Call me distrustful, but isn’t the media’s timing regarding the European sexual abuse allegations suspect? Haven’t we been through all of this before?

As a journalist, I can’t help but wonder, why didn’t we hear about all of these allegations - in Ireland and Germany and Austria - back in 2001 when the Boston Globe and so many other media outlets were overturning every rock in their search to report on the decades-old sexual abuse crisis?

Isn’t the timeline in the European stories similar to that in the U.S., with the preponderance of abuse happening between 1960 and 1980?

The Church, especially in recent years, has done more than nearly any other organization I am aware of,...READ MORE

If you’re Catholic, you’re familiar with sacramentals such as holy water, holy cards, blessed oils, and medals. However, up until a couple of years ago, I had never before heard of Blessed Salt.
After moving to our farmhouse in the country, one of our children was repeatedly having nightmares. When I mentioned this to a friend who had a priest visiting from another state, he offered to bring the priest over to bless the house.
The priest came equipped not only with holy water, but also blessed salt, which he used liberally, moving from room to room, praying and giving the house a holy “renovation.”
Suffice it to say that the nightmares ended.

According to Wikipedia, blessed salt...READ MORE

There’s a proposal before the Kansas state Legislature that would repeal the sales tax exemption for religious non-profits and churches.

According to a March 4th legislative alert from the state’s Catholic bishops, House Bill 2549 would require churches and religious non-profit organizations such as Catholic Charities to pay the state’s 5.3 percent sales tax.

The proposal is one before the legislature to make up an approximately $500 million budget shortfall for fiscal year 2011. The bill would raise approximately $169 million each year.

Religious organizations are right to call ‘foul.’ The tax bill alone on property owned by the Church would be monstrous. Yet, they may want to...READ MORE

Tom Monaghan’s first great venture was Domino’s Pizza. With the profits he made from the sale of the company, he’s building the country’s first full-fledged Catholic university in 40 years.

Ave Maria University sits on 1,000 acres adjacent to the community of Ave Maria, located between the enormously wealthy community of Naples and the very impoverished Immokalee, Fla.

The town and university receives approximately 1,000 visitors a week. It currently has more than 800 undergraduate and graduate students and boasts an unswerving fidelity to the Church and the Church’s vision for higher education: Ex Corde Ecclesiae.

Last week I had the opportunity to visit the campus and sit down...READ MORE

According to The Anglo-Catholic, the Traditional Anglican Communion in the U.S. has formally requested the first personal ordinariate for the U.S.

The House of Bishops of the Anglican Church in America, the American Province of the Traditional Anglican Communion, have issued the following press release:

Orlando, FL – 1 pm EST – Bp. George Langberg

Released by the House of Bishops of the Anglican Church in America, Traditional Anglican Communion 3 March 2010

“We, the House of Bishops of the Anglican Church in America of the Traditional Anglican Communion have met in Orlando, Florida, together with our Primate and the Reverend Christopher Phillips of the “Anglican Use” Parish of...READ MORE

Theology of the Body educators, authors, and speakers are preparing for what they hope will be the most expansive gathering of Theology of the Body experts ever assembled. The Theology of the Body Institute has announced its first annual National Theology of the Body Congress at Normandy Farm Hotel and Conference Center outside of Philadelphia on July 28-30, 2010.

“The National Theology of the Body Congress provides an opportunity for individuals from all walks of life – clergy, religious and laity – to come together to share their tremendous passion for the Catholic Church and Pope John Paul II’s beautiful teaching of Theology of the Body,” said Maria Stumpf, Director of...READ MORE

While television viewers were treated to a rare look inside the convent of the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist on Oprah, even more interesting is what took place off-camera. At the end of show, the order’s founders presented Oprah with a gift.

“No one ever gives me a present,” responded Oprah.

According to Sister Teresa Benedicta, who told this story to the Ave Maria Founders Club gathering at The Bean coffee shop in Ave Maria, Fla., this past Tuesday, Oprah was presented with a Rosary handmade for her, and was taught how to pray it.

“She seemed really interested,” said Sister Teresa Benedicta, who teaches at the Donahue Academy in Ave Maria.

Sister Teresa...READ MORE

If you’re email box is anything like mine, it’s hard to sift through all the mail, appeals, spam, and viral videos.

It’s not often that I come across something worth sharing with others, but I found the following two videos insightful and worthwhile.

The first, produced by the Population Research Institute, is the latest in their creative Pop 101 series. It explores the myth of overpopulation and shares information that you don’t find elsewhere.

The second is produced by Father Robert Barron’s apostolate, Word on Fire. In the video, Father Barron reviews the new Denzel Washington film, “The Book of Eli.”

While in the airport recently, a fellow passenger saw me reading...READ MORE