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A Love Story of Saint Pier Giorgio Frassati by E DMOND D ANTÈS © OSV News/Catholic Press Photo. All rights reserved. T he wind of the Alps moved rapidly across the ridge, carrying cold, dry air. As Pier Giorgio planted his alpenstock into the snow crust, his lungs registered a sharp, intense sensation with each inhalation. Below him, partially obscured by a dense layer of winter smog, Turin…
Your browser does not support the audio element. Performed by Edmond Dantès. © 2008 Big Machine Records, LLC. All rights reserved.
Those annoying Funko Pops may be a relic of 2021, but thanks to a Shopper’s Drug Mart gift card I scored for my birthday, I decided to officially get on the Michael bandwagon by picking this up from the not-so-bargain bin: Critics (that is, Left-wing mainstream media) have collectively decided that the Michael Jackson biopic, is a cinematic disaster. Their primary grievance? The film conveniently…
Today is Good Shepherd Sunday, and this T-shirt shirt feels incredibly timely: It serves as a constant reminder of my place in God's eyes: a lost sheep, found and saved by the Good Shepherd, Jesus. There is profound humility in recognizing what I am, yet a beautiful dignity in understanding how much I matter to Him. This is a TPUSA shirt—I also went ahead and got the red version of their…
I feel truly blessed that my birthday falls during such a holy time of year, always coinciding with Lent, Easter, and Passover. It makes everything feel even more meaningful and joyful. A heartfelt thank you to the Martha and Mary Guild (Stephenville Crossing) and the Catholic Ladies’ Guild (St. George’s) for organizing such lovely birthday celebrations. My thanks to Karen Brumsey, Christine…
Right on cue for the Jewish Səfîrat Hā‘ômer (Counting of the Omer)—that grueling 49-day marathon between Passover and Shāvū‘ōṯ (or Pentecost for us Christians)—the Criterion Collection has finally bestowed upon us Monty Python’s Life of Brian on Blu-ray. Nothing says religious observance quite like high-definition upgrade and blasphemy: I will concede one thing: the booklet design is fantastic: I…
All my Hannah Montana memorabilia is enshrined, naturally, in my home library—but I keep this standee in the parish house for pranks: to give Linda W. a tiny heart attack now and then when she comes in to clean, and occasionally to keep Helen in the parish office on her toes: I’m one of the many fans who were disappointed when the 20th anniversary special was aired last week. No Rico, no Jackson,…
H OLY. T UESDAY , S T. J OHN’S , NL—After letting the DVD sit in my library for far too long, I finally watched this: It was also my first time seeing this—which was one of the Criterion Collection’s Blu-ray releases this month: Some movies stick with you not because they feel “realistic” in a surface way, but because they tap into worries that already exist in the background of the world. That’s…
H OLY. M ONDAY , S T. J OHN’S , NL—Released in 1971 (the year I was born), I first encountered El Cristo del océano [ The Christ of the Ocean ] on TV when I was six years old: This Spanish-Italian production became one of those rare films about Jesus that didn’t just entertain me as a child, but reached deep into my soul and quietly shaped the course of my spiritual life. I suspect few people…
I hadn’t realized that Pier Giorgio Frassati was finally canonized last September. A native of Turin, he was an early 1920s social activist and a Dominican tertiary. In the 1990s, Pope John Paul II named him the patron of World Youth Day, as well as of youth, young adults, students, mountaineers, and Catholic activists. I’ve always admired him—he was strikingly handsome, the kind of figure who…