El Filósofo

Notes from a Zenned-Out Catholic

Blog

  • History and Belief

    A few months ago, I read Francis Sullivan’s Salvation Outside the Church? I only meant to read a portion of it for a research essay, but I confess to having devoured it in a few days. I recall being obscenely busy with school and work, but I just couldn’t put that book down. It was… Keep reading

  • Thoughts from Underground

    St Peter’s Basilica isn’t actually that old. The construction of the Basilica that we see today only began in the 16th century and was completed in the 17th. Before that, there was Old St Peter’s Basilica, which was constructed in the 4th century. Going back even further, we would not find a basilica at all… Keep reading

  • Rome 2023

    For the next few weeks, I am fortunate enough to be in Rome to study at the Centro Pro Unione (Centre for Promoting Christian Unity) run by the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement. This is my second full day in the Eternal City, and I can already say that it’s been a wonderful experience. In… Keep reading

  • The Virtue of Not Acting Your Age

    The other day, I was sitting in on a confirmation class, listening to a young and charismatic seminarian explain the idea of belief in God. He expressed an overload of ideas and sentiments, some of which I would say I can relate to or that played an important role in my own “pilgrimage”. And every… Keep reading

  • The Catholic Difference

    What is it about the Catholic Church that makes it unique among all the other Christian churches? Is it belief in Jesus? No, they all have that. Is it its apostolicity? No, the Orthodox have that. Is it valid sacraments? No, the Orthodox have that as well. What about unbroken, unchanging teaching? No: the Church… Keep reading

  • The Buddha Who Weeps

    “Sometimes I think of how, at this moment, there is someone suffering somewhere in the world, who is malnourished, who is poor, who is being killed, who is far more hard up than I am in this moment; and it’s hard to bear it.” Someone I know As a kid I had this little wood… Keep reading

  • Conquering Evil 101

    I don’t know if any of you have seen the movie Joker, but there’s this one line from it—just before he murders a talk show host—that the Joker laments that “nobody’s civil anymore,” and that people will walk past their fellow man’s suffering. The movie came out in 2019, and boy, oh boy, did we… Keep reading

  • Time Lords from Galilee

    Without a doubt, my favourite TV show of all time is Doctor Who. I’m not shy about it, either: I even own a 12-foot scarf that I’ll don from time to time. At any rate, I’ve loved that show since I was a kid and first saw the TARDIS graced with the likes of Christopher… Keep reading

  • Duel of the Fates

    “Do you believe in fate, Paul?” Not as such, no. If by fate you mean this idea that certain things are destined to happen no matter what we do, then I do not believe in it. For instance, perhaps it was fated that I would always study philosophy or convert to Catholicism, or that I… Keep reading

  • Ineffable Love

    A friend of mine went through a breakup recently, and when I asked what happened, he told me that—among some concerns about how compatible they are (e.g., sense of humour, etc)—she said that she was looking for someone who would inspire her to love the Lord in everything that they do. I’ll translate for any… Keep reading