history
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Letter to my friend Alvaro Mutis
One day in the 90s, we were walking down the street, leaving the Hôtel des Saints-Pères, and Alvaro Mutis1 stopped dead in his tracks. We were almost at the corner of Rue de Grenelle, and he said to me: "Emmanuel, I have the impression that we walked like this together a long time ago in a street in Cadiz. And we Continue reading
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The abandonment of Benedict XVI
"Eli, Eli lama sabachthani?" 1 When Benedict XVI signifies, in a few simple words, that he is renouncing the office of Pope, it is an earthquake that shakes the world and strikes Catholics. The most outlandish rumors are circulating and everyone is wondering about the causes of this decision which, even if it Continue reading
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In the heart of darkness, life
After seeing "Tree of Life," I for a long time forbade myself from writing about this film. Two forces were clashing within me. Subjugated by the poetry, by the state of bliss in which I was immersed, I was afraid of disturbing the surface of this work. I became so wrapped up in the mystery of this film that Continue reading
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In the shadow of Ernesto Sabato
When Ernesto Sabato died on April 30th at the age of 99, he repeated to himself the words of Maria Zambrano: To die, that elusive action that is carried out by obedience, happens beyond reality, in another realm. In his house in Santos Lugarès ("Holy Places" near Buenos Aires), Ernesto Sabato obeyed this last injunction. He Continue reading
Argentina , stupidity , Catholicism , counter-revolution , Ernesto Sabato , war , history , forgiveness -
Priest "Generation Benoit XVI"
Dear Father, It is with great pleasure that I bid you farewell. Not because I am happy that you are leaving the Chapel of Our Lady of the Lily, but because I am happy to have met you and that you are continuing your priesthood by showing the example of the priest according to Benedict XVI. Yesterday, for the feast of the Continue reading
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Newman and Socrates
The links between ancient Greek philosophy and Christianity are numerous. The most famous of the Greek precepts: Gnothi Seauton, "Know thyself," inscribed at Delphi, retains a certain mystery. Another part of the phrase has remained with us: "But not too much"... Know thyself... But not too much! Plato leads Socrates to reflect on the Delphic formula in Continue reading
Catholicism , ethics , ancient Greece , history , Newman , Notre-Dame du Lys , Plato , politically correct , priest , religion , Socrates , Zenit -
And by Saint Antoine… (Death of General Antoine Lecerf)
Antoine is no more. He left on Good Friday. April 22, 2011. He is in the Father's house. Antoine is Antoine Lecerf. Army Corps General Antoine Lecerf. A master of war. A brilliant leader of men. One of the most extraordinary men I have ever known. When you first met Antoine Lecerf, Continue reading
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Japan book review
I just finished reading "The Mask of the Samurai," an essay by Aude Fieschi (Editions Philippe Picquier). It's an educational, well-written book that presents the different facets of the Samurai throughout the Japanese Middle Ages until its decline with the advent of modern Japan. Continue reading
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Emmanuel Todd or intellectual vulgarity
Emmanuel Todd was on France Culture the other morning to deliver his good word. Emmanuel Todd is a prophet. He has the eloquence. He has the pretension, above all. He lacks the honesty. Indeed, one cannot be a prophet and an ideologue. Continue reading
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Tribute to Jean-Marie Domenach
Rereading notes taken years ago while reading Jean-Marie Domenach's The Return of the Tragic, I remember our meeting. I see him arriving at my small studio in La Fourche, asking me for a glass of wine, and me starting to explain to him in detail the direction I'm taking. Continue reading
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The path of God passes through our humanity…
Extraordinary passage from Blessed Cardinal Newman: By sinning, by suffering, by correcting ourselves, by improving ourselves, we advance toward the truth through the experience of error; we obtain success through failure. We do not know how to act well except after having acted badly. […] We know what is good not from Continue reading
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Tibhirine's breath
It's an intelligent film. And in saying that, a lot has already been said. In an age where stupidity reigns supreme, making an intelligent film about faith allows you to get your head above water and inflate your lungs; to be satisfied. Of Gods and Men exemplifies the life of monks. What Continue reading
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Notes on History of Catholicism
Notes from Jean-Pierre Moisset's History of Catholicism (chapter 9: The Shock of Modernity (mid-18th century — 1870). p. 394. The ritual of touching the scrofula at the end of the coronation, still practiced, is losing its credibility. Symptomatically, the formula of imposition, the formula of laying on of hands is changing. It was "the king Continue reading