I certainly look forward to reading it.
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I could go on for a long time–I've already gone on for a couple of months–planning to write a substantial review of this splendid book of poems, with a lot of attention to its specific virtues. The result would be a pretty good appraisal and appreciation. But I have a lot to do, and am…
Light On Dark Water 