A review of Knecht’s Practical Commentary on Holy Scripture Available from Amazon US, Amazon UK and Saint Austin Press. What is the difference between the story of David and Goliath, and Jack and the Beanstalk? More importantly – how do we convey that difference to children? If the difference is merely that the Bible story …
Continue reading How can we teach Bible stories to children?
"Private revelations cannot be used to contradict traditional theology without creating serious problems." Throughout history God has made private revelations to chosen souls, even for the public good. We could consider the revelations made to St Joan of Arc, which led to the victory of France over English rule; or the revelations of the Sacred …
Continue reading Fatima, Theology and the Crisis – What should be their relationship?
"All of us – yes, even you and I – are liable to be deceived." In this essay we will consider: - Miracles as proof of Christ's revelation - The continuation of miracles in the Church - Being too dependent on signs and wonders - Credulity and false miracles - The purpose of miracles, and …
Continue reading Possible Miracles, Possible Deceptions: How credulity can lead us to ruin
Here are some brief reflections on what the latest announcement may mean for us. 1. Our Lady said Russia, not Russia and the World, or Russia and Ukraine, or the USSR, or the individual Soviet republic, or the Russian Federation. Without this being a problem - why can't we just do what we're asked? 2. …
Continue reading Thoughts on the Consecration of Ukraine and Russia
This is the final part in our series summarising and re-ordering of the testimonies given in St Thomas’s 1319 canonisation enquiry.[1] These are not just pious stories written by hagiographers: they are sworn testimonies recounted under oath by respectable men, both from the clergy and from the nobility. We see amongst the laymen even civil …
Continue reading The Fioretti of St Thomas – Part III: The Miracles after his Death
This three-part series is a summary and re-ordering of the testimonies given in St Thomas’s 1319 canonisation enquiry.[1] These are not just pious stories about St Thomas Aquinas written by hagiographers: they are sworn testimonies recounted under oath by respectable men, both from the clergy and from the nobility. We see amongst the laymen even …
Continue reading The Fioretti of St Thomas – Part II: His Death
INTRODUCTION This three-part series is a summary and re-ordering of the testimonies given in St Thomas’s 1319 canonisation enquiry, 45 years after his death.[1] These are not just pious stories written by imaginative hagiographers: they are sworn testimonies recounted under oath by respectable men, both from the clergy and the laity. We see amongst the …
Continue reading The Fioretti of St Thomas – Part I: His Life
"There is the danger of a one-sided and an imperfect direction in holiness, and of laying great stress on trifles and things of secondary importance." It is a dogma that public revelation ended with the death of the last apostle. Nonetheless, throughout history God has made private revelations to chosen souls, even for the public …
Continue reading How should Catholics treat private revelations?
This three-part series is about how laymen can go about learning the sacred science of theology, in accordance with its proper methodology and structure. I have freely gathered together notes, ideas and reading lists from various sources, particularly the Bellarmine Forums.[1] Up until this point, we have been going through the stages in the order …
Intention: That through the intercession of our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary, Almighty God swiftly fills the Chair of St Peter with a worthy occupant who will restore all things in Christ. Dates: 2nd February (Candlemas) to 27th March (Fourth Sunday of Lent) What: 15 decades of the Rosary each day. The first 27 …
Continue reading Announcement of the Fourth 54-Day Rosary Novena: For a worthy Roman Pontiff