John Bunyan was born in 1628, probably in the November of that year, since his baptism followed in that month. His birthplace was the village of Elsow, just outside Bedford. His family was a good example of a thing of which there are many examples, and of which there cannot be too many-- a sort of plebian aristocracy, plain and insignificant in ( Read more... )

As everyone knows, I am a great fan of the current Pope, and think highly, among other things, of his sermons. But I have to say that this Easter, his sermon has been, as far as I am concerned, completely overshadowed by that of Rowan Williams, Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury. I only heard passages of it, but I sought out the whole text, and ( Read more... )

Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver, US, has written a long and magnificent pastoral letter on the duties of a Christian at election time. It is so wholly grounded in Catholic belief that anyone who does not take Catholic doctrine seriously would get nothing from it; but to anyone who does, this letter may well come as a revelation. Personally, I ( Read more... )

One of the more sickening events of the last few days was Candidate Kerry shouting to a mindlessly cheering audience: "I am John Kerry, and I am - reporting - for - DUTY!!" Forget that there are doubts about his supposed heroic record; forget that this Vietnam vet, who is now using his record as an officer to promote himself as a super-patriot to ( Read more... )