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Cardinal George Dies. Tweet from media & link to official announcement. RT @nbcchicago Official announcement on the passing of Cardinal George expected for 2 p.m. Watch it live here: http://nbcchi.com/tqU9DqM

Featured Term selected at random:WHITE FRIARS Carmelite friars so called because of their white habit and scapular. The term is also applied to Premonstratensians and White Canons. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

What Ever Happened to the Spiritual Works of Mercy? By: Msgr. Charles PopeDuring daily masses at this time we are beginning to read through John Chapter 6. There of course is a glorious focus and teaching of the Lords true presence in the Most Blessed Sacrament.However, there is also another important teaching given at a critical moment in chapter 6 that is important for us to lay hold of today. It is a call to recover a greater awareness of the importance of the spiritual works of mercy. We will list what they are in the moment, but for now, consider that, despite living in rather...

As Turkey’s leaders fume over Pope Francis’ use of the term “genocide” to describe mass killings of Armenian Christians a century ago, the country’s top religious figure invoked the crusades and said the furor would accelerate a controversial scheme to turn Istanbul’s most famous historical church into a mosque.“The statement that the Catholic world’s spiritual leader delivered three days ago, saying Armenians had been subjected to a genocide, is extremely spectacular,” Mefail Hizli, the mufti of Ankara, said in a written statement, Hurriyet daily reported.Hizli said the pontiff’s comment “reflected a modern color of the crusader wars launched in these...

April 17, 2015Friday of the Second Week of Easter    Reading 1 Acts 5:34-42 A Pharisee in the Sanhedrin named Gamaliel,a teacher of the law, respected by all the people,stood up, ordered the Apostles to be put outside for a short time,and said to the Sanhedrin, “Fellow children of Israel,be careful what you are about to do to these men.Some time ago, Theudas appeared, claiming to be someone important,and about four hundred men joined him, but he was killed,and all those who were loyal to himwere disbanded and came to nothing.After him came Judas the Galilean at the time...

The Greatness of Little Things: A Reflection on a Quote From St. Augustine By: Msgr. Charles PopeI have found that one of my favorite quotes from St. Augustine  is not all that well known. Here it is in Latin, followed by my own translation: Quod minimum, minimum est, Sed in minimo fidelem esse,magnum est.What is a little thing,  is (just) a little thing.But to be faithful in a little thingis a great thing. (from St. Augustine’s De Doctrina Christiana, IV,35)I first saw this quote on the frontispiece of a book by Adrian Fortescue. Fortescue applied it to the intricate details of celebrating...

April 16, 2015Thursday of the Second Week of Easter    Reading 1 Acts 5:27-33 When the court officers had brought the Apostles inand made them stand before the Sanhedrin,the high priest questioned them,“We gave you strict orders did we not,to stop teaching in that name.Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teachingand want to bring this man’s blood upon us.”But Peter and the Apostles said in reply,“We must obey God rather than men. The God of our ancestors raised Jesus,though you had him killed by hanging him on a tree.God exalted him at his right hand as leader and...

Praying at an outdoor Mass at Wyoming Catholic College College officials believe there are growing threats to religious freedom The decision means no federal aid to finance the annual $28,000 tuition It's part of a national debate over religious liberty vs. bias The college is urging students to seek loans from private banks LANDER, Wyo. — An insurrection is brewing here at Wyoming Catholic College, a tiny redoubt of cowboy-style Catholicism where students learn about horseback riding and Thomas Aquinas, and take grueling mountain hikes conducted entirely in Latin. Citing concerns about federal rules on birth control and same-sex marriage,...

Pope Francis, recently referring to horrific slaughter of Armenians a century ago, set off a diplomatic incident with Turkey when he used the word genocide.* Considering that the Vatican lobbies the Turkish Government for better treatment of its small Christian minority, this is a brave and perhaps costly decision. The controversy holds an unexpected lesson for American conservatives.Armenians call it Metz Yegern, or The Great Evil. In a level-headed article, an Armenian English-language daily wrote: “The killings are recognized as genocide by a number of countries around the world, but Turkey’s allies Italy and the United States have avoided...

Featured Term selected at random:HOLY HILL A shrine of Mary, Help of Christians in Hubertus, Wisconsin, northwest of Milwaukee. A statue of the Madonna, arms outstretched, with the Child beside her, is the central feature of the shrine. The present edifice is the third church built since 1863, when the first log building became to small to hold the pilgrims who came to Holy Hill, where it is reputed that Jacques Marquette first planted the Cross. Now in charge of the shrine, the Carmelites have built a six-story monastery on the grounds. Discarded crutches and braces there attest to the...

