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Blessed Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary!

With great joy the Church celebrates this feast day of our Blessed Mother, the day on which we commemorate her bodily resurrection and glorification of the Lord at the end of her life. On November 1, 1950, Pope Pius XII announced the Apostolic Constitution, MUNIFICENTISSIMUS DEUS, defining the doctrine of the Assumption. Speaking to a jubilant crowd of more than 500,000 people packed into St. Peter’s Square, Pope Pius XII proclaimed, “Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body (more…)

For the past many months, the refrain of singer Paul Simon’s song, “Slip Slidin’ Away” has kept rolling around in my head, repeating itself over and over again. For awhile there, it really did seem as though things were slip slidin’ away for Fenelon Clan. And, so, even though I didn’t initially like the song when it hit the Top 40, it has been my companion of late. (more…)

I was intrigued by Pope Francis from the get-go, suspecting that he would be a Pope very different from what we expected, and I was right. Since his election, I’ve followed along with his words and actions, often posting about them on Are We There Yet? (more…)

Today I’m following up on my last post about the priest who committed suicide in the rectory a block down the street from my house. In my post I mentioned that, in my view, this priest (and anyone else who has committed suicide) must have lost all hope. To me, a person can only take his or her own life if steeped in utter hopelessness. (more…)

Since his election to the papacy on March 13, 2013, I’ve been following Pope Francis – at times actively, and at times passively, but always keeping me eye on him via the Catholic newspapers, Internet sites, and Vaticanist news bulletins. Although I was initially skeptical about what kind of pope Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio would become, I now find myself liking what I see. And hear.

I appreciate his simplicity and directness, and I appreciate even more that he practices what he preaches. He’s asked the Church to pare down, be attentive to the needs of those (more…)