Worthy Supreme Knight and Mrs. Anderson, Msgr. Valenzano, Lord Nicholas, Lord Alton, and dear friends in Christ, I. Introduction It is an honor for me and an honor for this local Church to receive here in this Oratory these precious relics: the crucifix of Saint Thomas More, and a relic of Saint Edmund Campion, a...Read More

I. Introduction Two weeks ago, I was lining up with all the other bishops to enter St. Theresa Church in Trumbull, Connecticut, for the installation of my successor as Bishop of Bridgeport when I received an urgent email. It was from my communications director in Baltimore. He said the Pope had given an interview to...Read More

There’s no doubt about it, Pope Francis has captured the attention of the Church and the world. And he is doing this not only by a simplicity and humility that has earned him the nickname, “the world’s parish priest’, but also by taking the Church back to the basics. Through his humble actions and kind...Read More

I. Introduction It is a great joy to visit St. Luke Parish and to celebrate with you its 125th anniversary! So let me begin by wishing you a happy anniversary and by asking God’s abundant blessings upon you and your families. Let me add that, while this is my first visit to St. Luke’s, it...Read More

I. Introduction Father Hurst, brother priests, seminarians, and dear friends in Christ, in Rome, not far from the Pantheon, there is a church called San Luigi dei Francesi. There is always a crowd in there, converged in front of the side chapel closest to the sanctuary on the left-hand side of the church. That chapel...Read More

I. Introduction I’ve decided to speak this evening for a time on Pope Francis’ new encyclical on faith called, “Lumen Fidei”, “The Light of Faith.” As you may know, it was largely completed by Pope Benedict XVI. Pope Francis, without hesitation, made it his own and issued it under his own name. In a sense,...Read More

I. Introduction It is a joy to offer Holy Mass here at the Mother Seton House and to celebrate with you the 50th anniversary of its being opened to the public. We also recall that yesterday was the 38th anniversary of the canonization of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. At the time, I was a seminarian...Read More

I. Introduction: Permitting Everything, Forgiving Nothing In his book of essays entitled, The Difference God Makes, Cardinal Francis George offers an incisive statement: “The world,” he wrote, “permits everything and forgives nothing. God and the Church do not permit everything but forgive everything.” Simple observation of our culture confirms the truth of this statement. The culture of...Read More