Free Republic

Jettisoning the motto in today’s environment poses a real risk to the substance of West Point’s mission and to national security.. March 7, Superintendent Steve Gilland announced a planned change to the official mission of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point: eliminating the words “Duty,” “Honor,” and “Country.” It is impossible to overstate the reverence with which those three words have been held at West Point, in the entire Army, and throughout the U.S. military. In his 1962 farewell address to the West Point Corps of Cadets, Gen. Douglas MacArthur encapsulated their meaning for American soldiers: Duty, Honor, Country...

Kirk understood conservatism to be “a disposition of character rather than a collection of reified, abstract political doctrines. It is the rejection of ideology rather than the exercise of it.” This, too, is the understanding of conservatism laid out by the champion of conservatism in the 21st century, my former teacher Sir Roger Scruton.This understanding may help one realize why conservatism fails as an ideology — because it is not an ideology. As Kirk humorously notes early on in one of the early chapters of this book, conservatives who attempt to ideologize conservatism make the first and most egregious error...

Many leading Republicans and conservatives want someone other than Donald Trump to run for President in 2024. But this judgment requires an assessment of Trump’s vices and virtues in the context of our current political and cultural circumstances, as well as an assessment of other prospective Republican presidential candidates. Tom Klingenstein, Chairman of the Claremont Institute, explains Trump's Virtues.

I'm just frustrated. I have 2 older daughters in their 30's. I can't talk to them about any current topic. Everything I say triggers them. Today I got in a fuss defending the gallantry of Southern soldiers. Then I got in a fuss about being a culturist because I believe a substantial portion of the Black underclass in 5 times more likely to commit crimes and murder than other groups. 30 people a week shot in Chicago or New Orleans is OK but DeSantis is a racist. I just said I never see race in a competent individual. I just...

18-minute video of a speech by Tom Klingenstein on the virtues of DJT.

Many leading Republicans and conservatives want someone other than Donald Trump to run for President in 2024. But this judgment requires an assessment of Trump’s vices and virtues in the context of our current political and cultural circumstances, as well as an assessment of other prospective Republican presidential candidates. Tom Klingenstein, Chairman of the Claremont Institute, explains Trump's Virtues.

Recall, Christians, what Sacred Scripture declareth: "Pride goeth before destruction: and the spirit is lifted up before a fall." [Proverbs 16:18]And also: "Pride is the beginning of all sin. He that holdeth it, shall be filled with maledictions, and it shall ruin him in the end." [Ecclesiasticus, 10:15]Pride is numbered in the Catholic Catechism among the Seven Deadly Sins [CCC 1866]. Writing in the early Seventh Century AD, Pope Saint Gregory the Great reflected on the sin of pride in his epochal Moralia in Job, saying: "Whoever extols himself above his proper condition, is weighed down by the very burden...

This year is marked by gloomy and unknowable prospects. Here are some thoughts on the virtue of confidence that will strengthen the soul. “Have confidence, I have overcome the world.” Our Lord Jesus Christ “And I say to you, Ask, and it shall be given you: seek, and you shall find: knock, and it shall be opened to you.” Our Lord Jesus Christ “Confidence is a hope fortified by solid conviction.” Saint Thomas Aquinas “Advance very simply with the Cross of Our Lord, and have peace with yourself. You will pass through every storm safely, as long as your trust...

Posted on July 5, 2020July 5, 2020 by Msgr. Charles Pope An Insight on Hope from St. Augustine The word “hope” in modern English has lost much of the vigor assigned to what we call the theological virtue of Hope. In English hope often means merely a vague wish, as in, “I hope it doesn’t rain.” But the theological virtue of Hope (which I capitalize to distinguish it from worldly hope) is more vigorously defined as the confident expectation of God’s help in attaining eternal salvation. Notice therefore it is no mere wish, it is a confident expectation based...

Posted on February 16, 2020 by Msgr. Charles Pope Twelve Steps to Humility In yesterdayÂ’s post, we considered the twelve steps of pride set forth by St. Bernard of Clairvaux. In escalating ways, the twelve steps draw us to an increasingly mountainous and enslaving pride.St. Bernard also enumerates the twelve steps to deeper humility and it is these that we consider today. As with yesterdayÂ’s post, the list by St. Bernard is shown in red, while my meager commentary is shown in plain, black text. To read St. BernardÂ’s reflections, consider purchasing the book Steps of Humility and Pride.(1)...

