Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger on Receiving Communion: in the Hand or on the Tongue?

"The second objection we wanted to consider was directed against the act of receiving Communion: kneeling—standing, hand—mouth." …. "Well, here again we know that until the ninth century Communion was received in the hand, standing. That does not of course mean that it should always be so. For what is fine, sublime, about the Church …

Joseph Ratzinger on the Changes to the Offertory Prayers in the Reformed Liturgy

One of the constant criticisms that Traditionalists level at the Reformed Mass is the changes to the Offertory prayers. For example, a piece from Rorate Caeli says, "the Novus Ordo, like Cranmer’s missal, repudiates an oblative offertory, replacing it with a supper-oriented 'presentation of gifts' based on the Jewish berakah." Rad Trads think such a …

Ambivalence of Overturning Roe v. Wade

On June 24, 2022 the Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade. This places the abortion issue back on the states. It's an event for which the pro-life movement has prayed. It doesn't end abortion in our country, but it does go in the right direction. But my feelings are ambivalent. I should be more excited, …

Catholic Discordance by Massimo Borghesi | A Book Review

As an Evangelical American in college, I allowed myself to be led down the primrose path of Capitalism and warmongering; in other words, Neoconservatism. I began reading a lot of apologetics for Capitalism and supported George W. Bush's wars in the Middle East. Much of this was because of things I saw as a kid …

“The Orthodoxy of Amoris Laetitia” by Pedro Gabriel: a book review

The Short Review Anyone concerned about the controversy surrounding Amoris Laetitia needs to read this book. https://wipfandstock.com/9781666733280/the-orthodoxy-of-amoris-laetitia/ The Longer Review Pedro Gabriel is a regular contributor to the website Where Peter Is and has become of one my favorite authors there. When I heard he was writing this book I was excited, and Mr. Gabriel …

Canonizations of Saints and Required Assent

This is a hasty blog, so it may very well have error. But I was reading some things this morning and came across a topic worth writing out. (This blog is as much for my benefit as for others, because it helps me to write things out. If I've put in all the work, I …

Is anything wrong with Ultramontanism?

Of course, before such a question can be answered, Ultramontanism itself must be defined. From ChurchPop From what I can gather, when one speaks of Ultramontanism one is speaking of neither a specifically defined orthodox nor heretical position. As far as I know, the Church has neither defined the term nor used it in any …

Is the St. Michael Prayer After Mass An Indispensable Part of Our Tradition?

This blog post is probably one of my longer and more boring ones. But I did some research and figured it worth typing up. Hopefully it's coherent. It's also an obscure history, so there isn't a lot of factual information readily available. I made use of what I could find, and further research may reveal …

Is Sacrosanctum Concilium the Last Word on the Liturgy?

Disclaimer: This post is getting into some weeds, and it’s always easy to get things wrong when we’re getting into such minutiae. I am a simple Catholic layman trying to understand things based on the materials I can actually get ahold of, so I may be wrong on my conclusions. I am willing to be …

What is Happening to Joseph Pearce?

"There are kings of the earth who have despotic authority, which their subjects obey indeed but disown in their hearts; but we must never murmur at that absolute rule which the Sovereign Pontiff has over us, because it is given to him by Christ, and, in obeying him, we are obeying his Lord. We must …

John Henry Newman on the Authority of the Pope

I have said that, like St. Peter, he is the Vicar of his Lord. He can judge, and he can acquit; he can pardon, and he can condemn; he can command and he can permit; he can forbid, and he can punish. He has a Supreme jurisdiction over the people of God. He can stop …

Pope Francis on Radical Individualism

Individualism does not make us more free, more equal, more fraternal. The mere sum of individual interests is not capable of generating a better world for the whole human family. Nor can it save us from the many ills that are now increasingly globalized. Radical individualism is a virus that is extremely difficult to eliminate, …

Abortion and COVID-19 Vaccines: Have the moral arguments switched sides?

I've not written about COVID-19 vaccines because I believe it outside my ken. I'm not a scientist and any knowledge I possess must come from someone else—in reality, the vast majority of anything we call knowledge is received from someone else, which is something that needs to be discussed and acknowledged more often. But the …

Who Benefits From Housing Prices?

https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2019/4/9/who-benefits-from-lower-housing-prices Who Benefits From Higher Housing Prices? Local, state, and federal governments, existing homeowners (It's all about the equity, right? Not about a home and contentedness), banks, insurance companies, developers, contractors, speculators, realtors, pension funds. Who Benefits From Lower Housing Prices? Only renters and the poor. Do we really expect housing prices to drop? Probably …

Lex orandi, lex credendi

Lately I've been pondering the old Catholic saying lex orandi, lex credendi---the law of prayer is the law of faith (CCC 1124). In principle, it seems to mean that there is an intimate relationship between how we worship and what we believe. It's a beautiful saying that highlights the need for good and proper liturgy. …

The motte-and-bailey fallacy and Douglas Wilson

I recently heard of a logical fallacy called a motte-and-bailey fallacy, named after the motte-and-bailey castle design. It was a medieval fortification consisting of a walled courtyard surrounded by a ditch (the bailey, easier to defend) outside of which was a raised area of ground (the motte, more difficult to defend). What the fallacy does …

What would Pope Pius XII think of the Motu Proprio Traditionis Custodes?

"The Sovereign Pontiff alone enjoys the right to recognize and establish any practice touching the worship of God, to introduce and approve new rites, as also to modify those he judges to require modification. Bishops, for their part, have the right and duty carefully to watch over the exact observance of the prescriptions of the …

The Far Side was Prophetic

Some friends and I joked a while back that 2021 might look like this Far Side strip. Apparently we were not too far off the mark.

Household Management, Cultivation, and Invisible Hands

Some things I've been pondering lately. The word "economy" comes from the Greek word oikonomíā which means "household management." The root of the word is inherently familial; family is the source of economics. Implicitly there seems a "sense of smallness". One doesn't immediately imagine an empire when one thinks of "family." One imagines a father …

Religious Agrarians and Atheistic Industrialists

The Angelus, by Jean-François Millet I’ve been loving the Front Porch Republic the last few months. It's a shame it took so long to discover them. This article from Mark T. Mitchell was quite good. Below is a particularly poignant passage. The agrarian is guided by gratitude. He recognizes the giftedness of creation and accepts …