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A Prophetic Tour in the Land of Ruin Msgr. Charles Pope • August 7, 2018 • At Mass for Tuesday of the 18th Week of the Year, we read from one of the later chapters of Jeremiah the Prophet, who wrote during the time of the Babylonian exile. He serves as a kind of “tour guide” through a land of ruin, one that seems all too familiar to us today.The Northern Kingdom of Israel had been destroyed by the Assyrians in 721 B.C. The Southern Kingdom of Judah, ignoring numerous warnings and calls to repentance, later experienced the same...

Franciscan Media Image: Saint Cajetan \ sculptor: Pedro Alonso de los Ríos Saint Cajetan Saint of the Day for August 7 (October 1, 1480 – August 7, 1547)  Saint Cajetan’s Story Like most of us, Cajetan seemed headed for an “ordinary” life—first as a lawyer, then as a priest engaged in the work of the Roman Curia.His life took a characteristic turn when he joined the Oratory of Divine Love in Rome, a group devoted to piety and charity, shortly after his ordination at 36. When he was 42 he founded a hospital for incurables at Venice. At Vicenza,...

Who Was Jeremiah the Prophet? Msgr. Charles Pope • August 6, 2018 • Jeremiah, Santa Maria in Trastevere, RomeGod called Jeremiah a fortified city, an iron pillar, and a bronze wall (Jer 1:18); a tester and refiner of metals, a tower and fortress (Jer 6:27); a man through whom He would speak against false prophets and shepherds who mislead their sheep. Is not my word like fire, declares the LORD, and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces? (Jer 23:29) Jeremiah would be the voice of that word. Hated and feared by many, yet secretly sought by...

Franciscan Media Image: Stained glass window, Mielno, Poland | photo by Tineau Transfiguration of the Lord Saint of the Day for August 6  The Story of the Transfiguration of the Lord All three Synoptic Gospels tell the story of the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8; Mark 9:2-9; Luke 9:28-36). With remarkable agreement, all three place the event shortly after Peter’s confession of faith that Jesus is the Messiah and Jesus’ first prediction of his passion and death. Peter’s eagerness to erect tents or booths on the spot suggests it occurred during the week-long Jewish Feast of Booths in the fall.According to...

Since 2011, a devastating civil war has pitted Syrian, Russian, and Iranian armies against Sunni jihadis. Turkey has often weighed in as well. The Syrian conflict has also turned Christians against Christians. Some of Syria’s Christians persistently defend Bashar Assad as their lifelong protector. Others believe he is not only a ruthless dictator, but a pawn of Iran — the radical Islamist Revolutionary Shiite regime that has no place for Christians in its ideology. Historically, both tyrannical kings and modern dictators have used Christian minorities as useful instruments in their political toolbox. Notably, Saddam Hussein’s government in Iraq long included...

Between 120 and 200 people gathered outside the Ark Encounter on July 7 to protest on the attraction’s second anniversary. Organized by the Tri-State Freethinkers, co-founder Jim G. Helton said he was happy with the turnout — more than double than last year’s protest. “The Ark Encounter has become a symbol of what’s wrong in Kentucky with the war on separation of church and state,” Helton said. “And when equality is under attack, atheists show up.” Several speakers took the stage to kick off the protest, then the group marched up the sidewalk to the entrance of the Ark. Helton...

By Breaking a Wooden Yoke, You Forge an Iron Yoke! Msgr. Charles Pope • August 5, 2018 • This Monday is the feast of the Transfiguration, which means that we missed reading a powerful passage from the Book of Jeremiah that was otherwise assigned to Monday of the 18th week of the year. It is practical, profound, and sweeping in its implications, and it comes to us from the Lord through the mouth of Jeremiah the Prophet:By breaking a wooden yoke, you forge an iron yoke! (Jeremiah 28:13)Rather than looking at the historical meaning (i.e., that God was going...

Franciscan Media Image: Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome | photo by Gary Ullah from UK Dedication of Saint Mary Major Basilica Saint of the Day for August 5  The Story of the Dedication of Saint Mary Major Basilica First raised at the order of Pope Liberius in the mid-fourth century, the Liberian basilica was rebuilt by Pope Sixtus III shortly after the Council of Ephesus affirmed Mary’s title as Mother of God in 431. Rededicated at that time to the Mother of God, St. Mary Major is the largest church in the world honoring God through Mary. Standing atop one...

Come Over Here Where the Feast of the Lord Is Going On – A Homily for the 18th Sunday of the Year Msgr. Charles Pope • August 4, 2018 • All of the readings in this Sunday’s Mass speak of human desire. In the first reading, the Israelites in the desert are hungry, so are the people by the lakeside with Jesus in the Gospel reading, and in the Epistle, St. Paul warns of deceitful desires. In all these passages, God teaches us that our desires are ultimately directed to Him, who alone can truly satisfy us. Why is...

Franciscan Media Image: Stained glass window of Curé d’Ars | Luant, France | photo by François Goglins Saint John Vianney Saint of the Day for August 4 (May 8, 1786 – August 4, 1859)  Saint John Vianney’s Story A man with vision overcomes obstacles and performs deeds that seem impossible. John Vianney was a man with vision: He wanted to become a priest. But he had to overcome his meager formal schooling, which inadequately prepared him for seminary studies.His failure to comprehend Latin lectures forced him to discontinue. But his vision of being a priest urged him to seek...

