Gina Christian
By Gina Christian • Posted December 17, 2020
Many years ago, the rock band Pearl Jam released a song in which lead vocalist Eddie Vedder pleaded, “Oh, please let me sleep, it’s Christmas time.” Over jangling guitar strings, he lamented cold winds, fatigue and a heaven that knew nothing of him; he longed to close his eyes and reexperience “how magic it seemed” to celebrate the holiday as a child.
Both hardship and hectic schedules can certainly drive us to dreamland at this time of year. The contrast between what we think Christmas “should” be and how we’re actually able to celebrate it can be wrenching, especially for those left unemployed, homeless and hungry by a resurgent pandemic. After months marred by COVID, loss, anxiety and weariness have dulled our spirits, which ache for rest, however brief.
Killing in Our Name: Federal Executions and Pro-life Witness
As the end of his administration approaches, President Trump has restarted the use of the federal death penalty. Since July there have been 10 executions with another three before he leaves office. These federal executions are the first in 17 years and raise critical moral, human, and policy choices for the nation and a new presidential administration.
In the United States, executions and death sentences have declined dramatically, and public support for capital punishment is at historic lows. Catholic teaching against capital punishment is rooted in our recognition of the inherent dignity of each person and in the sanctity of human life. Pope John Paul II appealed for an end to the death penalty during a visit to the United States, and Pope Benedict XVI spoke even more strongly, calling on world leaders to “make every effort to eliminate the death penalty.” In line with his predecessors, Pope Francis called for the a
By Junno Arocho Esteves
If Christians forget to remember in prayer people who are suffering, their prayer can become a superficial activity that feeds their ego rather than seeking the good and well-being of others, Pope Francis said.
“Those who pray never turn their backs on the world” but instead, seek to intercede for humanity through prayer, the pope said Dec. 16 during his weekly general audience.
“When believers moved by the Holy Spirit pray for sinners, no selection is made, no judgment or condemnation is uttered,” he said. “They pray for everyone, and they pray for themselves. At that moment, they know they are not that different from those for whom they pray.”
VATICAN CITY: People who pray for others are like God’s antennas, Pope Francis said at the general audience Wednesday.
In his address Dec. 16, the pope insisted that those who seek solitude and silence to intercede for others are not evading reality.
“Whoever can knock on the door of someone who prays finds a compassionate heart which does not exclude anyone,” he said, seated beside a traditional depiction of the nativity.
He added: “These people pray for the entire world, bearing its sorrows and sins on their shoulders. They pray for each and every person: they are like God’s ‘antennas’ in this world.”
Three cheers for Michael Sean Winters parsing of Archbishop Charles Chaput s argument for denying President-elect Joe Biden the grace of the Eucharist. Where is the scandal given by a person in public life who has struggled with his conscience and has decided that supporting existing protection of a woman s right to choose is not the moral equivalent of supporting abortion on demand?
Alas, there is much greater scandal in a hierarchy that has given unequivocal support to an administration that pillaged the earth, dealt in lies and misinformation, denigrated women, supported racism, caged children, built walls against immigrants, rushed to execute federal prisoners, suborned perjury, pardoned felons, and so much more.