Father Raymond J. de Souza

Hockey today is not like it was for a boy growing up in Calgary in the 1980s, when the Flames were arguably the second-best team in the world. Alas for us Calgarians, the best team in the world was in our division, just three hours up the highway in Edmonton. The rivalry now is not what it was then, but when last Saturday’s “Hockey Day in Canada” promotion included the Battle of Alberta as part of its triple-header program, I stayed up late to watch. It was a good game, with the Flames winning in a shootout, the Oilers having managed the unusual feat of not getting a shot on goal in three attempts. (more…)

~ in Nogales, Arizona ~ North Dakota is a long way from Nogales; the former borders Manitoba, the latter Mexico. But Canadians should pay attention to what is going on here on America’s southern edge as a sign of future developments up north. (more…)

For the last three weeks, everyone from the papal spokesman to the tawdriest German tabloid has taken shots at the Vatican’s mishandling of reconciliation efforts with breakaway traditionalist Catholics in the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX). The Holocaust denial of Bishop Richard Williamson, one of the four bishops whose excommunication was lifted for reasons unrelated to his unsustainable historical views, made for an international uproar and understandable expressions of pain and anger from many Jewish groups. (more…)

The old Boss has a few new tricks. That was the consensus on Bruce Springsteen’s appearance at the Super Bowl. After years of standing aloof from America’s most commercial spectacle, he finally consented to join the party last Sunday.
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