Bridget

  • Dies Natalis of Hildegard of Bingen

    As Teresa Berger notes at PrayTell, September 17 is the anniversary of the death (or dies natalis, “day of birth” [into heaven]) of Hildegard of Bingen — abbess, visionary, theologian, medical practitioner, playwright, and the first female composer (Update: As Maria Gwyn McDowell graciously… Continue reading

  • A Curse and Affliction Upon the Church? On Vitriol and Theologians

    Some of our readers may have seen that John Allen, writing for the National Catholic Reporter, recently summarized a talk Thomas Weinandy OFM Cap (executive director of the US Conference of Catholic Bishop’s doctrine committee) gave in May to the Academy of… Continue reading

  • WIT and WIM

    I recently spent a week visiting two very dear friends from my master’s program and their daughter (my goddaughter). Between work schedules, travels along the coast, and the daily chaos of life with a toddler, the three of us managed… Continue reading

  • Retired Brooklyn bishop praises Catholic support for LGBT rights

    Our readers may be interested in this editorial on Catholic support for LGBT rights by Bishop Joseph Sullivan, retired auxiliary bishop of Brooklyn. While one might rightly wish that Bishop Sullivan had not depicted the Roman Catholic community and the… Continue reading

  • Bishop Removed for Discussing Women’s Ordination

    This past summer, the Vatican updated its norms concerning “delicta graviora” (grave offenses against church law). The update named “attempted sacred ordination of a woman” as a “grave crime” for the first time, and specified that women and priests involved in… Continue reading

  • Feast of Catherine of Siena

    Today, April 29, is the feast of St. Catherine of Siena, one of three women the Roman Catholic Church recognizes as Doctors of the Church. In her book Speaking with Authority: Catherine of Siena and the Voices of Women Today, M.… Continue reading

  • Misunderstandings between Bishops and Theologians

    Those who have been following WIT’s commentary on the US Catholic Bishops’ Doctrine Committee’s report on Elizabeth Johnson’s book will find the National Catholic Reporter article “Bishops Ignored Own Guidelines in Johnson Critique” to be of interest. Briefly, the doctrine… Continue reading

  • Some various words on the Annunciation

    Catholic feminist theologian Elizabeth Johnson: “This young peasant girl discerns the voice of God in her life commissioning her to a momentous task. Exercising independent thought and action, she asks questions, takes counsel with her own soul. In a self-determining act… Continue reading

  • 31st Anniversary of the Assassination of Óscar Romero

    Following up on Katie’s post on prayer and militarism, let us remember that today is the 31st anniversary of the assassination of Archbishop Óscar Romero, killed while celebrating mass in a hospital chapel for standing with the people of El… Continue reading