The federal government failed us all on June 28th, and in more ways than one. Days before Americans celebrated the anniversary of our nation’s hard-fought independence, the Supreme Court of the United States declared unconstitutional the Stolen Valor Act. Overshadowed by its decision to uphold the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act … Read more
In different epochs, the hat became a symbol of the dignity of the one wearing it; today, it still survives as a reminder of an ancient vision of courtesy While not a surprising sight, the hat certainly awakens the dormant attention of people in today’s standardized settings. Their gazes linger, even in … Read more
""""[vc_column_text]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
On Saturday, April 23, over 200 women in their finest Easter apparel gathered in Washington Park in downtown Charleston, South Carolina. Some brought their husbands and children. Both young and young at heart came united by a common purpose: to share with the public their love for a seemingly lost tradition: The … Read more
There is a tendency nowadays to depict saints as people who bypass the realities of life and somehow attain sanctity with little effort. Here we have two pictures of Saint Anthony of Padua. The first is a fresco in the basilica dedicated to the saint in Padua, Italy, and it is the … Read more
Part I An Ill-Disguised Dictatorship Why do most people feel uncomfortable talking about equality? Is it fear of being “different?” Fear of being ridiculed? Fear of rejection? Political correctness? Peer pressure? No one admits it, but everyone is aware of an ill-disguised dictatorship of equality that creates uneasiness at the sole … Read more
The famous painting by Velázquez, Las Meninas [The Maids of Honor], is rightly considered one of the great works of pictorial art. The scene portrays the childish and candid grace of the Infanta, the most dignified and respectful tenderness of the young noble ladies who serve her, and on the left, the … Read more
Data Without Wisdom Most of the architecture at Yale University is strikingly similar to the hallowed halls of ancient European universities such as Oxford or Cambridge. Much of its Gothic Revival or Georgian style buildings are simply awe-inspiring, providing an uplifting ambience for serious, scholarly study. However, the architectural harmony on campus … Read more
Quito, July 17, 1875 Most Holy Father, For some time now I have intensely wished to write to Your Holiness again; but I have been kept from doing so for fear of taking your time, which is too precious and necessary for the rule of the Catholic world. Notwithstanding this, today I … Read more
On April 26, 2009, the Portuguese Count Nuno Alvares Pereira is to be canonized, nearly six centuries after his death. Saint Nuno Alvares had a brilliant military career and became the Constable of Portugal. Later, out of gratitude for a miraculous victory he won over the Spaniards, Saint Nuno built the Gothic … Read more