Let’s Be Careful in Our Charges Regarding the New Wording of the Catechism on the Death Penalty Msgr. Charles Pope • August 3, 2018 • As most of you know, the Pope has directed that the wording of the Catechism of the Catholic Church about capital punishment be changed. The new wording is as follows:2267. Recourse to the death penalty on the part of legitimate authority, following a fair trial, was long considered an appropriate response to the gravity of certain crimes and an acceptable, albeit extreme, means of safeguarding the common good.Today, however, there is an increasing awareness...

Franciscan Media Image: Stained glass window of Saint Peter Julian Eymard | Santa Clara de Montefalco Parish Church, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila | photo by Judgefloroo Saint Peter Julian Eymard Saint of the Day for August 3 (February 4, 1811 – August 1, 1868)  Saint Peter Julian Eymard’s Story Born in La Mure d’Isère in southeastern France, Peter Julian’s faith journey drew him from being a priest in the Diocese of Grenoble in 1834, to joining the Marists in 1839, to founding the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament in 1856.In addition to those changes, Peter Julian coped with...

The Battle of Anger in God’s Prophets Msgr. Charles Pope • August 2, 2018 • Jeremiah, by Lorenzo Monaco (1407)We recently read a passage from the Book of the Jeremiah in daily Mass (Wednesday of the 17th Week of the Year) that provides an important teaching on righteous anger and the need for meekness. Meekness is the virtue that moderates anger; it is a form of temperance that controls resentment.The biblical prophets were people too, and one of the human passions that most drove and affected them was anger. The focus in the passage is on “righteous anger,” not...

Franciscan Media Image: Santo Eusébio Ressuscitando Três Pessoas | Raphael Saint Eusebius of Vercelli Saint of the Day for August 2 (c. 300 – August 1, 371)  Saint Eusebius of Vercelli’s Story Someone has said that if there had been no Arian heresy denying Christ’s divinity, it would be very difficult to write the lives of many early saints. Eusebius is another of the defenders of the Church during one of its most trying periods.Born on the isle of Sardinia, he became a member of the Roman clergy, and is the first recorded bishop of Vercelli in Piedmont in...

The Experience of Conscience Msgr. Charles Pope • August 1, 2018 • In my online class on the Catechism (for the Institute of Catholic Culture), we recently discussed conscience. Many today confuse conscience with their opinion or what they “feel” is right or wrong. However, the Catechism has this to say: Conscience is a judgment of reason whereby the human person recognizes the moral quality of a concrete act that he is going to perform, is in the process of performing, or has already completed. … It is by the judgment of his conscience that man perceives and recognizes...

Have you ever been mischaracterized? Ever been prejudged, stereotyped, or carelessly lumped into a category that does not uniquely describe who you are? Well then, maybe you can relate with a Jewish believer in Jesus who is instructed by certain Gentile church traditions that his national identity as an Israelite means essentially nothing now that he is "in Christ" where there is neither Jew nor Greek (cf. Gal. 3:28). "What about the promise of the land under the Abrahamic covenant?" The befuddled Jewish believer might ask. In reply, the predominant Gentile answer throughout the centuries has been: forget about...

Franciscan Media Image: Stained glass window of Saint Alphonse Liguori | Carlow Cathedral | Franz Mayer & Co. (Mayer & Co. of Munich) Saint Alphonsus Liguori Saint of the Day for August 1 (September 27, 1696 – August 1, 1787)  Saint Alphonsus Liguori’s Story Moral theology, Vatican II said, should be more thoroughly nourished by Scripture, and show the nobility of the Christian vocation of the faithful and their obligation to bring forth fruit in charity for the life of the world. Alphonsus, declared patron of moral theologians by Pius XII in 1950, would rejoice in that statement.In his...

An Important Question for the Secular World: Why? Msgr. Charles Pope • July 31, 2018 • One of the more common misunderstandings of the modern age—we might even call it a delusion— is confusing explanation with meaning. Using the scientific method and other empirical techniques, we have been able to explain many of the processes and mechanics of the natural world.To give explanation, however, is not the same as to ascribe meaning. To answer how things work is not the same as to answer why they do. Showing, for example, the wonderful symbiotic relationships involved in photosynthesis and describing...

Franciscan Media Image: St. Ignatius of Loyola | Peter Paul RubensSaint Ignatius of Loyola Saint of the Day for July 31 (October 23, 1491 – July 31, 1556)  Saint Ignatius of Loyola’s Story The founder of the Jesuits was on his way to military fame and fortune when a cannon ball shattered his leg. Because there were no books of romance on hand during his convalescence, Ignatius whiled away the time reading a life of Christ and lives of the saints. His conscience was deeply touched, and a long, painful turning to Christ began. Having seen the Mother of...

In the ancient world, four major cities became centers of Christianity: Rome, Constantinople, Antioch and Jerusalem. Though Rome was initially most prominent, Constantinople, now Istanbul, Turkey, rose in stature after it was named the capital of the Roman Empire by Emperor Constantine in 330. “For almost a thousand years the Patriarch of Constantinople presided over the church in the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire and its missionary activity brought the Christian faith in its Byzantine form to many people north of the imperial border,” said Paulist Father Ronald Roberson in his book The Eastern Christian Churches: A Brief Survey. However, over...