ISIS

I am not a big fan of doing “current events” posts, but recent developments in Iraq have turned a few gears in my head. As of right now, the United States is engaged in a low-level two-pronged mission: (A) Drop humanitarian aide to minority religious populations who are being directly persecuted by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS — though some use ISIL); and (B) Commit airstrikes against ISIS forces intended to protect U.S. personnel and, it seems, slow their advance through Iraq. At the political level the action marks a rather significant turnaround in foreign policy for the Obama Administration — probably not the last one we will see over the next two years. Humanitarians who are normally not thrilled with military solutions to manifest military problems are, somewhat surprisingly, praising the operation, though their praise may be tempered quickly by the fact that hawkish pundits are already using the ISIS engagement as a vindication for Israel’s harsh measures in Gaza. Politics are never simple, especially at the international level, though one would hope — and pray — that some meaning distinctions can still be drawn between preventing a full-scale genocide from advancing further and a localized military engagement where the doctrine of proportionately became the first casualty.

More to Say on Vatican II?

I probably don’t need to plug Fr. John Hunwicke’s outstanding web-log on here, but just in case some of you aren’t aware of it, Fr. Hunwicke has just finished posting a three-part review of Roberto de Mattei’s sterling The Second Vatican Council: An Unwritten Story. (You can — and should — purchase a copy of this volume here.) If you are not yet convinced that Mattei’s book falls under the category of a “Must Read” for those who are seriously interested in the most polarizing event in modern Catholic history, hopefully Father’s fine thoughts will make the case. You can find all three of Fr. Hunwicke’s posts linked below.

Blessed Feast of St. Alphonsus

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I want to wish all readers of this blog a blessed feast of St. Alphonsus Ligouri, founder of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Redemptorists). For those following the Novus Ordo calendar, his feast day is today. For those who follow the vetus ordo, his feast is tomorrow (August 2). If you haven’t done so already, consider reading both his The Glories of Mary and Preparation for Death; they are among some of the greatest spiritual works in the history of the Catholic Church. It remains a great shame that most of the English-language volumes of his complete ascetical works are now long out of print, though used copies are readily available. Just be careful which translations you go for, as this helpful blog posts notes. Besides being a great Doctor of the Church, St. Alphonsus spent his life working tirelessly for the salvation of souls. His writings still serve as a guiding light through these dark times when we are so often tempted to set our hearts on worldly things instead of our minds on eternity and our last end. The following text is a summary of his life taken from the pre-1962 Breviarium Romanum.