IN ONE SECTION of his book “Imagine: A Vision for Christians in the Arts” (Madison, Wisconsin: InterVarsity Press, 2001, pp. 131) author Steve Turner discusses the Catholic Church’s approach to art. Though not a Catholic, Turner obviously knows Church documents and the work that some outstanding Catholic artists have produced.
Arts and Culture
Fr. Robert Lauder is a philosophy professor at St. John’s University and the author of “Pope Francis’ Spirituality and Our Story” (Resurrection Press).
Academy Awards Predictions
Last Summer, I was often asked by friends to suggest some good films. Two great films that I saw last year were “Ida” and “Calvary.” I mentioned both of those to anyone who asked me for a recommendation. However, everything I heard about “Transformers: Age of Extinction,” “Blended,” “Maleficent” and “Hercules,” not only prevented me from […]
The Power of Art
A few months ago, mine told me about a paperback book that he and his wife were reading. The book was “Imagine: A Vision for Christians in the Arts” (Madison, Wisconsin, 2001, pp. 201) by Steve Turner. My friend wanted me to read it because he thought that a number of ideas that Turner presents in […]
New Yorkers Who Lived Their Faith
Re-reading some sections of Dr. Patrick McNamara’s wonderful book “New York Catholics: Faith, Attitude & Works!” (Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 2014), I have been reminded of personal encounters I had with some of the New Yorkers about whom McNamara writes. I briefly met Dorothy Day, co-founder of the Catholic Worker; Catherine De Hueck Doherty, founder […]
‘New York Catholics’ – An Exceptionally Good Book
I can’t recall the first time I met Dr. Patrick McNamara. When he worked as assistant archivist for the Diocese of Brooklyn, he often had lunch at the Immaculate Conception Pastoral Center in Douglaston, where I reside. McNamara and I occasionally had lunch together and when we did, McNamara would always turn the conversation to […]
Tied Together To Help Each Other
The more I think about human community, the more amazed I am about how much we depend on one another. On every single level of being human we can be influenced by others. There is a philosophy called sociologism that states that persons are nothing but products of the groups to which they belong. Really […]
Celebrating Commonweal
MONDAY EVENING, Oct 27, 2014, was just about perfect. It was the 90th anniversary dinner celebration of Commonweal magazine and a fundraiser for the magazine. I went to the dinner with some of my friends and every one of us had a great time. I found the evening intellectually very stimulating. I saw people whom […]
Reality from a Catholic POV
One of the essays by novelist Valerie Sayers that I mentioned in last week’s column is titled “Being A Writer, Being Catholic.” It has some important insights into what makes a novel Catholic. I find the topic of the Catholic novel interesting and important for several reasons, one of which is that I believe that […]
Catholic Novelists And Moral Vision
Recently, I came upon two essays by the Catholic novelist, Valerie Sayers. Both deal with topics that have fascinated me for years. I became interested in what I call a “Catholic novel” when I was a senior at Xavier H.S., Manhattan. My English teacher, Father Vincent Taylor, S.J., had the class read the novel, “Brighton […]
Recognizing Blessings and Graces from the Past
Years ago when I was studying for the priesthood in the Diocese of Brooklyn, the general program of study that young men were encouraged to take started with four years at Cathedral Prep, at that time on Washington and Atlantic avenues in Downtown Brooklyn. Following those four years were two years of college in the […]