Theodore McCarrick was demoted from cardinal to archbishop some months ago. Under pressure of media attention, the Vatican has upped the ante on penalties against him. Now he is simply Mr. McCarrick, forbidden to function as a priest in any but the most extreme emergency situations. He can still offer absolution to the dying victim […]

Francis & Mirages of Fraternity, part 2

Maureen Mullarkey

January 29, 2019

In The Idol of Our Age, Daniel J. Mahoney devotes a chapter to “Pope Francis’ Humanitarian Version of Catholic Social Teaching.” Mahoney’s subtitle—How the Religion of Humanity Subverts Christianity—sets the tone of his appraisal of Francis. A careful writer and a courteous man, he is concerned to give due weight to both the consistencies and […]

A Brief Detour: Invitation To An Exhibition

Maureen Mullarkey

January 19, 2019

This weblog began life under the banner Studio Matters for good reason. So permit me, this once, to sidestep expected topics—the baleful doings of the papal court, of an unnerving pope, and all those signals of civilizational decay. Instead, let me invite you to an exhibition at George Billis Gallery, New York City. If you […]

Francis & Mirages of Fraternity, part 1

Maureen Mullarkey

January 8, 2019

Pope Francis' Christmas message, clotted with the word fraternity, was such a brew of pernicious banality that it is hard to know where to start.

St. Xavier’s: From the Waterfront Priest to the Dancing Priest

Maureen Mullarkey

December 19, 2018

There exists no sharper illustration of present-day enfeeblement of the Jesuit temper than the difference between the ministries of John Corridan, S.J., the “waterfront priest” of the 1940’s, and today’s Robert VerEecke, S.J., the “dancing priest.” Fr. Corridan earned a significant place in labor history. Fr. VerEecke earned removal from the Church of St. Francis […]

Priesthood: From Uncle Fultie to Uncle Ted

Maureen Mullarkey

December 6, 2018

This is no easy time for the priesthood. The culture that produced and celebrated Bing Crosby’s portrayal of Fr. Charles O’Malley in Going My Way (1944) and, two years later, The Bells of St. Mary is extinct. Decent, congenial “Fr. Chuck” was a blithe symbol of goodness, honor, and virtue that an entire nation could […]