 |  | Train Dreams Meditates on the Hidden Depths of an Ordinary, Decent Life Nora Kenney Mittiga
Robert's inner life is dense but verbally sparse—rare, crucial lines delivered with restrained torment. Much is happening beneath the surface, but the film respects the fact that a character can't always articulate it. "Under the rocks are the words," Norman Maclean says in A River Runs Through It. In almost the same time and setting, Train Dreams shares this concept and offers something close to Flannery O'Connor's brutal grace. | | READ ARTICLE | | |  | Letters from a Hong Kong Prison: Claire Lai on the Witness of Jimmy Lai Brenden Thompson
Claire Lai, daughter of Jimmy Lai, the 78-year-old Catholic political prisoner in solitary confinement in Hong Kong, reads from her father's letter, "Now in prison, I am led to the right path, to the kingdom of God, glimpses of true light and real joy in front of me, serving God, not myself. This realization to serve the Lord as a true way of life, so lucky have I been going through life and ending up in the kingdom of God." | | READ ARTICLE | | |  | Deliver Me From Nowhere: Another Side of The Boss Henry T. Edmondson III
The Nebraska album consists of Springsteen, his guitar, and his harmonica—nothing else. Slow and melancholic, it features no driving drum, no bouncing bass, no soulful saxophone. The new biopic on Springsteen chronicles this difficult juncture in his career, offering the opportunity to look more closely at the album, especially its association with Southern writer Flannery O'Connor. | | READ ARTICLE | | |  | The Catholic Kerouac Matthew Malone
He came to define the "Beat Generation," and his work, most notably On The Road, changed the course of prose and poetry for decades to come. Whilst he will forever be revered as a major figure in the development of 1960s counterculture, he always identified as a social and political conservative informed by his lifelong love for Catholicism. | | READ ARTICLE | | |  | Anything But Ordinary: The Surprise of Lou Holtz Dr. Tod Worner
Lou Holtz, coach and devout Catholic, didn't create the culture at Notre Dame, but he breathed new life into it. He once explained, "I follow three rules: Do the right thing, do the best you can, and always show people you care." And many times, he would add, "I can't believe that God put us on this earth to be ordinary." Lou Holtz was anything but ordinary. | | READ ARTICLE | | |  | A Confession of the Legendary Lou Holtz Dr. Christopher Kaczor
Remembering that day, I am still edified that someone as important and busy as the head coach of a national champion football team made time to humble himself and go to confession. Coach Holtz once said, "If you're not close to God as you once were, I wonder which one moved!" Holtz gave great examples on and off the field. He practiced what he preached, but when he didn't, he practiced confession. | | READ ARTICLE | | |  | Jon Guerra's Jesus Takes Us Back to the Manifesto: The Sermon on the Mount Matthew Becklo
The album's primary aim is to rediscover what Jesus taught and, more fundamentally, who Jesus is. "A couple of years ago I felt I needed to be reacquainted with Jesus," Guerra writes in a note accompanying the album. At the heart of it all is always "the Lord of Crucifixion"—his words, his example, his invitation.
| | READ ARTICLE | | |  | Is Pluribus the Modern World's Cry for Help? Rachel Lu
The series shows us a typically modern protagonist wrestling with life's defining questions, using the limited spiritual resources available to her. Most fascinating of all, it contrasts that character's efforts with those of a devout Catholic. It's a gripping story that may also contain some clues as to what modern people want from Catholics.
| | READ ARTICLE | | |  | German Bishop Stands Against 'The Synodal Way' Dr. Richard DeClue
Bishop Stefan Oster of Passau, Germany, delivered an address on February 4. He remains convinced "that the problematic ramifications of the Synodal Way for the Church in Germany and worldwide clearly outweigh its positive aspects." In his own reflection upon the Synodal Way's treatment of Christian life, Bishop Oster "has the impression that an underlying motive of liberalizing endeavors" is behind their approach.
| | READ ARTICLE | | |  | The Theological Contributions of Blaise Pascal Henry T. Edmondson III
On November 23, 1654, French mathematical prodigy and Christian apologist Blaise Pascal experienced a dramatic conversion. The Christian life, Pascal believes, is one of continuous conversion and commitment. He warns that too often, we try to live a life that is not our own, a life that exists only in our imagination. Pascal's most important contribution may be his admonition to maintain forward momentum in Christian commitment and conversion. | | READ ARTICLE | | |  | The Samurai and the Cross Lauren Spohn
Bl. Justo lived ready to be martyred at any moment. When the moment finally arrived, he abandoned his earthly lord to remain loyal to his heavenly Lord. Justo fulfilled the samurai code by breaking it—showing to whom, by true justice, a creature owes his ultimate allegiance. Grace did not destroy but rather perfected the code of honor Justo had upheld his whole life.
| | READ ARTICLE | | |  | Evangelizing a Fractured Culture with Neuroscience and Theology Nell O'Leary
"Far from the godless wasteland that people sometimes imagine academic neuroscience to be, I've found a profound harmony with Christian faith." Dr. Sofia Carozza will present a two-day live seminar on March 16–17 at the Word on Fire Institute. She says, "This scientific knowledge can be a powerful catalyst for sharing the good news of God's love for us, which alone can restore unity to our fragmented world."
| | READ ARTICLE | | |  | Memories of an Inevitable Occurrence: George Saunders's Vigil Andrew Tolkmith
George Saunders's newest novel is a journey into the underworld. Instead of a classical hero, the protagonist is the soul of Jill "Doll" Blaine, a midwestern woman who died in the 1970s; and instead of the realm of the dead, Jill descends into the realm of human beings, with all of their weakness and yearning. Saunders makes memory the guide of the novel's pace and the catalyst of action, deftly structuring memories to move Jill's voyage forward.
| | READ ARTICLE | | |  | THE COLLEGE BEAT: ARTICLE XIV | A Sense of Home: Chesterton, Berry, and a Thoughtful Environmentalism William Saylor
Roger Scruton coined the term "oikophilia" to refer to that central principle of the distributist/communitarian/agrarian tradition: the love of home. Both Wendell Berry and Scruton realized that this "tradition of home" has taken on a whole new level of importance today, for it is the answer to the planet's environmental crisis.
| | READ ARTICLE | | |  | The Real Cause of Contempt for the Innocent Mark Bradford
The hellish agents of evil have contempt for human life. They are filled with envy and resentment toward the human capacity to reproduce the divine image, and they use whatever influence they can have on the hearts and minds of vulnerable persons to move them to destroy the life they carry within them. They can't attack God, so they attack the image of God, the imago Dei.
| | READ ARTICLE | | |  | What I Saw at Notre Dame Dr. Tod Worner
The greatest risk in the modern world of distraction and uncertainty, missteps and misunderstanding is to forget who and what we are. What I saw at Notre Dame reminded me. And it is extraordinary when we remember. If you are wondering how the Catholic faith truly fares at Notre Dame, I would invite you to come down and see.
| | READ ARTICLE | | |  | Sr. John Dominic Rasmussen on Virtue at the Heart of Education Dr. Melissa Mitchell
Sr. John Dominic Rasmussen, OP, is the co-foundress of the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist. She is also the founder of Openlight Media's Education in Virtue program, which aims to cultivate authentic virtue in learners of all ages, fostering joy, faith, and identity in Christ through engaging resources and community support.
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