History of Christian Thoughts Archives - Page 9 of 67

Paul Johnson: one of the great humanists of our time

February 8, 2023

Paul Johnson, who passed away on January 12 at the age of 94, was one of the great humanists of the last century. Johnson earned the admiration of millions of readers throughout the world for his way with words, for his insights into historical figures,

Pope Benedict XVI Has Found What He’s Been Looking For

February 6, 2023

In a relatively recent children’s animated movie sequel, “Sing 2” (yes, the sequel to Sing!), the producers succeeded in getting the famous lead singer “Bono” (from the band U2) to be the voice for the main hero of the movie. Bono is voice-over for a lion

Everything Begins in Mysticism

January 31, 2023

This month marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of a great modern Catholic genius. Like many such geniuses, he and his legacy have been all but forgotten. But Charles Péguy will return – for some of us he never left – because his words and

Farewell to Luther

January 31, 2023

For many years, I have struggled to understand Martin Luther and his motivations. I am an adult convert to the Catholic Church, one who had no religious faith before I was baptized. A key part of my journey occurred during my time in graduate school, of

Saints by the numbers: Catholic martyrs from the first century to the twentieth

January 30, 2023

How many martyrs have there been in the history of the Catholic Church? This turns out to be a more complicated question than one might think. Take, for example, the group known collectively as the First Martyrs of Rome. Each year, on June 30, the

St. Paul in the Public Square

January 25, 2023

Editor's Note: This reflection from Archbishop Chaput was originally written after the 2008 election. We are sharing it today for its insights into what Paul said about Truth. Consider this passage from St. Paul: “I am speaking the truth in Christ, I am not lying;

Paul Never Quoted Jesus?

January 25, 2023

A common claim in some skeptical circles is that St. Paul never quoted Jesus. A second common claim is that, if he had reliable knowledge of Jesus, he would have quoted him. The conclusion that is drawn from these premises is that St. Paul was

Walking Through the “Orchard” of Scripture

January 24, 2023

Premise: Searching for Meaning One of the basic notions that we must take into consideration when reading Scripture is the complexity of meaning(s) “words” can communicate. Why? The divine revelation manifested in the written word resides in its message, embracing different levels of comprehension depending

The Prince Who Became a Pauper…and a Priest

January 23, 2023

In the year 1800, Father Demetrius Augustine Gallitzin celebrated Christmas Mass in the most backroad parts of western Pennsylvania. But at least he had a church. As he described it to his bishop, “It is about 44 feet long by 25 feet, built of white

Benedict XVI and the Cosmic Covenant

January 19, 2023

After the widespread attention that Pope Francis’s 2015 encyclical on care for creation has garnered over the past several years,the extensive concern paid by previous pontiffs to the subject risks fading into distant memory. Yet, long before environmental stewardship became the subject of Laudato Si’,