Everyone who is familiar with the beautiful campus instantly recognizes the golden dome. It scintillates in the sunlight and serves as a pedestal for a large statue of Our Lady, fittingly portrayed crushing the head of the serpent, calling to mind the passage from Genesis 3:15: “I will put enmities between thee … Read more
The name Isabella — that of a 5 year-old girl killed by being thrown from a 6th floor flat in São Paulo, Brazil — still resounds in everyone’s minds. Her death has an especially terrifying aspect: the killer’s lack of moral sense. This complete lack of moral sense gives us the shivers. … Read more
The Rosary — as spiritual weapon against evil — has a very long and precious history. In twelfth and thirteenth century France, a group of heretics known as the Albigensians was destroying the minds of the Catholic laity with its erroneous ideas. The Albigensians’ teachings encouraged suicide, many times by self-induced starvation, … Read more
Military musicians have always been an integral part of the American armed forces. However, for the first 100 years, military bands bore little resemblance to the marching ensembles of today. When the British began to colonize the New World, their soldiers brought with them the military instruments they had used at least … Read more
No one questions the fact that America is now a nation divided. The 2004 elections served only to highlight a polarization that has been long in the making. What surprised many was the primary cause of this division. It was not wars, Medicare benefits or matters of self-interest that galvanized the country. … Read more
Upon entering the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, the first impression is one of vastness. The immense polished floor provides an open arena for the diverse performance of the filtering light. The length and height of the walls are enhanced by the tall, narrow arches. One row of arches opens to the … Read more
Once upon a time, there was a young man torn by a critical conflict of affections. He loved his charming spouse with all his soul. Yet at the same time, he had profound affection and respect for his mother. However, relations between mother in-law and daughter in-law were tense. The enchanting but … Read more
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An authentic piety penetrates every recess of our souls, naturally stirring our most intimate emotions. Piety, however, is far more than feelings. It arises deep within ourselves from our knowledge of the truths that govern an interior life formed in accord with the Faith. To be sure, these life-giving truths are often … Read more
There are those who fear to dishonor the Son by honoring the Mother, to abase the one in elevating the other. They cannot bear that we should attribute to Our Lady the most just praises which the holy Fathers have given her. It is all they can do to endure that there … Read more
It defies reason why a declared enemy of America was welcomed to speak at Columbia University. On September 24, a podium the Ivy League institution was given to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the leader of Iran, a nation that sponsors terrorism. In the city still deeply scarred by 9-11, protest stirred both from within … Read more