The lives of the saints abound with simple acts of mercy, performed instinctively to those in need. Indeed, these are very often the most cherished and lovingly retold episodes from their heroic lives. Think, for instance, of St Martin of Tours’ dividing his cloak to clothe a naked beggar. Of St Christopher’s willingness to carry

The lives of the saints abound with simple acts of mercy, performed instinctively to those in need. Indeed, these are very often the most cherished and lovingly retold episodes from their heroic lives. Think, for instance, of St Martin of Tours’ dividing his cloak to clothe a naked beggar. Of St Christopher’s willingness to carry

I was chatting to my sister the other day on the topic of Brexit and the EU (what else is there to talk about?) and pointed out that East European countries were not always entirely happy with the edicts flowing from Brussels. She riposted indignantly, “Look at Hungary! Their Prime Minister is now bribing women

The Daily Herald hyhy   BIOGRAPHY + PIC  

It should be clear by now that the diplomatic service of the Vatican is in a mess. Archbishop Luigi Ventura, the apostolic nuncio in Paris (a post held by the future pope, St John XXIII), is facing multiple accusations of sexual misconduct. The French authorities want the archbishop’s diplomatic immunity lifted, so he can be

From the moment the young man in his twenties entered the room, he conveyed a sense of openness and a keen desire to share the story of his journey to become Catholic. Although not baptised as a child, he recalled attending Mass with his grandparents, themselves devout Catholics and it was his relationship with his

The Catholic Church forbids all forms of birth control; therefore, Catholic hospitals don’t distribute any. That doesn’t seem like a particularly controversial principle. After all, birth control is plentiful in the United States. In fact, federal law requires that virtually all insurance providers are required to pay for it. Patients simply may not be able

I have been reading Flight from the Brothers Grimm: A European-Australian memoir by Valerie Murray, published in 1916 by Books Unleashed. Valerie is the widow of the Australian poet, Les Murray, who died in April this year and of whom another Oz poet, Clive James, wrote in tribute – with typical Jamesian stylistic flourish –

Today’s “woke” culture raises all kinds of social issues – some more deserving of support than others. However, one important social issue it will never raise or endorse is that of mothers who choose to stay at home when their children are young, knowing that this is easily the best way to help them become

It seems unthinkable to us today, but for centuries parents allowed their young sons to be sexually mutilated before puberty if they seemed to have great promise as singers. That’s because there was enormous social reward for the castrati. Mutilating an eight- or nine-year-old boy was also a kind of hormonal therapy which had a