Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa is a Franciscan Capuchin priest and since 1980 the Preacher to the Papal Household. In that job, he preaches weekly during Lent and Advent to the Pope and the cardinals, bishops and prelates of the Roman Curia. He is also an internationally-renowned preacher. His words carry. Let us pray that his sermon…

Yes, Tampa Bay lost game one of the World Series to Philadelphia. Does that mean Obama will lose to McCain? Hey, who expected either the Rays or Obama to be here, anyway? Well, Nate Silver did. The genius behind FiveThirtyEight.com (after the number of Electoral College votes) not only has the most authoritative poll aggregator…

A statement today from top leaders of the American hierarchy seems to say that neither side has the best–or most Catholic–approach to abortion. Or that’s how it reads to me. “Both opposing evil and doing good are essential obligations,” write Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia, chairman of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities, and Bishop William…

For Iraq’s Christians, “the Surge” has been more like “the Purge” as ethnic and religious fighting continues to decimate this ancient and once-thriving Christian population. Before the U.S. invasion, Iraqi Christians numbered about 1.5 million. Now the figure is less than half that, due to expulsion, exodus, and murder. The situation has forced Iraq’s Christians…

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