Morning Catholic must-reads: 09/12/10
Benedict XVI said that the most precious gift one can offer the Virgin Mary is prayer as he marked the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception at the Piazza di Spagna yesterday (full text). The United...
View ArticleMorning Catholic must-reads: 10/12/12
St John the Baptist shows us how to experience Christmas not only “as an outward party, but as the feast of the Son of God who came to bring peace, life and true joy“, Benedict XVI said at the Angelus...
View ArticlePope venerates the Virgin Mary in Rome’s plush shopping district
In the immaculate conception of Mary, Christians recognise the truth that the Gospel is the good news of freedom from sin, selfishness and death, Pope Benedict XVI has said. Standing before a statue of...
View ArticleMorning Catholic must-reads: 09/12/13
Pope Francis asked Our Lady to “awaken in us a renewed desire for holiness” as he prayed at the Column of the Immaculate Conception in Rome yesterday (full video). The Immaculate Conception is “the...
View Article‘May the balm of mercy reach everyone’, says Francis as he proclaims Holy Year
Mercy is what makes God perfect and all-powerful, Pope Francis has said in his document officially proclaiming the Holy Year of Mercy. “If God limited himself to only justice, he would cease to be God,...
View ArticleOur Lady’s soul was entirely filled with grace
“You are weirdly obsessed with the Blessed Virgin Mary! She was a nice person, but she was just like the rest of us! When you stress her importance, you take from Jesus’s importance.” Which of us...
View ArticlePope venerates statue of the Immaculate Conception in Rome
Concluding the feast of the Immaculate Conception and the opening of the Holy Door, Pope Francis prayed that through Mary, Christians may recognise the victory of divine mercy over sin. Amid tight...
View ArticleWhy divine grace is central to the Year of Mercy
Yesterday was a double special occasion: the start of the Year of Mercy, and the feast of the Immaculate Conception. The two surely are connected more than coincidentally. You may remember that in the...
View ArticleHow to prepare for the Feast of our Lady of Lourdes
‘Her painful cancer was God’s way of punishing her because she went against the Church’s teachings and didn’t pray enough!’ wrote one angry young woman in a group email that was forwarded to my email...
View ArticleAdvent’s two great Marian feasts can help us celebrate Christmas properly
It is that time of year again when someone somewhere has to write an article lamenting the commercialisation of Christmas, though it has to be said that these type of articles have faced some...
View ArticleMary shows what good comes from wholehearted ‘yes’ to God, says Pope
Although she was just a humble young woman from a small town, Mary’s total “yes” to God was “the most important ‘yes’ of history” and overturned Adam and Eve’s prideful “no”, which unleashed sin into...
View ArticleThe Nativity of Mary: a sadly neglected feast
Today is the feast commemorating Our Lady’s birthday. In honour of it, I have been praying a novena to her, organised by an excellent online apostolate called Pray More Novenas. Indeed, if I had not...
View ArticleWhy Americans should celebrate the Immaculate Conception as their national...
Almost everyone – American or not – across the globe knows about our annual feast of self-congratulation: Independence Day. On 4 July we commemorate the signing of the Declaration of Independence with...
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