Strange but Rich Verses File: What Does Acts 1:4 Mean by Saying That Jesus Was “Eating Salt with Them”? By: Msgr. Charles PopeThere is an unusual verse that occurs in the first chapter of the Acts the Apostles, describing a gathering of Jesus and the Apostles after the resurrection but before the ascension. For the most part, modern translations do not reveal the full oddity of the verse. The verse in question, as rendered by the Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition, is,And while staying with them he charged them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father (Acts 1:4).However,...

"Cardinal Brandmüller: Advocates for changing Catholic teaching on marriage are ‘heretics’ – even if they are bishops" "...Can the Church deal with the topic of marriage in a pastoral manner that is different from the continual teaching of the Church? Can the Church at all change the teaching itself without falling herself into heresy? It is evident that the pastoral practice of the Church cannot stand in opposition to the binding doctrine nor simply ignore it. In the same manner, an architect could perhaps build a most beautiful bridge. However, if he does not pay attention to the laws of...

April 15, 2015Wednesday of the Second Week of Easter    Reading 1 Acts 5:17-26 The high priest rose up and all his companions,that is, the party of the Sadducees,and, filled with jealousy,laid hands upon the Apostles and put them in the public jail.But during the night, the angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison,led them out, and said,“Go and take your place in the temple area,and tell the people everything about this life.”When they heard this,they went to the temple early in the morning and taught.When the high priest and his companions arrived,they convened the Sanhedrin,the...

As world Catholicism’s gravity shifts away from Western Europe and towards the developing world, listening to Africans like Cardinal Robert Sarah may be something that even the most hidebound of liberal German theologians won’t be able to avoid in the future.

The Didache - The Complete Text 1 There Are Two Ways 1:1 There are two ways, one of life and one of death! and there is a great difference between the two ways. 1:2 The way of life is this: First, you shall love God who made you. And second, love your neighbor as yourself, and do not do to another what you would not want done to you. 1:3 The meaning of these sayings is this: Bless those who curse you, and pray for your enemies, and fast for those who persecute you. For what reward is there...

A Short Meditation on the “Look” of Jesus By: Msgr. Charles PopeI have a large Icon of Christ in my room. What icons from the Eastern tradition do best is to capture “the Look.” No matter where I move in the room Christ is looking right at me. His look is intense, though not severe. In the Eastern spirituality Icons are windows into heaven. Hence this icon is no mere portrait that reminds one of Christ, it is an image which mediates his presence. When I look upon him, I experience that he knows me. It is a knowing...

April 14, 2015Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter   Reading 1 Acts 4:32-37 The community of believers was of one heart and mind,and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own,but they had everything in common.With great power the Apostles bore witnessto the resurrection of the Lord Jesus,and great favor was accorded them all.There was no needy person among them,for those who owned property or houses would sell them,bring the proceeds of the sale,and put them at the feet of the Apostles,and they were distributed to each according to need. Thus Joseph, also named by the...

Featured Term selected at random:SANCTIFYING GRACE  The supernatural state of being infused by God, which permanently inheres in the soul. It is a vital principle of the supernatural life, as the rational soul is the vital principle of a human being's natural life. It is not a substance but a real quality that becomes part of the soul substance. Although commonly associated with the possession of the virtue of charity, sanctifuing grace is yet distinct from this virtue. Charity, rather, belongs to the will, whereas sanctifying grace belongs to the whole soul, mind, will, and affections. It is called...

Tonight, NBC airs episode two of “A.D.: The Bible Continues,” in which Jesus’ Apostles and disciples must move beyond the Lord’s Crucifixion and deal with His Resurrection and all that implies for their futures and that of the world.Chief among these is Simon, now called Peter, an ordinary Galilean fisherman who now finds himself the leader of a movement that has suddenly become far more than he ever dreamed it would be — and in turn, becomes more himself then he thought possible.Speaking after a press even in Pasadena, California, in January, British actor Adam Levy (at right, above), who...

Two Gifts of Deeper Prayer: Silence and Spaciousness By: Msgr. Charles PopeOne of the great spiritual battles and journeys is to get beyond, and outside our self. St. Augustine described one of the chief effects of sin was that man was curvatus in se (turned in on himself, i.e. turned inward). Forgetful of God we loose our way. Called to look outward and upward, to behold the Lord and his glory, instead we focus inward and downward, on things that are passing, noisy, troubling, and far less noble. No longer seeing our Father’s face and experiencing joyful confidence, we...