These heroes will never be memorialized by a John Williams composition. But their courage was nonetheless just as moving – and as indicative of the nobility of which human beings are capable – as that of any Olympic athlete.

What a wonder that our infinitely loving and all-powerful God is ready to encounter us, whether as Father, Son, or Holy Spirit.

While the universal Synod may continue to discuss the possibility of ordaining women to the diaconate, Pope Francis’ clear and emphatic statement to Norah O’Donnell renders that discussion moot.

How wonderful it is to realize that what seems impossible might actually be possible—whether through divine intervention or by picking up the pieces every day and taking another step on the journey of life.

Father Michael J. McGivney was just one more of that band of hardworking Irish-American priests who spent themselves building up the church in America in the latter years of the 19th century. But in one truly extraordinary respect, he was unique:

Thanks to both social and mainstream media, these four days exposed a striking, ungodly amount of noisy Christian infighting to the rest of the world.

Catholics are called to vote according to their well-formed conscience so as to support the dignity of human life in all areas.

While traditionalists, conservatives and often Catholics, may be tempted to dismiss “feminism” out of hand, Pope John Paul II reminds us that women are in fact equal in dignity and called to all sorts of vocations and involvement.

Last month’s anniversary Mass was something of a grand recapitulation of the John Paul II years.

One need no longer hold a cold and lonely vigil at a locked door because — thanks to what used to be called “new media” — monasteries and diocesan adoration chapels from all over the world maintain live streams of the Blessed Sacrament for remote adoration, whereby the energy of the Christ is transmitted through energy both housed and in the ether, to encounter our own.