by Paul Senz One of the challenges we Catholics face is the way in which our liturgical calendar almost becomes like white noise in the background. There is such consistency in our liturgical year that we often don’t give much thought to the changing of the seasons, the feasts, the memorials, the solemnities, as they…

The goal of Lent is nothing other than freeing ourselves up to follow God more faithfully, writes Jason Osborne Lent begins Wednesday, February 22, this year, and so in preparation it’s worth turning our mind to it in advance. At least in my case, it often comes upon me like a thief in the night,…

In a 2000s poll, the British Film Institute canvassed film and TV professionals to find the 100 best English TV series. At number 10, the highest ranked TV Mini-series, was a famous adaptation of Brideshead Revisited. The classic book by Catholic author Evelyn Waugh became a classic series, beloved by audiences, critics – and even…

Despite the singular name of this column, this week we’re focusing on two saints: February 14 the Church esteems Ss Cyril (originally Constantine) and Methodius, who were declared co-patron saints of Europe by St Pope John Paul II. These brothers were born in the Greek city of Thessalonica in the early ninth Century, but it’s…

Why does the theology of this Dominican priest who died in 1274 still carry so much influence today, asks Fr Fergus Kerr OP You could graduate today with first-class honours in divinity in most universities knowing next to nothing about Thomas Aquinas. On the other hand, 50 years ago, in Catholic colleges and seminaries, you…

The Song of Bernadette is a Hollywood classic, probably its the best effort to capture a saint’s life on film. The black and white drama from 1942 tells the story of young Bernadette Soubirous. Bernadette – now a saint – is depicted as a slow but sincere young girl, who is given the remarkable gift…

It’s with good reason that Pope Benedict XVI drew attention to the story of St Josephine Bakhita in his encyclical, Spe Salvi (In Hope we Were Saved), for her’s is a story of the “hope that ensues from a real encounter with this God,” as the late pope put it in that same encyclical. Born…

Fr Stuart Wilson-Smith A faith slump can happen to anyone. Prayer isn’t working or we don’t feel motivated. When we do make it to Mass, we struggle to focus or we don’t feel God any more near to us than when we went in. God seems distant, or we may wonder if God is even…

God gave all of us gifts that can be put to use in service of our parishes, writes Lorene Hanley Duquin Today, parishioners are expected to feel a true sense of ownership in their parish. That means looking at your parish as more than just a place where you go to Mass. A parish can…

You might think, reading this column over the last few months, that religion is a common subject in movies. However, it isn’t very frequently, at least as a positive subject. There are plenty of films that attack it or misunderstand it; in the past there were films that made it into a kind of spectacle,…