Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Headlines were made last Friday when Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco imposed a sacramental discipline on Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, stating that, due to her decades-long public support for abortion and after repeated attempts to engage in dialogue about her misapplication of Catholic teaching, she is not to be admitted to Holy Communion, pursuant to Canon 915 of the Code of Canon Law. His decision is courageous and helps to teach important things about our communion in the Eucharist and in the Church that are often misunderstood. Following the Ascension of…read more

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, As we enter the sixth week of the Easter season, we also draw closer to the season’s end. After the Resurrection, our Lord appeared to the disciples for forty days, helping them to understand the reality of the empty tomb, reminding them of everything He had taught them, and preparing them for their apostolic mission to proclaim the Gospel. Those forty days came to an end when He ascended into heaven, with the promise to send the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles. And so it is that this Thursday, the fortieth day since Easter…read more

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, In light of the recent leak of a draft decision of the Supreme Court and the ensuing public debates about the issue of abortion – including the call from radical pro-abortion groups to disrupt Catholic Masses last weekend (fortunately, the number of disruptions at Catholic churches was very small) – I would like to present the Catholic Church’s teaching on the dignity and beauty of human life. It is important for us to keep in mind that these teachings are not partisan, but are rather based in reason and on divine revelation. The moral…read more

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, During his long pontificate, Pope St. John Paul II was in the habit of addressing a letter each year to the priests of the Church throughout the world on Holy Thursday. This first day of the Paschal Triduum represents both the day of the institution of the Eucharist and the institution of the priesthood. St. John Paul’s annual letter encouraged priests in their ministry, exhorted them to holiness, and made Christ present in the Eucharist the focal point of a priest’s spirituality. Included in each letter, the pope also made a request for prayers…read more