Louie Verrecchio column
Author and speaker Louie Verrecchio has been a columnist for Catholic News Agency since April 2009. His work, which includes Year of Faith resources like the Harvesting the Fruit of Vatican II Faith Formation Series, has been endorsed by Cardinal George Pell of Sydney, Australia; Bishop Emeritus Patrick O'Donoghue of Lancaster, England; Bishop R. Walker Nickless of Sioux City, IA, USA and others. For more information please visit: www.harvestingthefruit.com
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May 18, 2013
Imagine the scene in the Pennsylvania State House of Representatives as the Chairman of the Judiciary Committee calls the meeting to order with three decisive . . .
Louie Verrecchio
May 8, 2013
The first step in solving any problem is admitting that you have one.
In his 1988 Apostolic Letter marking the 25th anniversary of Sacrosanctum Concilium, . . .
Louie Verrecchio
April 24, 2013
Make no mistake about it: The Church in our day is in the midst of a terrible, and in many ways unprecedented, crisis of faith. This objective reality, however, . . .
Louie Verrecchio
April 17, 2013
"Timid men prefer the calm of despotism to the tempestuous sea of Liberty." – Thomas Jefferson
A recent video by Fr. Robert Barron, "Gay Marriage and . . .
Louie Verrecchio
April 11, 2013
Recently, I've been reading about the phenomenological method employed by the Council Fathers of Vatican II, as elucidated by Dr. Paul Zarowny in a review of . . .
Louie Verrecchio
March 25, 2013
On February 10, 2013, Pope Benedict XVI announced his intention to renounce the papacy due to his waning strength in the face of a world "subject to so many . . .
Louie Verrecchio
March 21, 2013
"Habemus Papam."
Ever since those words were spoken by Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran on March 13th, the media has been abuzz with stories and prognostications . . .
Louie Verrecchio
March 7, 2013
Our first parents, endowed with every good gift and living in friendship with the benevolent Creator, yielded to the temptation to assert an autonomy that was . . .
Louie Verrecchio
February 28, 2013
On February 26, 2013, the Denver Post ran an article that contained the following:
Colorado parents of transgender 1st-grader file complaint over restroom . . .
Louie Verrecchio
February 11, 2013
Pope Benedict XVI has tendered his resignation effective 28 February, 2013.
In making this stunning announcement before the College of Cardinals, the Holy . . .
Louie Verrecchio
January 24, 2013
Pope Benedict XVI (more accurately, Fr. Joseph Ratzinger) is often quoted as saying that he envisions a day when there will be a "smaller, more faithful Church. . . .
Louie Verrecchio
January 17, 2013
Through his extremely popular "Catholicism" video series, Fr. Robert Barron is imparting a wealth of information and insight on the Catholic faith and the . . .
Louie Verrecchio
January 11, 2013
A peculiar thing happened on the way to the present day from Pentecost; the Church suddenly stopped calling the Jews to conversion.
Sure, if we're honest, we . . .
Louie Verrecchio
December 20, 2012
The Year of Faith is in full swing, a year during which the Holy Father is encouraging the faithful to undertake an exploration of the Council documents with . . .
Louie Verrecchio
December 12, 2012
On December 9, 1531, a poor and humble man from a remote village, some fourteen miles outside of present-day Mexico City, had a miraculous encounter with a . . .
Louie Verrecchio
November 30, 2012
In the words of Billy Joel's 1979 hit ballad, Honesty, "Honesty is such a lonely word; everyone is so untrue." How much more true do those words ring today, . . .
Louie Verrecchio
November 15, 2012
In the days following last week's U.S. presidential election, a staggering amount of analysis has been focused on Republican messaging, demographics and core . . .
Louie Verrecchio
November 2, 2012
Much is said these days about the "new evangelization," so much so that one wonders what on earth was so wrong with the original.
Well, if you ask Belgian . . .
