In the U.S. alone, nearly 18,000 Catholic parishes will celebrate Palm Sunday by blessing and distributing palm branches to the faithful. That makes millions of palm leaves each year – and that doesn’t include all of the Protestant churches that observe the tradition. Where do all those palms...
You can almost hear the holy noise of their children playing in the other room while they upload photos from last night’s Candlemas dinner party. Joy spills onto every homepage like that glass of orange juice the toddler knocked over this morning. Intelligence lies open on every blog post...
After a recent attack at a Missionaries of Charity convent in Yemen claimed the lives of four of the sisters there, the bishop overseeing the area said he has no doubt they died as martyrs. “For me there is no doubt that the sisters have been victims of hatred – hatred...
It is sometimes said that Confirmation is a sacrament in search of a theology. It is indeed true that most Catholics could probably give at least a decent account of the significance of Baptism, Eucharist, Confession, Matrimony, Holy Orders, and the Anointing of the Sick, but they might balk when...
[See also: 15 Hilarious Complaints Medieval Scribes Left in the Margins] [See also: A Manly Biblical Skill: How to Gird Up Your Loins in 6 Easy Steps] [See also: How Each Apostle Died & Where You Can Find Their Bones Today (2.0)] [See also: A Beautiful Explanation of the...
This article originally appeared on Fr. Dwight Longenecker’s blog “Standing on My Head,” and is reprinted with permission. Visit his website, browse his books, and be in touch at dwightlongenecker.com. At a priest’s conference not long ago the speaker quoted some statistics. Christians of different traditions were...
