Today we celebrate the 1,701st anniversary of the dedication of the Church known as St John Lateran in Rome, which took place in 324. As is well known, there are four major basilicas in Rome: St John Lateran, St Peter’s in the Vatican, St Paul’s outside the walls, and St Mary Major. However, despite there being four major basilicas, we only celebrate the dedication of St John Lateran’s. In fact, the order in which the major basilicas are listed above is their order of ranking

Back in 2013, scientists came across some bones in a cave. These bones belonged to an unknown human species, some 300,000 years old, which they named Homo Naledi,  with a brain about a third the size of modern Homo Sapiens . Surprisingly, these bones seemed to be organised in such a way as to suggest they had been deliberately interred. There’s been much debate about whether other Homo Naledi buried them ,  or some natural process brought the bones there, or contemporary or l

Jesus begins this parable very simply: “Two men went up to the temple to pray.”  Nothing dramatic—just two men, going about something holy. But as the story unfolds, it overturns everything we expect.    One of them is admired and respected—a man of faith, known for his devotion. The other is despised, mistrusted, and written off as a sinner. Yet when they go home again, it’s not the respected man, but the despised one, who is justified before God.    This story is not only a

At the end of his mortal life with us, Jesus cried out: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” That is, the Son of God called on his Father in the depths of suffering and distress. It was a dark day for humanity when the Son saw his abandonment, when not even God’s only Son seems to catch heaven’s ear. There are uncertainties about him saying “Why have you forsaken me?”: is he quoting a psalm? Has he lost sight of heaven? Is he showing us what to do? In what sense is he

Recently I heard a song playing in a shop. I vaguely registered that I hadn’t heard that song in over twenty years. That was my only...

(The first Sunday of October in the Province of the Assumption is celebrated as Rosary Sunday) One of the many gifts to the people of God...