Russell Kirk reminds us that men are put into this world to do battle, “to struggle, to suffer, to contend against the evil that is in their neighbors and in themselves, and to aspire toward the triumph of Love.” Kirk loved F. Marion Crawford’s stories because he recognized another great Romantic born out of his [...]
Is there some legitimate historical prophecy to which we may turn? Christendom replies to this question with a clear Yes. Christendom, after all, counts among its sacred scriptures the prophetic Book of the Apocalypse. Hope and History, by Josef Pieper (106 pages, Cluny Media) Is there some legitimate historical prophecy to which we may turn? [...]
Since the God of justice is the God of charity it follows that although a war may be justified, one may not enter into it in a spirit of hate. We too often identify what is really a sin against charity with a love of justice. It is precisely against this divorce of justice and [...]
"A Spiritual Aeneid" is Ronald Knox's account, ingeniously constructed on the Virgillian frame, of his transition from Anglo-Catholicism to Roman Catholicism. It was written immediately after his reception and before his ordination as priest and is, by contrast with many similar confessions, remarkably unemotional and full of charity and justice towards the Church of his [...]
The profound Germano-Italian philosopher and theologian Romano Guardini (1885-1968) remains one of the most unsung heroes of twentieth-century conservatism. His reputation revived a bit during the all-too brief pontificate of Benedict XVI as so much of Ratzinger’s thought came from Guardini, directly and indirectly. But, he and his work should stand much higher than they [...]
We can give those things God has asked, Fr. Leonard Klein asserted, for “He has not abandoned us; he has given us life and gifts in this place and this time, for this place and time.” The attentive reader will find that his sermons are a great aid to thinking through what holy living means [...]
Beauty is found in art when there is connectedness to something beyond novelty and originality. This connectedness must exist between the artist and the source of what inspires the particular medium of art. Art, like morality, consists of drawing the line somewhere.[1] Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever [...]
Ronald Knox is a spiritual master whose value is not found in a “verbal fireworks show that will wow you” but preaching “utterly useful to one attempting to live Christian life.” For that reason, it is a delight to see that Cluny Media has republished two of his classics. Taken together they provide a kind [...]
Robert Hugh Benson's "The Lord of the World" is a cracking tale of science fiction and alternate history, but the lessons it teaches have to do with spiritual facts fitting for your Advent preparations. It will also help you get ready for the end of the world. Did you know that “Dies Irae,” the hymn [...]
What mattered to writer Charles Péguy was the future and restoring the Christian mystique, “a mystical spring flowing, a source of love, of life, of grace, an eternal spring, inexhaustible, nourishing the world, overflowing onto the age, inundating the world, an eternally mystical spring temporally in the world.” And once more he went down and [...]
Might the “big R” Reformation of the sixteenth century and the “big R” Revolutions of the eighteenth and nineteenth owe something to the first great revolution that made Old Europe in the first place? It has been noted that historians are creatures professionally invested in change. We should therefore suspect them when they speak of [...]
I know how it is. Our shopping isn’t done yet, either. That’s why we all need some ideas. Here are some good ones: books you’ve seen, not on TV, but—even better—on TIC. Admit it—you forgot to give somebody a gift and are scrambling. In "A Hans and Franz Christmas Book List," I offered a selection [...]
Dear Santa, This year I’m not going to ask for any new books for myself because I’ve been blessed to receive so many new books throughout the year that the bookshelves and bookcases around our home are filled to the point of bursting. My bibliophilic cup runneth over! Instead, I’d like to send you a [...]
People often ask me about “spiritual reading.” I recommend Monsignor Knox. He gives us no visions or holy weirdness, which are themselves not necessary. Instead, he addresses us where we are in ordinary life. Ronald Knox (1888-1957) is a fascinating and too often underrated figure. Theologian Lawrence Cunningham observed a few years ago that, having [...]