Dwight Longenecker's Blog, page 104

Francis and Benedict – Brothers in Arms

John Allen’s Vatican round up is perceptive, objective and informed as usual. This week he focuses on the harmony between Pope Francis and Benedict. The secular press would have us believe the fanciful narrative that Francis is a radical reformer who is turning over the tables of the staid, strict and dour old codger Benedict. [Read More...]

If Charles and Diana Had Been Catholic…

…could their disastrous marriage have been declared invalid? This article in today’s Daily Telegraph reports from a recent biography of Prince Charles that both he and Diana got cold feet the week before the big wedding. The Prince of Wales was racked with such doubts about his doomed marriage to Diana, Princess of Wales that he told [Read More...]

Who Is the Pope?

In New York Review of Books Cambridge historian Eamon Duffy reviews three papal biographies and uses the opportunity to give a clear, objective and sharp analysis of Pope Francis and his papacy. On the one hand Pope Francis is a reformer One of Francis’s first major acts was the establishment of a commission of eight [Read More...]

Entertaining Slubgrip

When writing Slubgrip Instructs I had the challenge of keeping the readers’ attention through fifty days worth of lectures in which a demonic professor teaches his students how to undermine human culture. So to introduce some comic relief I invented guest lecturers who appear on the weekends. Here’s the cast of characters: Guest Lecturers Zelnick [Read More...]

Mantilla the Hon on the Use of Incense

Guest blogger Mantilla Amontillado is the founder of Veritas Vestments. She holds a degree in Ecclesiastical Haberdashery from Salamanca University. She has done the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostella three times on horseback and is engaged to the famous matador, Senor Augusto Torquemada. Hon, I am going to Mass last week and I hear everybody [Read More...]

Satan Be Muzzled!

Over at Sacred Page the Bible Scholars point out that when Jesus tells the unclean spirit in today’s gospel to “Be Quiet!” the language is stronger. Jesus’ simple response immediately drives him out: Quiet! Come out of him! In fact, the Greek term, phimōthēti, actually can be translated, “Be muzzled!” All of this further underscores Jesus’ unique power. I [Read More...]

Why I Did Not Ban Girl Altar Servers…

…even though everyone thought I was going to. Meanwhile on the West coast Fr Illo–A priest in San Francisco has made the headlines this week for banning girl altar servers. Was he right to do so? He certainly has the right to do so, and I respect his reasons for making the decision. When I [Read More...]

How is the Devil at Work in the World?

There are several reasons why there is an extraordinary interest in demon possession and exorcism. The phenomenon is dramatic and horrible and there will always be a fascination with the dark side of reality. However, I believe there is also a vital interest in possession and exorcism because it is one of the few areas [Read More...]

Raw Story or Raw Sewerage?

It seems your blogger has been mentioned as a raving right wing nut who hates Pope Francis. A story over at Raw Story lumps me in with conservatives like Pat Buchanan, Cardinal Burke, John Vennari and Archbishop Chaput. Apparently we’re all “Scary Ultra Right Wing Catholics.” This is not a raw story it’s raw sewerage. I [Read More...]

Slubgrip is Here!

The hard copies of Slubgrip Instructs have been delivered! The demon Slubgrip has been demoted to teach Popular Culture 101 at Bowelbages University. These Lenten Lectures focus on the different ideologies and godless philosophies that undermine our culture and weaken Catholicism. It’s good Lenten reading for anyone, but it is especially good for college and [Read More...]