Carl Olson Comments

CWR: Editorial: Benedict XVI’s essay is both insightful and incomplete by Carl E. Olson
Reaction to the unexpected release of a lengthy text—almost exactly 6,000 words in all—by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, titled “The Church and the scandal of sexual abuse”, has been both swift and polarized. Some have [...]

CWR: Abp. Vigano’s new testimony has “special appeal” to Card. Ouellet, more criticism of Pope Francis by Carl E. Olson
The strongest words of Viganò’s new testimony are found in the conclusion, where he asks, “Has Christ perhaps become invisible to his vicar?”

Carl Olson on the McCarrick Scandal

Without Truth, There Is No Trust, Without Trust...

Related:
McCarrick, the Bishops, and Unanswered Questions

Carl Olson Interviews George Weigel About His Latest Book

Moral Order: The Current Mess and a Theological Reading of History

On the Met Exhibit

We have Met the problem—and it is ancient, secular, and us by Carl E. Olson
The Gala at the Met was a sad attempt to pretend, to think (or feel, more likely) that colorful celebration and rampant symbolism can capture or reveal the essence of Catholicism.

Related:

CNA: Cardinal Marx endorses blessing ceremonies for same-sex couples

CWR: Cardinal Marx openly promotes false news about blessings and “homosexual unions” by Carl E. Olson
Will Pope Francis correct the German Cardinal, who has stated that Catholic priests can conduct blessing ceremonies for homosexual couples and says “we have no sets of rules”?

CWR's Picks for 2017

American Ecclesial Politics: Rearranging Deck Chairs on the Titanic

Carl Olson: Archbishop Naumann, Cardinal Cupich, and the mysterious middle finger

Related:
Archbishop Naumann elected US bishops’ pro-life committee chair

Pretty Please?

CWR Dispatch: Four cardinals to Pope Francis: “Faced with this grave situation…”

“…[we] ask humbly and respectfully for an Audience.” But they likely aren’t going to receive an audience or an answer.

Original blog post by Edward Pentin.

CWR: The Mosque, the Manger, and Modernity by Carl E. Olson

“Where secularism takes God out of the public forum,” says Peter D. Beaulieu, author of Beyond Secularism and Jihad, “Islam takes the public forum out of man.”

CWR: The Hysterical Media Attacks on Cardinal Burke By Carl E. Olson

Far too many reporters and pundits confirm the observation of G.K. Chesterton in the early 1900s that much journalism is simply "bad journalism" and is "shapeless, careless, and colorless..."

CWR: A Malta Laetitia by Carl E. Olson

Cardinal Müller says "Amoris Laetitia" is "very clear". The bishops of Malta say divorced and remarried Catholics can receive Communion. Abps. Chaput and Sample say otherwise. Welcome to Pope Francis' messy Church.

But will it teach men how to lead?

CWR Dispatch: Holy League Men's Conference to feature noted speakers, challenging messages
Held in Salem, Oregon, the December 16-17 conference will include Mass and homily by Abp. Alexander Sample, and talks by Dn. Harold Burke Sivers, Fr. Donald Calloway, Jesse Romero, and others.

Carl E. Olson, editor of Catholic World Report, will give a talk titled "The Vocation of Sons by Grace", which will focus on the divine call for every man to be, by virtue of baptism, a prophet, priest, and king. The talk, says Olson, will highlight themes found in Called To Be the Children of God: The Catholic Theology of Human Deification, which he co-edited with Fr. David Meconi, SJ. "Drawing on Scripture and the Fathers," says Olson, "I will emphasize the truly radical gift of divine sonship and show how it relates to our everyday lives as men, husbands, and fathers." True men of God, he adds, "see and understand this life in the light of supernatural, Trinitarian grace and our call to share that grace with our families, friends, and everyone we encounter".

Julia Flyte and Charles Ryder Could Have Had a Happy Ending!

If only Evelyn Waugh had lived to the pontificate of Pope Francis and written Brideshead Revisited now. Then they could have gotten "married" and received Holy Communion and been good Catholics and lived happily ever after!

So have they tried to re-interpret the story of the Samaritan woman at the well? She could have remraried too, Christ was understanding and merciful!

Pope Francis's non-response from a few weeks ago; he hasn't given any other response to the dubia since then. Francis: “The Church is not a football team in search of fans”

Fr. Spadaro Comments

Edward Peters: Cardinals in the Church have rights too

Today:
The Four Cardinals and the Encyclical in the Room
The essential questions remain what they have always been: "what is freedom and what is its relationship to the truth contained in God's law? what is the role of conscience in man's moral development?"
By Carl E. Olson

Related:
Full text: Cardinals’ letter to Pope Francis on Amoris Laetitia

CWR The Dispatch: Why Pope Francis is wrong about extending mercy to creation and the environment by Carl E. Olson
I am increasingly convinced that this papacy, for all of its strengths, weaknesses, and oddities, could well be known, down the road, as the Papacy of Sentimentality.

CWR: Francis and Fundamentalism by Carl E. Olson

Why should we equate Christianity to Islam in terms of its inner dynamic—that is, its core beliefs about God, man, the temporal order, and so forth? Why must we think that Islam and Christianity are equal in terms of moral teachings?

Canon Law and CST

CWR Blog: Quick thoughts on the ultimate purpose of canon law and social doctrine By Carl E. Olson
And what is real social justice? The Book of Revelation answers that important question.

CWR: 10 things Michael Cook gets wrong in his criticism of papal critics By Carl E. Olson
Yes, Francis is often misquoted. Yes, Francis sometimes trips over his own rhetorical toes. But there are deeper problems. And saying so isn't a sin.