In the years of his brief but fruitful pontificate (1914-22), Benedict XV found himself facing pastoral and ecclesiastical problems that were truly serious for the Church and for society.[1] They were of a significance similar to those faced by Pius VII after the French Revolution, and by Pius IX in dealing with events that led to the unification of Italy. His reputation, however, unlike those two pontiffs mentioned, was obscured both by a war that in a short time went...
It all began with a problem that led to an algorithm. How can we find relevant items online? Thinking of academics who monitor the quality of an article by checking citations, Larry Page had the idea of counting and weighing the links to a webpage; Sergey Brin worked on the mathematics that led to a search algorithm they called “BackRub.” Two years later, in 1998, they renamed the algorithm, tested it, and launched a company called Google.[1] “The name was...
Prometheus, Icarus and... The image that people tend to have of science is of an activity conducted by “Prometheans.” In Greek mythology, Prometheus was a Titan[1] who stole fire from the gods to give it to mankind. Punished by Zeus, he was chained to a cliff at the edge of the world, and then plunged into Tartarus.[2] Of course, the image of the scientist as Prometheus is quite simplistic and does not do justice to many aspects. But in today’s...
The life of Ignatius of Loyola has provided the inspiration for compelling narratives in film and literature: his adventurous journey, full of defeats and victories, fortuitous encounters, bitter clashes, dreams and frustrations, has all the ingredients for a bestseller or a blockbuster, but also for a true work of literary or cinematic art. Moreover, his honest and tireless search for truth in his own life is a universal quest we can all relate to, regardless of religion or culture. Given...
On October 11, 1992, on the 30th anniversary of the beginning of the Second Vatican Council, John Paul II signed the Apostolic Constitution Fidei Depositum, with which he presented the new Catechism of the Catholic Church to the clergy and “to all members of the People of God.” A courageous undertaking John Paul II had entrusted its preparation in 1986 to a Commission of 12 cardinals and bishops, chaired by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine...
In his speech to the General Congregation of Cardinals prior to the 2013 conclave,[1] the then Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio said, “When the Church does not go out of herself to evangelize, she becomes self-referential and then sick. [...] When the Church is self-referential, without realizing it, she believes she has her own light. She ceases to be the mysterium lunae and this gives rise to the most serious evil of spiritual worldliness. [...] Simplifying, there are two images of Church:...
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