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Sermon of the Right Reverend Dom Jean PateauAbbot of Our Lady of FontgombaultFontgombault, December 25, 2014 Natus est vobis hodie Salvator. For unto you is born this day a Saviour. (Lk 2:11) Dear Brothers and Sisters, My dearly beloved Sons, On this holy night, let us greet anew the divine Child Who has come to bring on our earth the fire of uncreated Love. Let us hasten towards the Crib where the Word of God, the Almighty Word, is born to us from the Blessed Virgin Mary. Let us not forget that today in the Holy Land which was in...

At almost the same moment that Cardinal Raymond Burke said in an interview that those defending Catholic moral teaching – and the practice of barring people in irregular sexual unions from receiving Communion – are being marginalized within the Church, the Catholic bishops of England and Wales have issued a document for clergy that all but accuses such Catholics of the ancient Donatist heresy. In a “Reflection Document for Clergy,” the English bishops appear to follow the line of Cardinal Walter Kasper and his followers, saying, “It is not for us to make rash or premature conclusions” about people living...

THE FIRST CHRISTMAS CAROL"Lo! I Arrive To Do Thy Will!"Introduction: Have you ever considered, What is the first Christmas Carol?A carol is a song of joyful praise involving the birth of The Lord Jesus Christ. The first carol goes all the way back to the night in which The Lord Jesus Christ was born. No, it was not the Shepherds! Neither was it the Heavenly host which the shepherds heard. But even before the angels sang, The Lord Jesus Himself sang. Yes, That Little Baby in the manger sang the first Christmas Carol. It was not heard by His parents,...

Those intrepid newshounds at ThinkProgress have uncovered nefarious doings in the dark, secretive world of … the Knights of Columbus. You thought the Catholic fraternal organization was all funny hats, ceremonial swords and Special Olympics donations. If only! It turns out the Knights “Bankroll America’s Social Conservative Movement,” according to ThinkProgress’s headline. Besides casting a sleazy aspersion about the compensation of the “Supreme Knight,” the nearly 1,900-word article is utterly, well, stupid. Can liberals reading ThinkProgress be so cut off from religious culture that they’re shocked a Catholic organization believes Church teaching? Perhaps they can. Among the revelations: The Knights...

The president of the German bishops' conference has said that the bishops favor allowing divorced and remarried Catholics to share in the Eucharist. Cardinal Reinhard Marx said that most bishops support 'differentiated solutions that do justice to the individual case and under certain conditions allow admission to the sacraments.” Cardinal Marx-- who is also a member of the Council of Cardinals-- had signaled his own support for the "Kasper proposal" during October's meeting of the Synod of Bishops. But he took an additional step by saying that the German episcopal conference as a body would back the proposal.

Each year it is customary for the Roman Pontiff to meet and greet members of the Roman Curia just before Christmas. The Pope gives an address. Often that address is a kind of “State of the Union”, describing things that occurred and prospect for the future. In 2005 Benedict XVI famously used the occasion to deliver one of the most important addresses of many modern pontificates. He spoke of the proper interpretive principles to apply to the Second Vatican Council.Today Pope Francis also addressed the Curia. I just finished watching the video. It seemed to me, frankly, to be more...

Bishop Christopher J. Coyne gives a blessing March 25, 2012 during the Mass of Dedication at the new St. Mary-of-the-Knobs Church in Floyd County, Ind. (Criterion file photo) Burlington, Vt., Dec 22, 2014 / 12:04 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Auxiliary Bishop Christopher J. Coyne of Indianapolis has been chosen by Pope Francis to be the next bishop of Burlington, Vermont, announced the Vatican Dec. 22. In a Dec. 22 statement, Bishop Coyne voiced joy and thanked the Holy Father for his trust. He told the people of Burlington: “I come to you ready to commit myself completely to the work of...

When one lady asked for volunteers to join her at a Rivertown Mall in Grandville, Michigan, to sing "Amazing Grace," 250 people responded with RSVPs, and over 1,000 showed up at the mall. What makes this different from other "flash mobs" is that the lyrics were given out in a high-quality gospel tract form (so that anyone could join in with the singing). "Fortunately the singing at the Rivertown Mall was video-taped, and it brought tears to my eyes," says Ray Comfort, who came up with the idea. "In the clip you can see people holding the tracts as they...

Testimony of Diana for Jesus Christ (Young woman named Diana who has Cerebral palsy wishes to give you her testimony about Jesus)

At noon I have to be at the local Catholic school—let’s call it St. Dismas—to train altar servers. I will arrive a few minutes early, and by 12:05 most of the kids will have trickled in. We are in Southern California, so most of the boys at St. Dismas wear short pants year-round. Students are required to attend one Mass per month with the school, but it has never occurred to anyone, not their parents, not the pastor, not the teachers, and certainly not the students, that they should wear pants to Mass. The girls wear skirts that in 1966...

heated dispute between a pro-life protester and parishioners of First Presbyterian Church in San Luis Obispo ended with police involvement and multiple citations issued on Dec. 14. However, after initially citing protester and Paso Robles resident Danny Ehinger for two municipal code violations on Dec. 14 and sticking by the decision in a conversation with New Times on Dec. 15, SLOPD Capt. Chris Staley said on Dec. 17 that the department has decided to dismiss both citations. “We reviewed the case with [SLO City Attorney Christine Dietrick], and we decided to dismiss both of the citations,” Staley said. “She didn’t...