Louie Verrecchio
October 16, 2012
In response to the Holy Father's wishes for this Year of Faith, plans are being made in parishes and dioceses all over the world to "celebrate" Vatican II in . . .
Louie Verrecchio
September 21, 2012
Following the September 11, 2012 terrorist attack on the U.S. Embassy in Libya that killed four Americans, including Ambassador Christopher Stevens, most news . . .
Louie Verrecchio
September 14, 2012
In the days immediately following Mitt Romney's selection of Paul Ryan as his running mate, the Catholic blogosphere was all abuzz with excitement, but it was . . .
Louie Verrecchio
September 6, 2012
Please forgive me for waxing apocalyptic, but lately I've been thinking an awful lot about the end times prophecy that speaks of how those who refuse to worship . . .
Louie Verrecchio
August 28, 2012
In light of the now well-publicized Al Smith Dinner, a number of Catholic commentators, me included, were moved to question Cardinal Dolan's resolve relative to . . .
Louie Verrecchio
August 23, 2012
According to the Compendium issued by the Holy See in 2004, "the primary and fundamental" core principles of Catholic social doctrine are "the dignity of the . . .
Louie Verrecchio
August 12, 2012
My most recent column, "In Defense of Cardinal Dolan," generated quite a bit of feedback. Some readers were convinced that it reflected a sense of false hope . . .
Louie Verrecchio
August 7, 2012
Chances are you've already caught wind of the firestorm that is brewing around the annual Al Smith Dinner. For those unfamiliar, the entire controversy is based . . .
Louie Verrecchio
July 26, 2012
As a writer and speaker who frequently addresses topics related to the Second Vatican Council, I read with great interest Archbishop Gerhard Muller's recent . . .
Louie Verrecchio
July 21, 2012
Unbeknownst to many, July 21, 2012 marks the 45th anniversary of an event that has severely and negatively impacted the life of every single Catholic on the . . .
Louie Verrecchio
July 12, 2012
If you're not familiar with "liberation theology," chances are you'll be hearing more about it in the weeks and months ahead as Archbishop Gerhard Mueller, the . . .
Louie Verrecchio
June 28, 2012
Saints Thomas More and John Fisher are being invoked with increasing regularity these days as models of inspiration in the battle to protect religious liberty . . .
Louie Verrecchio
June 13, 2012
On June 21st, dioceses across the United States will kick-off the "Fortnight for Freedom" during which "a great national campaign of teaching and witness for . . .
Louie Verrecchio
June 6, 2012
LifeSite News recently reported that "the Democratic Party is already losing seats to Republicans, as a growing number of elected officials are changing parties . . .
Louie Verrecchio
June 1, 2012
The cover of Newsweek recently hailed Barack Obama as "the first gay president" after he formally announced his support for same-sex "marriage," and this just . . .
Louie Verrecchio
May 16, 2012
According to the late "humanist" sex-educator, Dr. Sol Gordon, "The traditional family, with all its supposed attributes, enslaved woman; it reduced her to a . . .
Louie Verrecchio
April 22, 2012
In an effort to dispel some of the misinformation surrounding the negotiations between the Holy See and the Society of St. Pius X, it is with pleasure that I . . .
Louie Verrecchio
April 11, 2012
The doctrinal discussions between the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) and the Holy See — which commenced in 2009 to study such matters as the concept of . . .
Louie Verrecchio
April 3, 2012
Holy Week is upon us. Our Lenten journey through the desert of earthly detachment and repentance is not as yet complete, but we have arrived at a moment in time . . .
Louie Verrecchio
March 15, 2012
In a recent column at CatholicCulture.org, Phil Lawler criticized the bishops of the United States for issuing statements on "too many debatable political . . .
Louie Verrecchio
March 8, 2012
Even if you don't agree with him, you have to admire George Weigel's moxie.
It can't be easy serving as the spokesperson for a "conservative" Catholic . . .
