A new book titled “The Outlaw Ocean” tells horror stories about the fishing trade to build its case that man is utterly depraved. Author Ian Urbina states that out on the open sea there is no law to keep our animal nature in check, as there is on dry land. If consumers found out that […]
A recent TV documentary reported the tortuous lengths many inmates of the island penitentiary of Alcatraz took to flee this inescapable fortress in the early 20th century. None escaped alive. That’s life. Many of us lifers on earth spend our sentence planning escapes from the prison of their bodies. But like the legendary Birdman of […]
Earlier this year, Doran Oancia, CEO of Chemex Modular LLC, in Houston, went on LinkedIn, the businessperson’s social network, asking the following: “Does anyone know a solidly Catholic parish, preferably with adoration chapel, in the Woodlands TX area?” Finding an adoration chapel in the city of his new company was a key factor in choosing […]
A century ago, two teenage girls in England had some fun challenging the self-regard of grownups. They found a children’s book filled with pictures of winged fairies, cut these figures out of the book, then took photographs of themselves interacting with these sprites. They presented these photos to the grownups in their lives as evidence […]
Polarization is a force of nature in the world of science. Light, radiation, and magnetism can be used to illustrate movement in opposing directions. Outside science, human ego is infinitely more powerful than magnets for exemplifying an intractable power struggle. In the U.S., the fight between political ideologies dates back as far as the polarization […]
The creators of our agnostic culture’s most beloved super heroes model their characters’ behavior on some of religion’s greatest scriptural heroes—whether they know it or not. These behaviors include always doing the right thing, living righteously, and acting fearlessly. Mary, mother of the New Testament’s greatest hero, turned out to be a super hero herself. […]
A Eucharistic Minister gets to look many people square in the face while distributing Holy Communion at Sunday Mass. Some bow and say “Amen” after being presented with the host and hearing “Body of Christ.” Most present their palms to receive it, and a few, their tongues. Some eyes look into the Minister’s, others are […]
Here’s a quiz. In which book of the bible will you find the following prayer? Father I thank thee that in thy great mercy, thou hast taken pity on my great loneliness and now out of the silence of the night has brought two of thy lonely children together, and sent me a friend to […]
A cousin recently invited me to join an exclusive group dedicated to preserving an old family heirloom—our surname. This cousin is one of those relatives you usually only get to see at weddings and funerals, so the prospect of getting closer to my family’s heritage was irresistible. It promised both the recollection of old family […]
Less than a third of us go to church anymore. That’s what a recent Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll reported. Only 29% of Americans responding to the pollsters say they attend religious services once a week or more often. It was 41% in 2000. Twenty-six percent of us NEVER go to church. Among people aged […]