Author Archives: stceceliastgabriel

Conversion through Beauty

Elizabeth Lev is an art historian in Rome and a highly sought-after tour guide to the Eternal City.  In her book How Catholic Art Saved the Faith, she writes about the tumultuous period the 16th century.  The Protestant Reformation was in full swing and Gutenberg’s printing press made it possible to disseminate information on a scale previously unimaginable.  An overwhelming amount of polemical literature appeared, usually containing new and unfamiliarContinue reading “Conversion through Beauty”

Healing Division

It’s a cliché, but by all measures we are a nation divided.  Our culture and our politics are sick, and it’s been that way for a long time.  The election last November is just the most recent in a series of presidential elections that have taken on an apocalyptic tone, exaggerating the role of electoral politics in our lives beyond what itContinue reading “Healing Division”

Baptism into Ordinary Time

This weekend we celebrate the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time.  If you’ve been paying attention, you might be wondering what happened to the 1st Sunday.  In her wisdom, the Church makes the transition from the Season of Christmas into Ordinary Time with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord, which we celebrated last Sunday.  This is certainly fitting, because baptism isContinue reading “Baptism into Ordinary Time”

Vaccines

Last November, the pharmaceutical companies Pfizer, Moderna, and AstraZeneca announced that they had developed vaccines that effectively prevent infection by the COVID-19 virus.  Not long after the announcement, however, questions were raised by many as to the morality of receiving these vaccines.  The issue stems from the use of a morally compromised cell line in various phases of the design & development, production, and testing of these new vaccines.  This cell line wasContinue reading “Vaccines”