Category: Doctrine
On the Question of Suffering
When my nephew Michael was getting ready for college he told me he was expected to write a paper in his first week entitled, “How do I know I exist?” After discussing the matter for some time he concluded that the best thing to do was to punch his professor in the nose. The resulting [...]
Five Key Features of the Theology of the Body
(A series on Blessed John Paul II’s Love and Responsibility) Back to the Garden: Theology of the Body from Eden to Today There is much excitement today, especially among the young, about John Paul II’s “theology of the body”—the 129 catechetical addresses he gave between 1979 and 1984 that have revolutionized the way many theologians [...]
Humility – Holy Forgetfulness
In a best case scenario, the sin of pride can make a fool out of you. The worst case scenario is hell, thus its inclusion in the list of the Seven Deadly Sins. The other six are wrath, sloth, greed, lust, envy, and gluttony. It has always seemed to me that pride is the one [...]
Love and Responsibility: The Battle for Purity
(A series on Blessed John Paul II’s Love and Responsibility) The Battle for Purity The battle for purity is ultimately fought deep in the recesses of the human heart. Our hearts were made to love, but since the Fall, they have been tainted by a desire to use others. This effect of original sin is [...]
Love and Responsibility: Beyond the Sexual Urge
(A series on Blessed John Paul II’s Love and Responsibility) In our first reflection on Pope John Paul II’s Love and Responsibility, we considered the “personalist principle,” which says that we should not treat other persons merely as a means to an end. In particular, we saw how utilitarianism weakens our relationships by getting us [...]
Same Sex “Marriage” — False evolution and false gold
[Last May] President Barack Obama surprised no one when he announced — contrary to repeated affirmations during his 2004 senate and 2008 presidential campaigns that Marriage is the union of a man and a woman — that he now believes that Marriage can be a husbandless or wifeless institution. The reason that no one was [...]
To Inspire Love: A Return to Modesty
(A series on Blessed John Paul II’s Love and Responsibility) In our post-sexual-revolution world, skimpy dresses, mini-skirts, tiny bikinis, low -rise pants, and low-cut shirts have become part of the mainstream attire for women today. And anyone who might raise questions about the appropriateness of such dress is viewed as “rigid,” “old fashioned,” or “out [...]
Getting it Right – The Foundation of Friendship
(A series on Blessed John Paul II’s Love and Responsibility) In his book Love and Responsibility, Karl Wojtyla – now known as John Paul II – reflects not simply on why contraception is immoral, but even more, on how contraception actually can destroy the love between a husband and wife in marriage. Here, we will consider four [...]
Imagining and Imaging the Trinitarian Communion of Love
Last week we celebrated the feast of Pentecost, when the apostles and disciples were strengthened by the Holy Spirit to fulfill the mission Jesus gave them ten days before at his ascension. We see the marching orders Jesus gave them and us in today’s Gospel: “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in [...]
New Wine, New Eve – Knowing Mary Through the Bible
Mary in the Second Luminous Mystery To run out of refreshments at a party or to not have enough hamburgers for a summer cookout might be an embarrassing moment for a modern-day host. However, to run short of wine at an ancient Jewish wedding feast would represent a social catastrophe that would severely damage a [...]
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