Faith Questions
`The "door of faith" (Acts. 14:27) is always open for us, ushering us into the life of communion with God and offering entry into his Church'.
With these words, Pope Benedict XVI began his apostolic letter Porta Fidei for the indiction of the Year of Faith.
His Mass And Ours : Meditations On Living Eucharistically
Brendan Leahy offers this loving explanation of the dual dimension of the Mass - Christ's gift and our existential participation, His action and our daily cooperation.
Brendan Leahy, "Holy Week invites us to lift up our hearts in Hope", Irish Times 30 March, 2021.
Holy Week moving into Easter is a yearly invitation to lift up our hearts and keep on hoping against hope, contemplating in hope whatever signs of the resurrection we find around us, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant. We each have our own resurrection world opening up in, through and around us.
Brendan Leahy, "Rekindling the Passion for Christian Unity: So that All may Believe", The Furrow (2021): 3-8.
The very recent publication of an Ecumenical Vademecum/Guidebook by the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity is an occasion for Catholics to look again at our ecumenical commitment, especially in this month when we celebrate the Week of Prayer for Christian unity (18-25 January). While the Vademecum, available on-line, is specifically focussed on reminding bishops of the priority of ecumenism, it is indirectly addressed to all of us, inviting us to rekindle the passion for unity that the Spirit has underlined through the ecumenical movement. The search for unity, we are reminded, is intrinsic to our identity as church.
Faith and the Marvelous Progress of Science
The contributors to this book write from a faith perspective but respectful of the place and role of science, both historically and today. Some write from direct scientific expertise while others draw on philosophical and theological perspectives to engage in reflection upon issues such as: how the division between faith and science arose; the nature of science; scientists and the phenomenon of atheism; the assumptions behind some contemporary debates; and the often-forgotten eschatological issues, the where-are-we-heading questions. It is hoped that readers will benefit from the many rich perspectives offered in these pages.
Ecclesial Movements and Communities - Abridged Second Edition
“This Abridged Second Edition has been prepared especially for the one-day national gathering planned for new ecclesial movements and communities on August 9, 2014 at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney, Maryland. This event is entitled:
They Were All Gathered Together – A Celebration of Movements & New Communities in the U.S. in Service of the New Evangelization.
In 2008, Bishop Sam Jacobs, a long-time member of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal, invited national representatives of several movements to consider a possible collaboration on a national scale. Cursillo, Focolare, the Neocatechumenal Way, and Worldwide Marriage Encounter all immediately responded positively. Others joined them over the years, participating in conference calls and personal meetings. This group was ultimately called, ‘Catholic Ecclesial Movements and New Communities in the U.S. in Conversation.’ It has held receptions, a luncheon, and a workshop for U.S. bishops during their November meetings in Baltimore each year.
It is our hope that this book will enable many to learn more about this important phenomenon for the Church in the U.S. in the 21st Century. It will also give the grassroots membership of our communities the possibility to become more familiar with one another. We encourage readers to study the various websites indicated in the Appendix called Listing of Movements and New Communities at the end of this book. We also include short summaries provided by the following movements: Arise International (Caritas in Veritate International), The Catholic Charismatic Renewal, the Cursillo Movement, the Focolare Movement, the Neocatechumenal Way, and Worldwide Marriage Encounter. May this new edition lead to a greater commitment to our own path of holiness, the communion among us, and the evangelization of society.”