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June 2016

June 14, 2016

Because of G.K. Chesterton (29 May, 1874 – 14 June, 1936)

Gilbert Keith Chesterton died on this day in 1936. A few years back, I had...

May 2016

May 11, 2016

There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy (A Few Words for Wednesday)

Long ago, I shared a poem by Frederick Faber in this space. This week, I...

June 2015

June 12, 2015

For Thoughts On The Solemnity Of The Most Sacred Heart Of Jesus

Are you on vacation yet? The funny thing about vacations is that when on holiday...

February 2015

February 25, 2015

For The Prayers Of St. Gregory Of Narek (A Few Words For Wednesday) UPDATED

A few days ago, Pope Francis declared St. Gregory of Narek our newest Doctor of...

October 2014

October 13, 2014

Walt Whitman’s Prayer of Columbus

Happy Columbus Day! I've a poem to share with you on the day on which...

August 2014

August 20, 2014

Lines By The Forgotten Member Of The Chesterbelloc (A Few Words For Wednesday)

What? There is a third person in the Chesterbelloc? George Bernard Shaw forgot someone? Exactly,...

July 2014

July 03, 2014

“When Great Trees Fall” (Requiescat In Pace)

I'm not sure if I will be much of a presence here over the next...

June 2014

June 24, 2014

A Poem on St. John the Baptist’s Day

Happy Birthday to St. John the Baptist! Here is a little poem I found...

June 09, 2014

“On Reproof,” A Poem By St. Ephrem of Syria, Deacon, and Doctor of the Church

I came upon these lines while researching St. Ephrem the Syrian, the Deacon, and Doctor...

April 2014

April 12, 2014

For G.K. Chesterton’s Off The Wall Poem About Palm Sunday

A couple of years back, I shared a movie with you about a saint who...

December 2013

December 28, 2013

For Poems Like This For Childermas

-Feast of the Holy Innocents Have you ever heard of Emily Hickey? Me either, at...

October 2013

October 24, 2013

A Brandy G.K Chesterton Would Approve Of…

I think so. I mean, look at the name on the label. Lepanto? As in the...

October 07, 2013

Andrea Doria, Lepanto, and the Power of the Rosary

—Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary When I was a kid, I really...

October 02, 2013

This Is My Friend (A Few Words for Wednesday)

This Is My Friend (from an old manuscript) Let me tell you how I...

August 2013

August 30, 2013

I Could Listen to Seamus Heaney Reading “Beowulf” For Hours (Requiescat In Pace) UPDATES

I shared what follows last summer. I'm sharing it with you again because this morning...

August 14, 2013

Salman Rushdie on the “Culture of Offendedness,” and Thoughts of Other Authors Whose Names Start With “S”

From The Independent, with a dateline out of Edinburgh, the noted author observes that we're...

August 07, 2013

Nobody Does A Gerard Manley Hopkins Poem Like Richard Burton (A Few Words for Wednesday)

The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo, as Gerard Manley Hopkins meant them to be...

May 2013

May 26, 2013

For Thoughts on the Trinity By Way of China, Circa 1700…

...with a little help from a few other sources. Today is the Solemnity of the...

April 2013

April 13, 2013

Anderson Cooper Tacks To Windward, Asks Hard Questions About the Gosnell Case

I'm not sure if you were able to see the telecast from his show last...

February 2013

February 27, 2013

A Poem and a Prayer as a Pontiff Retires

Today's gospel reading is a fitting reminder that the Christian model of leadership is not...

January 2013

January 28, 2013

For this Hymn by St. Thomas Aquinas (Zion, To Thy Savior Singing)

I am late in coming around to an appreciation of St. Thomas Aquinas. As the...

January 13, 2013

For This Hymn Commemorating the Baptism of Our Lord

On the Liturgical Calendar today, the Church celebrates the Feast of the Baptism of the...

December 2012

December 15, 2012

To Mourn and Embrace Pain in the Present Moment

When words fail, and our hearts are not still, what can we do? When tragedy...

November 2012

November 21, 2012

From T. S. Eliot’s “Four Quartets” (A Few Words for Wednesday)

T.S. Eliot has been lauded in this space before. You see, he moved on...

November 07, 2012

After the Election, What Really Matters…UPDATED

There will be much post-election chatter to keep us occupied for days, if not weeks....

November 04, 2012

News Flash: Dead Chinese Jesuit Befriends Catholic Blogger

You may remember my friend named Wu Li, SJ. I introduced him to you in...

September 2012

September 29, 2012

A Poem and a Prayer for Michaelmas UPDATED

Today is the Feast of St. Michael and the Archangels, also known as Michaelmas....

September 05, 2012

Fraternal Correction (A Few Words for Wednesday)

A poem by Kenhelm Digby Best, priest of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri, London,...

June 2012

June 16, 2012

A Sonnet on the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

The Heart of Mary, by Sheldon Vanauken (1914-1996). Dear sister, I was not divine, The...

June 08, 2012

Fr. Pontifex Strikes Again…

Father Claude Dusty Burns with a little ditty on the compatibility of faith and reason....