Q. Your Eminence, you grew up before the Second Vatican Council. How do you remember those times? A. I grew up in a very beautiful time in the Church, in which we were carefully instructed in the faith, both at home and in the Catholic school, especially with the Baltimore Catechism. I remember the great beauty of the Sacred Liturgy, even in our little farming town, with beautiful Masses. And then, I’m of course most grateful for my parents who gave me a very sound up-bringing in how to live as a Catholic. So they were beautiful years. Q. A...

We publish an analysis by John Thavis, journalist, author and speaker specializing in Vatican and religious affairsToday's Vatican report on the investigation of U.S. women's religious orders was largely positive in tone, in contrast to statements issued when the investigation began in 2009. At that time, Cardinal Franc Rodé, who headed the Vatican congregation for religious orders, said the study was aimed at identifying "secular" and "feminist" attitudes that had infiltrated the nuns' orders and helped cause a drastic decline in membership. Today's report didn't go there. Instead, it delineated real challenges facing religious orders while thanking the sisters repeatedly...

After a 3-year study of American women’s religious orders, undertaken because of problems that are both grave and obvious, the Congregation for Religious has released a report that avoids direct criticism of religious orders, instead suggesting that the communities should evaluate themselves. But for Catholics who long for a genuine revival of religious life in America, today’s report should not be too disheartening. First, because we knew this was coming. Second and more important, because another Vatican inquiry, aimed specifically at the Leadership Conference for Women Religious (LCWR), is still underway. This battle isn’t over yet. When the process began,...

(Photo: CNS) The III Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops met for several weeks in October 2014 and issued the document, “Pastoral Challenges to the Family in the Context of Evangelization.” There has been much commentary about the ill-conceived interim report, Relatio post Disceptationem, which implied that homosexuality had inherent positive gifts and that divorced and remarried people who were in a state of perpetual adultery could somehow be accommodated to be able to receive communion. The scandalous nature of these ill-conceived paragraphs created great public confusion. Thankfully, in the final Relatio Synodi, the scandalous language was removed....

Expressing “profound gratitude” for the “dedicated and selfless service of women religious,” the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life has issued its long-awaited Final Report on the Apostolic Visitation of Institutes of Women Religious in the United States of America. “This Congregation asks the members of each institute to evaluate their actual practice of liturgical and common prayer,” the report stated as it called upon religious institutes to engage in further dialogue and self-assessment. “We ask them to discern what measures need to be taken to further foster the sisters’ intimate relationship with Christ and...

I wrote in my book, “unPlanned,” about a church that kicked me out when they found out that I worked for Planned Parenthood. I often get questioned about that, whether I still think they made the wrong decision. My answer is a resounding YES. I try not to go down the “what if” road very often. It isn’t fruitful and just makes you feel crummy. But, just for the sake of this article, let’s go there. What if I had been ministered to instead of shunned by that church? How could my life be different? Well, maybe I would have...

U.S. Army Chaplain’s Constitutional Rights Violated By Timothy W. Linzey Contact: lavonjusa@aol.com FORT BENNING, Ga., Dec. 14, 2014 -- In the United States Armed Forces, there are three types of special staff officers: 1) the Judge Advocate (JAG), 2) the medical doctor, and 3) the chaplain. These three officers enter the military with advanced degrees, and so come in at a higher rank than all other officers. No commander would dare tell a JAG how to do his job. No commander would dare tell a medical doctor how to do his job. Likewise, no commander has the authority to tell...

New evidence from the Pew Research Center reveals that Mexican Catholics who emigrate to the United States are considerably less religious than their counterparts who remain in Mexico. A hefty majority of US Hispanics are of Mexican descent (64%), according to US Census Bureau statistics, and about a third of Mexican Americans were born in Mexico and immigrated into the US. Mexican Americans, however, exhibit differences both in religious affiliation and in doctrinal belief as compared with Catholics living in Mexico. Though the Pew study does not explore the reasons Mexican Catholics leave the Church when emigrating to the US,...

Greeting warmly a delegation led by General André Cox, the Pope said Catholics and Salvationists, together with other Christians, recognise that those in need have a special place in God’s heart – so much so, that the Lord himself became poor for our sake. As a result, the Pope said, Catholics and Salvationists often meet at the same peripheries of society. I pray, he concluded, that all of Christ’s disciples can contribute with the same conviction and dynamism that the Salvation Army demonstrates in its devoted and highly appreciated service. Founded by former Methodist minister William Booth in 1865 as...