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A sermon on Ecclesiastes by St Gregory of Nyssa We shall be blessed with clear vision if we keep our eyes fixed on Christ, for he, as Paul teaches, is our head, and there is in him no shadow of evil. Saint Paul himself and all who have reached the same heights of sanctity had their eyes fixed on Christ, and so have all who live and move and have their being in him. As no darkness can be seen by anyone surrounded by light, so no trivialities can capture the attention of anyone who has his eyes on Christ....

The commentary on Proverbs by Procopius of Gaza Wisdom has built herself a house. God the Father’s Power, himself a person, has fashioned as his dwelling-place the whole world, in which he lives by his activity; and has fashioned man also, who was created to resemble God’s own image and likeness and has a nature which is partly seen and partly hidden from our eyes. And she has set up seven pillars. To man, who was made in the image of Christ when the rest of creation was completed, Wisdom gave the seven gifts of the Spirit to enable him...

From a sermon by Saint Bernard, abbot Let us work for the food which does not perish – our salvation. Let us work in the vineyard of the Lord to earn our daily wage in the wisdom which says: Those who work in me will not sin. Christ tells us: The field is the world. Let us work in it and dig up wisdom, its hidden treasure, a treasure we all look for and want to obtain. If you are looking for it, really look. Be converted and come. Converted from what? From your own wilfulness. “But,” you may say,...

We deserve better than Fox News I’ve gathered information for this column from two recent books: David Brock’s “The Fox Effect: How Roger Ailes Turned a Network into a Propaganda Machine” (2012) and Gabriel Sherman’s “The Loudest Voice in the Room,” (2014). Both books deserve serious attention, if only to refute. If you watch Fox News, you owe it to yourself to understand its history and outlook. If you find Fox News unbalanced and unfair, both books offer powerful support. Thinking Americans — whether liberal or conservative — have every reason to feel deeply, constantly, seriously dissatisfied. Consider: (1) Watching...

From a sermon by Blessed Isaac of Stella, abbot Why, my brethren, are we so little concerned with finding opportunities to advance each other’s salvation, responding to greater need with greater help and bearing each other’s burdens? This is what St Paul advised: Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ – or, again, forbearing each other in love. For that is most definitely the law of Christ. When I notice something wrong in my brother that cannot be corrected – either because it is inevitable or because it comes from some weakness of his in body...

From the books of Dialogues by Saint Gregory the Great, pope Scholastica, the sister of Saint Benedict, had been consecrated to God from her earliest years. She was accustomed to visiting her brother once a year. He would come down to meet her at a place on the monastery property, not far outside the gate. One day she came as usual and her saintly brother went with some of his disciples; they spent the whole day praising God and talking of sacred things. As night fell they had supper together. Their spiritual conversation went on and the hour grew late....

Origen's homilies on Genesis Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering, loaded it on Isaac, and carried in his own hands the fire and the knife. Then the two of them set out together. Isaac himself carries the wood for his own holocaust: this is a figure of Christ. For Christ carried the burden of the cross himself, and yet to carry the wood for the holocaust is really the duty of the priest. So Christ is then both victim and priest. This is the meaning of the expression: they set out together. For when Abraham, who was to...

St Augustine's Exposition on Galatians St Paul says, Be like me – who, though I was born a Jew, have learnt through spiritual insight to look down on things of the body – as I have become like you – that is, I am a man. Next he very properly reminds them of his love for them, so that they should not think that he is their enemy. My brethren, hear me: you have never done me harm – implying, ‘do not therefore think that I mean to do you any harm’. My children, he adds – so that they...

Vatican II, 'Gaudium et Spes' Just as it proceeds from man, so human activity is ordered toward man. For when a man works, he not only alters things and society, he develops himself as well. He learns much, he cultivates his resources, he goes outside himself and beyond himself. Rightly understood, this kind of growth is of greater value than any external riches which can be obtained. A man is more precious for what he is than for what he has. Similarly, all that men do to obtain greater justice, wider brotherhood, a more humane disposition of social relationships has...

From an account of the martyrdom of Saint Paul Miki and his companions, by a contemporary writer The crosses were set in place. Father Pasio and Father Rodriguez took turns encouraging the victims. Their steadfast behaviour was wonderful to see. The Father Bursar stood motionless, his eyes turned heavenward. Brother Martin gave thanks to God’s goodness by singing psalms. Again and again he repeated: “Into your hands, Lord, I entrust my life.” Brother Francis Branco also thanked God in a loud voice. Brother Gonsalvo in a very loud voice kept saying the Our Father and Hail Mary. Our brother, Paul...

