France's cold war against the Anglophone Pacific alliance
The Aukus Treaty that was struck between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States for technological cooperation between the three powers in the Pacific is infuriating France. Without being informed, Paris saw its mega-contract cancelled for supplying submarines to Australia. The new treaty reshapes alliances while marginalising NATO.
The Sorrows of St Joseph, a means to glory
The devotion of the “Seven Sorrows and Seven Joys of St Joseph” helps us to meditate on some of the greatest mysteries of the hidden life of Jesus, from the inner perspective of Mary's spouse. Venerable Mary of Ágreda recounts how he suffered various infirmities for several years before he died, passing on to us two great lessons: how to endure illness and the exercise of charity towards the sick.
Jerome Miani, a father for abandoned young people
As a prisoner of war he discovered the power of prayer. Freed after he made a vow to Our Lady, he changed his life, helping the outcasts of society. He created numerous communities, inventing a pedagogical method based on education in work, charity and devotion. Pius XI proclaimed him patron saint of orphans and abandoned youth.
Censorship at universities spells end of academic freedom
Dr. Peter Boghossian is the author of a series of provocative studies on gender and feminism. Recently, he tendered his resignation as professor, and he is not alone. In six years, 426 university lecturers in the United States have been reported or received warnings while two thirds have been sanctioned, 100 have lost their jobs and another 93 have been placed on leave.
And in Slovakia the Pope rehabilitates “gay” bishop
Pope Francis' visit to Slovakia ended with the rehabilitation in public opinion of the former bishop of Trnava, Robert Bezák, who was deposed by Benedict XVI in 2012 and also accused of having created a network of homosexual priests. Embarrassment at the Bishops' Conference.
Mary is the Eucharistic woman, we should imitate Her
«The Mother of God is the first living tabernacle in history. She carried Jesus in her womb and handed him over to men, as their path to holiness and nourishment in their lives.... Modern man is lost precisely because he no longer dedicates time to prayer, particularly to silent prayer... Let’s ask Jesus in the Eucharist to fill us with His presence and to make us tabernacles of His body in our daily lives, just as the Virgin Mary was». Excerpts from an homily at the International Eucharistic Congress in Budapest.
9/11: 20 years later, the moral surrender of the West
Twenty years after September 11, we remember the day 'that changed the world', as many commentators write. But, actually, what we should try to understand is why 9/11 did not change the world at all. Al Qaeda is still there, Isis was born, jihadism is still expanding, even the Taliban, defeated then, are back in power. What has happened? The US and its allies have never suffered military defeats. It is politics that has decided to stop fighting. And it has done so driven by three real powers of contemporary thought: materialism, relativism and Third Worldism.
"Listen", but to whom? The Synod’s empty words
The next synodal phase exploring ‘synodality’ has just published two documents. Key words scattered throughout the Vadenecum handbook (listening, inclusion, participation, dreaming, hope, novelty, change, stereotypes, prejudices, dialogue, reconciliation, sharing, peripheries, discernment, accessibility, equity, co-responsibility) are words that are so empty, being void of any specific significance, that they are fillable with any potential meaning. For example, do ‘inclusion’ and ‘dialogue’ also regard heresy? Is ‘sharing’ a value in itself regardless of the content being shared? Do ‘stereotypes’ and ‘prejudices’ also concern elements of doctrine?
Catherine of Siena, a saint who craved love and justice
Determined to do God's will, Catherine overcame various difficulties in her family in order to join a religious order. Finally she was accepted into the Mantellate, Dominican tertiaries. She helped her fellow human beings and wrote over three hundred letters, assisted by the 'beautiful brigade'. She fought to bring the Pope back to Rome, offering continuous fasting and penance, until she returned to the Father at the age of 33.
- THE RECIPE: CRESPEOU D'AVIGNON
Foetal cells, the Trump-Biden difference
Before Trump intervened to curb the use of tissue from aborted babies, experiments were being carried out on 'humanized mice'. Then Biden reversed his predecessor's measures, refinancing research based on foetal cells. This barbarity has become systemic, affecting many therapies, including vaccines, and cannot ethically be dismissed.
