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Many Catholics, especially conservative ones, obviously aren’t thrilled with the pope’s new encyclical. I find myself once again spending a lot of time explaining to non-Catholics why the current pope is either not a Marxist or is being yet againmisunderstood for the 999th time. Frankly, I’ve lost most of my credibility with these folks, who surely see me as a hopelessly blind Catholic. Pope Francis from behind This constant defense-mode has been unique in the case of this particular pope. Sure, much of the fault is with those looking to remake this pope and this Church in their own image,...

Why Is the Road to Destruction Wide and the Road to Salvation Narrow? A Meditation on a Teaching by Jesus Msgr. Charles Pope • June 24, 2015 • In the gospel earlier this week, we read a warning from Jesus that too many people just brush aside: Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many. How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few (Matt 6:12-13). I have commented on this blog...

June 25, 2015 Thursday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Gn 16:1-12, 15-16 Abram’s wife Sarai had borne him no children. She had, however, an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar. Sarai said to Abram: “The LORD has kept me from bearing children. Have intercourse, then, with my maid; perhaps I shall have sons through her.” Abram heeded Sarai’s request. Thus, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, his wife Sarai took her maid, Hagar the Egyptian, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his concubine. He had intercourse with her, and she...

The Mystery of Being a Priest Msgr. Charles Pope • June 23, 2015 • Each year I concelebrate with hundreds of other priests in the ordination Mass of new priests. I find such Masses deeply spiritual. I have no role other than to quietly concelebrate, so the readings and the rites move me deeply. As I sit quietly, I ponder the mystery of my own priesthood. When I was growing up, there was little to indicate that I would ever become a priest. I was not a particularly spiritual child (at least not after age 7). I did not “play Mass.” In...

June 24, 2015 4  Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist - Mass during the Day Reading 1 Is 49:1-6 Hear me, O coastlands, listen, O distant peoples. The LORD called me from birth, from my mother’s womb he gave me my name. He made of me a sharp-edged sword and concealed me in the shadow of his arm. He made me a polished arrow, in his quiver he hid me. You are my servant, he said to me, Israel, through whom I show my glory. Though I thought I had toiled in vain, and for nothing, uselessly,...

Le drone s'élève depuis le parvis de la place des Enfants Nantais et parcourt l'étendue de la façade de la basilique Saint-Donatien, jusqu'aux campaniles : se dévoile alors à nos yeux l'immense charpente mise à nue, carbonisée. Ces images, pour le moins spectaculaires, ont été réalisées par la société de production Colibri

Four Common Tactics of the Devil Msgr. Charles Pope • June 22, 2015 • In recent years there has been a resurgence of interest in demonic possession. Movies and books, along with human fears and fascinations, are largely the cause. Although actual demonic possession is somewhat rare, it does occur. Each diocese ought to have an appointed exorcist to assess possession. This exorcist, with the permission of the bishop, should use the Rite of Major Exorcism when true and morally certain possession has been determined. But because actual possession is quite rare, most of us should be looking out for...

June 23, 2015  Tuesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Gn 13:2, 5-18 Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold. Lot, who went with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents, so that the land could not support them if they stayed together; their possessions were so great that they could not dwell together. There were quarrels between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and those of Lot’s. (At this time the Canaanites and the Perizzites were occupying the land.) So Abram said to Lot: “Let there be no strife between you and me, or...

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis was about to take a major step backing the science behind ­human-driven global warming, and Philippe de Larminat was determined to change his mind. A French doubter who authored a book arguing that solar activity — not greenhouse gases — was driving global warming, de Larminat sought a spot at a climate summit in April sponsored by the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy of Sciences. Nobel laureates would be there. So would U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, U.S. economist Jeffrey Sachs and others calling for dramatic steps to curb carbon emissions. fter securing a high-level meeting at...

Oer the last few years, religion has gained in socio-political importance. For example, although the Tea Party in the U.S. had seemed to be in decline due to a determined counterattack by the Wall Street-affiliated Republican establishment, the Tea Party clearly demonstrated its influence with the surprising defeat of Eric Cantor, the Republican former majority leader in the House of Representatives. . . . . At least in the short and medium term, the revival of politico-religious movements is a fact that left-wing politics can hardly ignore, this brings us to the second question. Gramsci formulated a classic strategic demand...

