The Archdiocese of Astana in Kazakhstan has issued a statement about the December 18 document Fiducia Supplicans issued by Pope Francis and Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández that allows priests to give “blessings” to same-sex couples. The full text is as follows: ✧ † ✧ Statement of the Archdiocese of Saint Mary in Astana regarding … Read more
Wall Street runs its financial operations using time-honored processes based on data and statistics. Such data is needed to ensure investor interests are not jeopardized. The standards are rigid and necessary in a dog-eat-dog world where people take advantage of others. Generally, there are no exceptions to such procedures. The government and … Read more
While peace seems to reign, many countries are threatened by what might be called slow-motion wars. These conflicts involve a gradual destruction of society, structures and security inside a climate of uneasy peace. The devastation of war occurs not at once but over time. An example of one slow-motion war is the … Read more
At the COP28 climate summit in Dubai this December, the climate change world was waiting with bated breath for a final document that would declare war on fossil fuels. The 70,000 delegates at the United Nations-sponsored event in the oil-rich nation of the United Arab Emirates hoped for a radical turning point … Read more
In the aftermath of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution, Marxists sought to do the same thing in the West, but something had gone wrong in Marxist theory. According to Marx, the Revolution should have erupted in advanced industrialized countries, like England, not in a backward feudal nation like Russia. Furthermore, the Revolution in … Read more
The history of an institution often resembles that of a building. We can find analogies between the creation and growth of both. The history of a Catholic-inspired institution more precisely resembles the building of a cathedral. Every truly Catholic institution bears traces of the moral profile of Holy Mother Church from which … Read more
Recent elections in Holland, Sweden, Italy and Argentina have given victories to a new type of conservative leader based on a faulty premise. Some Christians hold the only way to fight against godless and immoral times is with godless leaders who practice no established religion and follow no set rules. Only these … Read more
We live in times of inconsequential religion. That means most people do not believe God acts in the real world. If He does act, it is considered a personal, somewhat subjective matter. Impacting major world events are believed to be outside God’s sphere of activity. Likewise, inconsequential religion holds that what we … Read more
Many people wonder why Pope Francis focuses so much on climate change. Indeed, two papal documents concentrate exclusively on the matter. The latest apostolic exhortation, Laudate Deum, bitterly complains about how the People of God have not heeded earlier warnings. The pope’s trip to Dubai’s COP28 eco-conference only highlights this dire gospel … Read more
An old, inaccurate, yet remarkably durable image of the public librarian is a middle-aged spinster with reading glasses secured by a small chain around her neck perched on her nose. For her, quiet is not just a state of being but a command that exudes from every pore. She chooses her clothes … Read more