Crannóggy Island

  An old man's thoughts on the choices facing the faithful. Introduction "You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket" (Matthew 5:13-15). In my lifetime, I've witnessed sincere Christians explore distinct paths through cultural hostility or indifference. Each claims fidelity to Christ's call to be salt and light, yet these paths seem to diverge, sometimes sharply. So, I find myself returning to three images Jesus gave us—salt, light, and a city on a hill—as I watch His people wrestle with how to live in an increasingly secular, chaotic age. Salt must mingle with what it preserves, yet it can lose its savour. Light must shine in the dark, yet it can be hidden under a bushel, or burn so fiercely that it blinds. A city on a hill cannot hide; it is set inescapably before the watching world, for glory or for shame. Together, these metaphors sketch ...

  More thoughts from an old man witnessing a culture lose its way Introduction “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” - Proverbs 29:18 “Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” - Ecclesiastes 1:2 I keep returning in my prayers to two voices from Scripture that speak directly to our time. The wise man in Proverbs warns that "where there is no vision, the people perish." The Preacher in Ecclesiastes laments that "all is vanity;" our projects, our achievements, our carefully constructed meanings dissolve like vapor. These two truths haunt me as I watch our culture flail about, desperately seeking something to believe in now that the Christian story has been largely abandoned. We are a people starving for a vision giving meaning, yet everything we grasp turns to dust in our hands. The Restless Substitutes In my lifetime, I've watched secular society try to fill the God-shaped hole with various substitutes. Eac...

Introduction An old man's thoughts on why members of the Church need more wisdom and less certainty. As I near the end of my earthly pilgrimage, I find myself thinking more about questions than answers. This surprises me. I expected that after decades of faith, prayer, and study, things would be clearer. Instead, they've become more complex. Perhaps that's exactly as it should be. The Question That Started It All Months ago, I found myself wondering about something that seemed simple at first: Should faithful Catholics engage with our increasingly secular culture, or should we withdraw into our own communities to preserve authentic faith? Part of what triggered writing this reflection today was the shocking assassination of Charlie Kirk, the Evangelical conservative commentator. I didn’t agree with his rhetoric, often sharp and divisive. However, the violence of his death, and the heated exchanges that surrounded his public witness before and after this murder, sh...

Edited Essay Introduction From the beginning, the Church has proclaimed the Good News of salvation in Christ. This Gospel message is one of mercy and a call from sin to conversion. Sin is not only the breaking of rules. It is a rupture in our relationship with God, with neighbour, and with ourselves. It distorts freedom and needs God’s healing grace. This understanding, drawn from Scripture, the Fathers, and the Magisterium, is the heart of Catholic moral theology. Alongside the teaching on sin is an emphasis on mercy and an understanding of personal culpability. While moral law does not change, personal responsibility can be lessened by ignorance, weakness, or coercion. Balancing truth and responsibility has always shaped Catholic thought. In recent years, this balancing has become sharply debated, especially since Pope Francis’s Amoris Laetitia . This essay explores how the Church seeks to uphold moral law while also exercising pastoral mercy. Drawing on the Catechism, John...