Mark P. Shea's Blog, page 43

Surprisingly, I did not know some of the detail

…which is embarrassing for a 60 year old man to acknowledge.  But then, I’m an English major, not a science guy. Anyway, something lovely to contemplate on a Saturday.

Beyond Personal Piety

Here is an interesting piece by one of my favorite priests in the world, Fr. Michael Sweeney. He was my pastor for years during the 90s at Blessed Sacrament in Seattle and then went on to be the President of the Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology at Oakland, CA. He is also one of […]

A day after being warned…

…by Michael Cohen that they will wind up like him, the Cult doubles down: Heard up on stage at #CPAC this morning: "President Trump is smarter, more decisive, & more compassionate than Jesus Christ himself!" The crowd roared. They smiled. They cheered. They got down on their knees and bowed. I was told a few […]

My keyboard is busted, so I will let Michael Cohen preach to the Christianist Cult Today

Jesus’ words about persecution boil down to ‘You may have to suffer and die for me. Don’t worry about it.’ His real words of warning are these– ‘Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body […]

Power to be Children of God

Gary Michuta interviews Bryan Gesinger on his book, Power to Become Children of God: Essays on the Catholic Faith (Amazon): Conversation with Bryan starts about 14 1/2 minute mark. Check it out! One of the great challenges our age has revealed is the question of disposition to the grace of the sacraments. The promise of […]

We, Not God, Were the Authors of Christ’s Passion

In one of the most profound and mysterious passages in the New Testament, Paul tells us, “For our sake [God] made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). Elsewhere, reflecting on the same mystery, he speaks of God “sending his […]

Rod Bennett on his new book Bad Shepherds

Gary Michuta interviews the ever-interesting Rod Bennett on his new and timely book Bad Shepherds: One of the weirdly consoling things about being Catholic is that we have lots of experience of lousy shepherds. Indeed, even our very best shepherds have had their spectacular failures, starting with Peter and the gutless apostles. And, like Judas, […]

Some Reflections on the Crucifixion for a Friday

It is notable that, though subsequent Christian piety, meditation, and art would rightly dwell upon the extremities of Jesus’ sufferings in the Passion, the New Testament narrative is typically spare.  All the gospels are hesitant to speak much beyond the bare facts about the sheer physical horror of the Passion.  Instead, they tersely say that […]

Ignatius: A Brief Introduction to the Theology of Pope Francis

Dan Amiri continues over at Where Peter Is: Finally, we should not neglect the importance of Francis being the first Jesuit pope. In many respects, it appears Francis’ Jesuit background has had an important influence on Pope Francis’ theology. Given the Jesuits lengthy history and its varying roles over time, it would be merely superficial […]

Argentina: A Brief Introduction to the Theology of Pope Francis

Continuing his discussion of the theology of Pope Francis, Dan Amiri writes: Guardini is not the only influence on Pope Francis, of course.  Pope Francis’ theology seems heavily influenced by his pastoral work in Argentina. That is to say, Pope Francis’ theology is pastoral in nature, and it is also shaped by his experiences in Argentina. […]