Spirit & Life Blog

The Great God-Given Dignity of Motherhood

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet / May 13, 2024 /
our lady of guadalupe waist up

“God’s parental tenderness can also be expressed by the image of motherhood (Isaiah 66:13; Psalm 131:2), which emphasizes God’s immanence, the intimacy between Creator and creature. The language of faith thus draws on the human experience of parents.” ― Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 239   Christians typically speak of God as our “Father.”…

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Is Sexual Violence Porn-Driven?

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet / May 6, 2024 /
violence, man threatening woman, oppression

Warning: This column includes some descriptions of a mature and disturbing nature. Reader discretion is advised. Recently, a woman by the name of Kitty published a book about a year during which she decided to experiment with casual sex. Her self-stated purpose was to shake off a deep aversion she had felt towards sex ever…

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Population Decline Destroys the Future of Civilization

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet / April 29, 2024 /

The 2006 film Children of Men, based upon a novel of the same name, imagines a world in which the entire human race has suffered from infertility for over two decades. The result is a civilization utterly bereft of babies and children, and in which the youngest human is over twenty years old. The overarching…

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Legal Euthanasia Undermines Authentic Care

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet / April 22, 2024 /
elderly woman in a coma

“From the very beginning, the Church has known how to accompany the dying. How many priests and religious men and women have spent hours with persons who were at the end of life? At the end of their earthly journey, men do not need a cold, death-dealing syringe. They need a compassionate, loving hand.” Cardinal…

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Dignitas Infinita Defends Intrinsic Human Dignity

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet / April 15, 2024 /
Weekly public audience, Pope Francis, Saint Peter's Square

Anybody who has taken the time to read some of the great literature of pagan times will quickly be struck by something: while many of the ancient, pagan authors do seem to have a strong sense of moral purpose, nevertheless, human life is often treated astonishingly cheaply. As one reads The Iliad and the Odyssey,…

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Accidental Incest Exposes Dangers of Fertility Industry

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet / April 8, 2024 /
Artificial insemination or IVF

A child is not something owed to one but is a gift. The “supreme gift of marriage” is a human person. A child may not be considered a piece of property, an idea to which an alleged “right to a child” would lead. In this area, only the child possesses genuine rights: the right “to…

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Reclaiming the Sacred: The Mystery and Dignity of Existence

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet / April 1, 2024 /

The liturgy of the Easter Triduum is filled with many moments of great beauty, from the washing of the feet on Holy Thursday, to the prostration before the cross on Good Friday. Yet few moments are so moving as when we find ourselves in a darkened church, lit only by hundreds of candles held by…

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Supreme Court May Restrict Dangerous Abortion Pill

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet / March 25, 2024 /
abortion pills with ultrasound

New data released by the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute have revealed that the number of so-called “medical abortions” seems to have risen…again. Medical abortions, of course, aren’t “medical” at all. The term “medical” is derived from a Latin word that means “to heal.” And abortion heals nothing. Instead, it only takes, kills one life, and leaves…

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Pope Francis Raises Alarm About Transgender Madness

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet / March 18, 2024 /
Standing Against Transgender Ideology

A few weeks ago, Pope Francis had some stark words to say about gender ideology. “Today,” the pope told attendees at a conference, “the worst danger is gender ideology, which cancels out differences.” The title of the conference that the Holy Father was addressing was “Man-Woman: Image of God. Towards an Anthropology of Vocations.” It…

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France Champions Abortion Amid Falling Birth Rates

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet / March 11, 2024 /

“Be sober and vigilant. Your opponent the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for [someone] to devour.” — 1 Peter 5:8 Last week, I shared with you some of the startling numbers showing that many affluent Western and Asian nations are facing a birth dearth that is likely to lead in some…

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