Louie Verrecchio
February 28, 2012
In the Gospel reading for the First Sunday of Lent in the Ordinary Form of Holy Mass, Jesus proclaims, "The Kingdom of God is at hand," but what does that mean? . . .
Louie Verrecchio
February 16, 2012
When asked to comment on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' rejection of the so-called HHS "accommodation," White House Press Secretary, Jay . . .
Louie Verrecchio
February 11, 2012
With so many items of Catholic interest in the news these days, why focus on just one? Here are three that caught my eye.
Hope and Changing Scripture
When . . .
Louie Verrecchio
February 3, 2012
Humor me for a moment and just imagine if the following purely fictional (at least as of this writing) HHS press release was issued:
Affordable Care Act . . .
Louie Verrecchio
February 2, 2012
The big Catholic news item in the United States these days centers around the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) mandate requiring nearly all . . .
Louie Verrecchio
January 25, 2012
After initially intending to complete this series in three parts, it appears that it may be useful totie up any remaining loose ends with an overview of the . . .
Louie Verrecchio
January 13, 2012
As reported by ABC News, while fielding questions at a campaign event in Windham, NH on January 5th, Rick Santorum was challenged to defend his faith by a voter . . .
Louie Verrecchio
January 11, 2012
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles, the largest diocese in the United States, rang in the New Year with some disturbing news: Auxiliary Bishop Gabino Zavala had . . .
Louie Verrecchio
January 10, 2012
At the conclusion to Part 2, we weighed certain of Murray's arguments in favor of an historically nuanced understanding of the traditional teaching on religious . . .
Louie Verrecchio
January 8, 2012
Having presented an overview of traditional Church teaching in Part 1, we resume our examination of religious liberty in Part 2 with a look at the John Courtney . . .
Louie Verrecchio
January 7, 2012
In this 3 part series of articles, we will examine what many Catholics and non-Catholics alike recognize as one of the most profoundly important issues of our . . .
Louie Verrecchio
December 15, 2011
After years of discussion, preparation and anticipation, the new English translation of the Roman Missal — Third Edition was officially implemented in the . . .
Louie Verrecchio
December 8, 2011
We conclude our reflection on the mysteries of the rosary with an examination of The Luminous Mysteries
1. The Baptism of the Lord
Then Jesus came from . . .
Louie Verrecchio
November 4, 2011
We continue our reflection on the mysteries of the rosary as a means of entering more deeply into the sacred mysteries made present in Holy Mass with an . . .
Louie Verrecchio
October 25, 2011
Anti-Semitism must be exposed by the light of truth so it can be soundly defeated — the operative phrase here being the light of truth, and by this I mean . . .
Louie Verrecchio
October 22, 2011
I recently came across a perennially timely quote by William Penn — the colonial American proponent of democracy and religious freedom who founded . . .
Louie Verrecchio
October 21, 2011
The Joyful Mysteries continued...
3. The Nativity of the Lord
And it came to pass that when they were there, Mary's days were accomplished that she should . . .
Louie Verrecchio
October 20, 2011
We continue our reflection on the mysteries of the rosary as a means of entering more deeply into sacred mysteries made present in Holy Mass with an examination . . .
Louie Verrecchio
October 13, 2011
Catholic News Service recently published a story under the rather dogmatic sounding title, "Dead wrong: Catholics must no longer support capital punishment."
. . .
Louie Verrecchio
October 7, 2011
A number of saints have described the rosary as an effective weapon for helping Christians prevail in the spiritual battle that ever rages in our midst. In fact . . .
Louie Verrecchio
September 23, 2011
Shortly after the first of many meetings between the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) in October of 2009, I . . .
Louie Verrecchio
August 22, 2011
As debate surrounding the recently published John Jay Report (Causes and Context of Sexual Abuse of Minors by Catholic Priests in the United States, 1950-2010) . . .
Louie Verrecchio
August 19, 2011
Most reasonable people would agree that tossing a set of car keys to a drunkard is irresponsible even if the inebriated party manages to slur out a solemn . . .
