WORDS TO THE WHYS

Reality is not optional. Thomas Sowell

Santa Of All Places

-
Santa's flight is captured each year, in detail, by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD.


Santa was recently seen over Africa. Explanatory text and images accompany Santa's annual epic trip.

Witness the informative journey in real time: https://www.noradsanta.org/

Comments

Post a Comment

Your comments will be appreciated and posted if 1) they are on topic and 2) preserve decorum.

Stand by your word.

Popular Posts

14 Top Sites

-
Image
The following sites are selected from among numerous edifying internet resources that are accessible, faithful to Catholic teaching, fair-minded, up-to-date, and well-organized. Big Pulpit: intelligent news aggregator that presents links to current events and solid Catholic teaching. Consider supporting the work of Little Vatican/Big Pulpit. https://bigpulpit.com/ The Catholic Thing: features brief but highly informative and well-written essays by eminent authors. https://www.thecatholicthing.org/ Brian Holdsworth: Edmonton based marketing and communications expert and apologist who publishes well-informed videos on current issues that are solidly Catholic and highly engaging. https://www.brianholdsworth.ca/ Father Benedict Kiely | Gospel Nuggets offers excellent short videos featuring a knowledgeable Catholic priest’s take on biblical texts, pressing current issues, the saints, and key spiritual topics essential for living the Catholic Faith. https://www.nasarean.org/news?tag_id=17 Fr...
Read more

Through Thick and Thin: Surfing The Wake Of The Council

-
Image
Team Thick versus Team Thin On 4 December 1963, following the last vote at the Second Vatican Council, Paul VI promulgated the Apostolic Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium on the Sacred Liturgy. Later, with the Apostolic Letter Motu proprio data Sacram Liturgiam dated 25 January 1964, Pope St. Paul VI established a Special Commission, called Consilium ad exsequendam Constitutionem de sacra Liturgia (Council for the Implementation of the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy). https://www.cultodivino.va/en/chi-siamo/storia/il-consilium-ad-exsequendam-constitutionem-de-sacra-liturgia.html The Consilium consisted of 48 members (11 Cardinals, 36 Bishops and 1 Abbot) and more than 200 international consultors and advisors, spread across 40 study groups (coetus a studiis). The internal debates within the Consilium ad exsequendam Constitutionem de Sacra Liturgia were intense, often revealing two competing visions of liturgical reform. Primary Axes of Disagreement 1. Continuity vs. Reconstructi...
Read more

Preacher Man | Ordinariate Gift

-
Image
preach  (v.) - from www.etymonline.com Middle English prechen , "deliver a sermon, proclaim the Gospel," from late Old English predician , a loan word from Church Latin; reborrowed 12c. as preachen , from Old French preechier "to preach, give a sermon" (11c., Modern French prĂ©cher ), from Late Latin praedicare "to proclaim publicly, announce" (in Medieval Latin "to preach," source also of Spanish predicar ), from Latin prae "before" (from PIE root * per - "forward," hence "in front of, before") + dicare "to proclaim, to say" (from PIE root * deik - "to show," also "pronounce solemnly"). Meaning "give earnest advice, especially on moral subjects" is by 1520s. To preach to the converted is recorded from 1867 (the form preach to the choir attested from 1979). The Role of Preaching in the Church The Catechism explains that preaching is central to the Church’s mission of sharing t...
Read more

Newman's Doctrinal Development and the Collapse of False Binaries

-
Image
The Church’s struggle to preserve authenticity often intensifies in particular eras, and in recent decades has surfaced as a tension between so‑called “progressives” and “conservatives.” These labels, borrowed from secular political discourse, obscure the deeper question Newman identified: whether a given proposal represents a genuine development of doctrine or a corruption of it. Political categories shed little light on this discernment, for authentic development preserves the type, principles, and living continuity of the Faith, while corruption either breaks from the apostolic deposit or refuses the Spirit’s ongoing deepening of it. When debate is framed in partisan terms, each camp is tempted to caricature the other, seeking adherents through opposition rather than through the careful, Spirit‑guided evaluation Newman saw as essential to the Church’s growth in understanding. Both the “trad” and “rad” orientations remain firmly entrenched in a polarizing debate, fueled by stereotype...
Read more

The Gloria Of The Mass: Liturgical Map Of Salvation.

-
Image
The architecture of the Gloria  is not accidental; it is a liturgical map of the entire economy of salvation, sung in miniature. Its movement is not merely poetic but theological—beginning in heaven, descending into the world, passing through the saving work of Christ, and rising again into the Trinitarian glory from which all things come.  Below is an outline of that movement, illustrating how each section reflects a unique “moment” within the divine economy. 1. Heavenly Revelation — Salvation begins from above “Glory be to God on high, and on earth peace, good will towards men” The Gloria opens not with human initiative but with the angelic hymn of Bethlehem. This signals that salvation is revealed, not discovered. Grace descends; humanity receives. The angels proclaim God’s glory. Peace is announced to the earth. God’s goodwill toward humanity is declared. This is the Incarnational moment: heaven bends low, and the Gloria begins where the Gospel begins—God speaking first. 2...
Read more

Sacred Scripture permeates every aspect of Divine Worship.

-
Image
Almighty and Ever‑living God, Who in Thy holy Word dost enlighten the humble and strengthen the weak: grant unto us the grace of Thy Holy Spirit, that He may open our hearts in silence and our minds in purity to receive Thy truth. And as we seek to walk in Thy will, vouchsafe that we may be filled with the knowledge of Thy love and mercy, and sustained by the quiet light of Thy wisdom, joy, and hope. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen. + + + Sacred Scripture permeates every aspect of Divine Worship , with the Missal shaping the Ordinariate Mass not only through the proclaimed readings but also through its language, structure, and devotional character.  At its heart, Scripture functions as both revelation and anamnesis—God speaking to His people and the Church truly present to His saving deeds. This dynamic is emphasized in the Church’s teaching that “through the proclaimed biblical r...
Read more

POPE LEO XIV Magnifica Humanitas

Even in the darkest nights, the Lord raises up men and women who refuse to give up, who persevere in doing good, who protect the vulnerable and open pathways to reconciliation. The memory of the saints, righteous people and the oft-forgotten peacemakers, show us that grace does not magically eliminate conflict, but instead it inspires active resistance to evil and an astonishing creativity in doing good” (paragraph 211).

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

I doubt not then but innocence shall make false accusation blush, and tyranny tremble at patience.