What Is the Purpose of Poetry?

What Is the Purpose of Poetry? by Cicero Bruce at New Oxford Review. In today’s educational milieu, it seems that poetry, particularly religious poetry, is either made a cadaver onto which cultural theorists impose an ideology or seen as mere ornamentation with no value in a world socially determined by economic utility and bottom lines. Poetry was once understood to be an anthropological episteme, a way of knowing, if only through a glass darkly. It was seen, even in the blind but percipient eyes of Homer, as a mimetic art representing the truth of our nature in relation to supernature. Read

Talking to Kids About the Passion: Love Confronts Cruelty by Daniel Esparza at Aleteia. As parents, it is natural to want to shield our children from such harsh realities. But the story of the Passion, as we also know, does not end at the cross. Within this challenging story lies a powerful message of love, sacrifice, and hope that can resonate deeply with children –if told properly. Here’s how to approach this topic in an honest (and age-appropriate) way. Read

Developing a Vision of the Good by Dr. Holly Ordway at Word on Fire. The good, true, and beautiful must be real to us, more real than the discourse around it. By living a life that is grounded in these principles, we make them real to ourselves and, therefore, to the people we know. One of the ways that we can cultivate this quality in our lives is through our choice of ordinary activities on a day-to-day basis: the things we do, read, and watch, not just the principles we hold in the abstract. Read

3 Core Values We Can All Learn From Playing Soccer by Cerith Gardiner at Aleteia. Sports can really bring out the best in us, and here's why soccer should be your game of choice. Although there are many worthy collective sports to play and support, there is something very unifying about soccer…It’s a sport that offers a playground for learning valuable lessons that resonate deeply within the Catholic community. Read

The Historical and Incarnational Possibilities of Year End Celebrations by Dr. Kari Morris Carr at The Institute for Catholic Liberal Education. Christ’s Incarnation is present when we learn any truth. To incarnate a truth is to embody it, to know it so deeply that the truth itself is inextricably bound to our minds, hearts, and souls. Likewise, how we end the school year as a community can and should be an act of embodiment. When we take time to celebrate the culmination of our academic year with expressions, productions, and incarnations of the truths learned, we are giving children something for their souls to embody, and therefore, remember. Read

The Legacy of St. Thomas Aquinas 750 Years After His Death by Mathilde De Robien at Aleteia. On August 4, 1880, Leo XIII declared St. Thomas the patron saint of Catholic schools. “The patronage of this great and holy man will be very powerful for the restoration of philosophical and theological studies, to the great advantage of society. For, as soon as Catholic schools are placed under the direction and tutelage of the Angelic Doctor, true science will easily flourish,” he writes in Cum hoc sit. Read

Ignatius Book Fairs Aim to Provide “The Best in Catholic Literature” for Children by Jim Graves at Catholic World Report. Ave Maria University and Ignatius Press have teamed up to offer Ignatius Book Fairs, a Catholic book fair for parents and schools who want to offer their children an alternative to the Scholastic Book Fairs, which have increasingly become a haven for inappropriate content for children. Fr. Joseph Fessio, SJ, founder of Ignatius Press, lamented the “attack on the innocence of children” in society, and explained, “We want to use our resources to provide young people with good, wholesome literature and give them a love for reading.” Read

‘Family Unfriendly’: American Culture Is Failing Parents — Here Are Some Cures by Maureen Ferguson at National Catholic Register. Carney sets out to explain how American law and culture have failed parents who want to have kids and raise them well. The long and short of it, as many parents already know: “American culture is a suboptimal habitat for the human family.” Diagnosing problems is one thing; finding the cure is another. Family Unfriendly does both. Read

Psychologist Warns That Smartphones ‘Rewired Childhood,’ Caused Developmental Delays by McKenna Snow at CatholicVote. A psychologist is warning that smartphones have “rewired” an entire generation’s childhood, by increasing isolation from friends, developmental delays and risk of addiction. On March 26, The Free Press featured an excerpt from a new book, “The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness,” by psychologist Jonathan Haidt. Haidt argues that children who grew up with smartphones have experienced an unprecedented kind of childhood, which resulted in high rates of anxiety, depression and loneliness, in part because smartphones isolate adolescents and damage their social opportunities and time with their peers. Read

Oklahoma Supreme Court Hears Catholic Charter School Case by Kate Quiñones at Catholic News Agency. The Oklahoma Supreme Court heard arguments on Tuesday for a case that will determine if the state can fund a Catholic charter school. The case, Drummond v. Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board, follows the board’s decision to approve St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School. The school would become the nation’s first religious charter school. Read

Hiring for Mission at Catholic Colleges and Universities by Anne Hendershott at Crisis Magazine. In order to have a faithful Catholic college or university, you need to have a faculty that honors and respects the teachings of the Church both in their teaching and in their behaviors. In his Convocation Address at Ave Maria University earlier this academic year, San Francisco’s Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone discussed the significance of Catholic higher education as a “modern solution to guide an age that has lost its way.” Read

Throwback Thursday

Why Jesus Never Stopped Asking Questions by Peter Wehner at Catholic Education Resource Center on December 22, 2022. Among the things that have long fascinated people about Jesus and explain his enduring appeal is his method of dialogue and teaching. He asked a lot of questions and told a lot of stories in the form of parables. In fact, parables form about a third of Jesus' recorded teachings. The Gospels were written decades after he died, so his questions and parables clearly left a deep impression on those who bore testimony to him. Read