Thinking with the Church

Pope Francis' Principles
for Cultural Change

Thinking about the Pope at
the U.S. Bishops’ meeting
BALTIMORE, November 15, 2013 -- "It’s not only that many of our neighbors don’t share the Church’s beliefs on fundamental issues such as abortion, sexuality and marriage. This is true and troubling. But those issues are signs of deeper troubles. They are signs that our society has turned away from God to embrace what Pope Francis calls the “idols” of a materialist view of the world." - Archbishop Jose Gomez

Women Uniquely Understand
'Truth of Man,'
Philosopher Says
VATICAN, November 4, 2013  -- In light of Pope Francis’ call for a deeper theology of women, a leading Italian philosopher spoke of the importance of Edith Stein’s writings on gender, saying that she extracts the essence of human sexuality.

The Knots of
The Pastor Bergoglio
ROME, October 29, 2013 -- He was the one who imported from Germany to Argentina the devotion to the Blessed Mother “untier of knots.” To his studies he preferred the care of souls. And today he is doing the same: he is leaving to others the exposition of doctrine. As in the case of communion for the divorced and remarried.

Meaning of Catholic- the Universality of the Church
Pope Francis: Pursuit of Uniformity
Erodes the Gifts of the Holy Spirit
VATICAN, October 9, 2013 – The Holy Father dedicated the catechesis of today's general audience to catholicism and the concept of being Catholic. He explained three fundamental meanings of the idea, based on the Greek “kath'olon”, “totality”, and how these can be applied to the Church.

Women in the Church
Pope Urge a Deeper Theology
WASHINGTON D.C., July 31, 2013 -- Recent comments by Pope Francis on the role of women in the Church not only assert that their status does not depend on ordination, but call for a developed “theology of women,” says a Catholic analyst.

Pope: It's Wrong To Think Our
Enemies Must Go To Hell
VATICAN CITY, June 20, 2013--Pope Francis stressed that it's false to think our enemies “must go to hell” during his daily Mass at the Vatican's Saint Martha House June 20.

Boston College Draws Support on Condom Distribution Ban
BOSTON, April 3, 2013 -- Despite attacks against Boston College for its prohibition of condom distribution on campus, the school says its rules are similar to those of many prominent Catholic universities across the U.S.

What Does Reform
Of the Church Mean?
WASHINGTON, DC, February 27, 2013 --Hans Kung, out there on the far left fringes of Catholicism, has ideas about the reform of the Catholic Church; so does Bernard Fellay, the schismatic bishop and leader of the hard-right Lefebvrists. The National Catholic Reporter has its notions of Catholic reform; so does the National Catholic Register; neither is likely to agree with the other about the proper reform agenda. Calls for Catholic reform are ubiquitous, across the landscape of Catholic opinion. But how often do we stop and think about what distinguishes authentic Catholic reform from ersatz Catholic reform? Are there criteria that help us understand what’s true and false, in this matter of Catholic reform?

Archbishop Gomez:
Pope Benedict XVI --
Teacher of Faith
LOS ANGELES, February 22, 2013 -- "I was surprised, as I’m sure you all were, by the Pope’s announcement that he would be stepping down from his office at the end of this month. Pope Benedict XVI has truly been a Holy Father to the family of God, his Catholic Church. His decision to resign is a beautiful, Christ-like act of humility and love for the Church.  This is the act of a saint."

The War of the Two Councils:
The True and the False
ROME, February 15, 3103 – In the farewell address to the priests of Rome, the startling accusation of Benedict XVI against the political interpretation of Vatican II made by the media, during the assembly and afterward.

Reflections on the
Method of Saint John Paul II

Following Jesus and
Thinking With The Church
Requires a New Way of Thinking
VATICAN CITY, September 23, 2012  At midday today the Holy Father appeared on the balcony overlooking the internal courtyard of the Apostolic Palace at Castelgandolfo to pray the Angelus with faithful gathered there.

Catholics and Modernity
KRAKOW, POLAND, JULY 12, 2012 -- Somewhere on the far side of what Tom Wolfe called the Halusian Gulp, Father Francis X. Murphy, C.Ss.R., is reading the July 11 Washington Post and groaning — if, that is, his purgatorial purification has been effective.