A Powerful Parable Against the Premises of Unbelief Msgr. Charles Pope • June 21, 2015 • There are many reasons for the unbelief rampant in our times. Among them is the claim by some that because they do not see or hear evidence of God or an afterlife, our belief in these is just wishful thinking on our part so as to avoid the conclusion that everything ends with our death, that this world is all there is. A parable currently circulating on the Internet addresses this sort of unbelief. A Facebook friend (Vicki) called it to my attention. I...

Pope Francis has said people who make weapons or invest in arms industries are hypocrites if they call themselves Christians. "If you trust only men you have lost," he said to applause during a speech about war, money and politics. "It makes me think of ... people, managers, businessmen who call themselves Christian and they manufacture weapons. That leads to a bit a distrust, doesn't it?" Francis also spoke about bloodshed in the Second World War, saying: "The great powers had the pictures of the railway lines that brought the trains to the concentration camps like Auschwitz to kill Jews,...

June 22, 2015 Monday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Gn 12:1-9 The LORD said to Abram: “Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk and from your father’s house to a land that I will show you. “I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. All the communities of the earth shall find blessing in you.” Abram went as the LORD directed him, and Lot...

The same-sex “marriage” vote in Ireland marks the largest victory for the LGBT movement thus far. It’s quite a feather in the gay boa – an apparent success in yanking one of the most heterosexual cultures on Earth out of the closet. In truth, the vote was very likely a rebuke to the Catholic Church, which in Ireland, as everywhere else in the industrialized West, hired a lot of gays to act as priests, who exploited numberless teenage boys for sexual purposes, and then did nothing about it. The Irish Church tried to coast through the crisis, and this is...

June 21, 2015 Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Jb 38:1, 8-11 The Lord addressed Job out of the storm and said: Who shut within doors the sea, when it burst forth from the womb; when I made the clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling bands? When I set limits for it and fastened the bar of its door, and said: Thus far shall you come but no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stilled! Responsorial Psalm Ps 107:23-24, 25-26, 28-29, 30-31 R. (1b) Give thanks to the Lord, his love is everlasting. or: R....

Pray for the Living and the Dead – A Meditation on the Seventh Spiritual Work of Mercy Msgr. Charles Pope • June 15, 2015 • What is the value of one prayer? I suspect it is far greater than any of us imagine. Prayer changes things, sometimes in obvious ways, more often in subtle and even paradoxical ways. But prayer is surely important, even when we don’t experience its immediate effects. Perhaps this is why Jesus taught us to pray always and never to lose heart (cf Luke 18:1). St. Paul echoed this with the simple exhortation “Pray without ceasing”...

Listers, we’ve catalogued the first ten Vicars of Christ for the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. Save the information on our first pope – St. Peter – all the information presented is taken from the Catholic Encyclopedia and links for further reading are provided. 1. Pope St. Peter (32-67) St. Peter held a primacy amongst the twelve disciples that earned him the title “Prince of the Apostles.” This primacy of St. Peter was solidified when he was appointed by Jesus to the Office of the Vicar – demonstrated by Christ giving St. Peter the Keys to the Kingdom. To...

A Summons to Courage and a Reminder of Victory in an Old Hymn Msgr. Charles Pope • June 14, 2015 • There is a lesser known hymn, at least in Catholic circles, that is remarkably appropriate for our times. It challenges us to see the choice before us soberly, and encourages us with the fact that the victory is already ours if we choose Christ Jesus. In times like these we need courage and conviction; this hymn serves as a powerful anthem to such a call. I would like to present the verses of the hymn and supply commentary throughout....

Pope Francis is on an unstoppable collision course with prophetic destiny “And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.” Revelation 16:13 (KJV) Radio talk show host Michael Savage must be a regular reader of NTEB, because we’ve been saying this from the moment Pope Francis was elected to rule the Vatican corporation. People used to laugh when we said that Francis was fulfilling the role of the False Prophet from the book of Revelation, but...

With Republican politicians (or at least their staffs) busy reading, pondering, and strategizing about how to respond to Pope Francis' encyclical on the environment, I'd like to propose that pundits and political junkies play a little game to liven the mood. The rules are simple. Every time a Republican who is a Catholic is asked for an opinion on the encyclical, place him into one of two categories: the Catholic Republicans or the Republican Catholics. The difference between the categories depends on which term is doing the modifying. A Catholic Republican is a Republican whose Catholicism comes first, whose faith...