Posted on October 5, 2019October 4, 2019 by Msgr. Charles Pope Five Fundamentals for a Firm Faith – A Homily for the 27th Sunday of the Year The readings for this Sunday’s Mass richly describe some essential qualities of faith. There are five fundamentals that can be seen:Wanting – The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith” (Luke 17:5-6).There’s an old saying that what you want, you get. Many doubt this, thinking that they have wanted many things that they did not get. The reason for this, however, is usually because they didn’t want it enough. When we...

Posted on September 10, 2019September 10, 2019 by Msgr. Charles Pope Three Reasons for Humility The first reading at Mass this past Sunday (23rd Sunday of the Year C) speaks to our limitations and need for humility.Who can know God’s counsel, or who can conceive what the LORD intends? For the deliberations of mortals are timid, and unsure are our plans. For the corruptible body burdens the soul and the earthen shelter weighs down the mind that has many concerns. And scarce do we guess the things on earth, and what is within our grasp we find with difficulty;...

Posted on July 21, 2019July 21, 2019 by Msgr. Charles Pope Tolerance: A Brief Consideration of a Widely Misunderstood Virtue Tolerance is often bandied about today with a meaning far removed from its original definition. It has come to mean agreeing with or supporting what someone else is saying or doing; one is deemed tolerant to the degree that he goes along with another’s words or behavior.However, if one supports another’s position or actions, one doesn’t need to “tolerate” it. We don’t tolerate what we love; we tolerate what we hate; we tolerate people with whom we disagree, not...

Zeal: A Virtue Most Necessary to Overcome Sloth and Moral Sleepiness Msgr. Charles Pope • September 5, 2018 • One of the great virtues related to charity is zeal. Zeal is the ardor of charity; it is love burning brightly. It is a fiery love for God, for His gracious truth, and for the salvation of souls.Because of human fear, sloth, and self-seeking, zeal is rare. It is especially difficult to find in our present age, when relativism and “tolerance” are so prevalent. Both relativism and excessive tolerance are little more than sloth masquerading as something more benign. People...

Here’s What Grows in King Jesus’ Garden Msgr. Charles Pope • August 13, 2018 • Flowers, besides being beautiful, have often been used in Christian tradition to signify virtues and remind us of the saints. For example, consider this brief meditation of St. Augustine on the virtues related to our state in life:I tell you again and again, my brethren, that in the Lord’s garden are to be found not only the roses of his martyrs. In it there are also the lilies of the virgins, the ivy of wedded couples, and the violets of widows. On no account...

Humility in Prayer According to St. Teresa of Avila Msgr. Charles Pope • July 9, 2018 • I have written before on humility in prayer as St. Augustine sets it forth. In today’s post I look to the same topic, but this time as St. Teresa of Avila presents it in her treatise The Way of Perfection.In setting forth her teaching, I have substantially reworked the order of her reflections. St. Teresa was able to see the “whole rose” of the topic, jumping from petal to petal without effort. I, being of a vastly inferior intellect and of far...

Pondering Isaiah’s Advice to Close Our Eyes Lest We “Look on Evil” Msgr. Charles Pope • May 24, 2018 • In this age of nearly instantaneous communication, there is an overwhelming amount of news and information available to us. There is nothing wrong with news and information, but each of us must decide how much exposure, in terms of time and content, is good for us. Not all “Breaking News!” is really that urgent. Too much news can distract us, overwhelm us, and provoke anxiety and anger. Further, the “news” is heavily filtered to feature what is bad, strange,...

A Look at the Fruits of the Holy Spirit Msgr. Charles Pope • May 20, 2018 • On Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was given unto our mission to the ends of the earth. Among His gifts are the fruits of the Spirit which deserve our attention today.The Fruits of the Holy Spirit in the Catholic Catechism and Tradition are drawn largely from St. Paul’s letter to the Galatians where he writes,But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ...

What is Humility? What are Its Limits? Msgr. Charles Pope • April 29, 2018 • This post is part of an occasional series on the virtuesAt its heart, humility is reverence for the truth about oneself. We are neither to esteem ourselves too highly nor despise ourselves as bereft of God’s gifts. By humility we acknowledge that we depend on God and the gifts of others but also that we are called to accept our gifts and then use them for others. None of us has all the gifts, but together, and from God, we have all the gifts....

Humility is Hard - A Meditation on Some Aspects of Humility Msgr. Charles Pope • April 26, 2018 • Pride is our most pervasive and serious sin. Humility is its antidote and the foundation of our spiritual life, and as the remedy to our most deep-seated pathology, it must be strong medicine. Humility is hard to swallow and has a lot of things it needs to work on.I. The Foundation of Humility – Humility as a foundation is a good image, because by it we bow toward the earth or soil (humus in Latin) and abase ourselves before God....