From the treatise Against Heresies by Saint Irenaeus, bishop The Word of God became man, the Son of God became the Son of Man, in order to unite man with himself and make him, by adoption, a son of God. Only by being united to one who is himself immune could we be preserved from corruption and death, and how else could this union have been achieved if he had not first become what we are? How else could what is corruptible and mortal in us have been swallowed up in his incorruptibility and immortality, to enable us to receive...

From a treatise on the psalms by Saint Hilary of Poitiers Behold, how good and pleasant it is for brothers to dwell in unity! It is good and pleasant for brothers to dwell in unity, because when they do so their association creates the assembly of the Church. The term “brothers” describes the bond of affection arising from their singleness of purpose. We read that when the apostles first preached, the chief instruction they gave lay in this saying: The hearts and minds of all believers were one. So it is fitting for the people of God to be brothers...

It is often pleasant to wish ourselves to a magical world where all is good. It's our "happy place" and I'm sure we all have one. Mine used to include music and I would anticipate "music's biggest night" as a high point in the year. At one time the Grammys was about music. But like MTV, it is not about music anymore, but rather theatrics and agenda. There is a controversy over this year's broadcast about whether it was offensive to Christians. Not that anyone in the Academy of Recording Arts or the industry cares about offending anyone. Christians were...

From a sermon by John the Serene, bishop The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? How great was that servant who knew how he was given light, whence it came, and what sort of man he was when he was favoured by that light. The light he saw was not that which fades at dusk, but the light which no eye has seen. Souls brightened by this light do not fall into sin or stumble on vice. Our Lord said: Walk while you have the light in you. What other light did he mean but...

“OMG! Call Sam and Dean Winchester!”, was the comment on a YouTube video about the Illuminati and the music business. I thought this was funny! I watch the CW show “Supernatural”, where the Winchester brothers fight evil monsters and demons with the help of sometimes flawed angels. But we all know that demons (and the Illuminati) are not real, don't we? Many news services are beginning to rethink that. A story is circulating through the news outlets about a haunting and possession in Gary Indiana. The report tells of an single mother and two of her children who have been...

Conner Mertens, a redshirt freshman kicker at D-III Willamette University in Oregon, did something on Monday night that no college football player on any level had ever done before. He came out, while still an active player. First to his coach, then to his team, and now Conner Mertens is coming out publicly. “I'm bisexual,” Mertens told head coach Glen Fowles via Outsports.com, who informed his young kicker prior to his message that all the coach cared about was his kicker's accuracy. His off the field actions wouldn't affect his playing time, Fowles told Mertens. In fact, when Mertens asked...

From a sermon on the Song of Songs by Saint Bernard, abbot Where can the weak find a place of firm security and peace, except in the wounds of the Saviour? Indeed, the more secure is my place there, the more he can do to help me. The world rages, the flesh is heavy, and the devil lays his snares, but I do not fall, for my feet are planted on firm rock. I may have sinned gravely. My conscience would be distressed, but it would not be in turmoil, for I would recall the wounds of the Lord: he...

From a conference by Saint Thomas Aquinas, priest Why did the Son of God have to suffer for us? There was a great need, and it can be considered in a twofold way: in the first place, as a remedy for sin, and secondly, as an example of how to act. It is a remedy, for, in the face of all the evils which we incur on account of our sins, we have found relief through the passion of Christ. Yet, it is no less an example, for the passion of Christ completely suffices to fashion our lives. Whoever wishes...

In no particular order: It’s just one more place on the Internet for your “friends” to pick fights with you. Make a joke. Express an opinion. Utter a simple statement of fact. Doesn’t matter. Somebody who at one point expressly asked to be your “friend” will harangue you about it. They’re as dumb as YouTube commenters, except they’ve specifically asked to be part of your life.

Q: I have been discerning my vocation, trying to determine whether or not I am called to be a priest. I happened to find a commentary on canon law in my school library… it says that a person is barred from being a priest, permanently, if they have ever been a heretic, apostate, or schismatic. I was baptized outside the Church (Lutheran), and professed agnosticism for a time before converting to Catholicism around the time I was 17. Does that make me incur the irregularity? –Alex