While it is true that prayer effects a transformation for the better in the person praying it's primary purpose is not self-help therapy. We have the assurance of faith that prayer *always* effects a transformation for the better in the spiritual realm even if we do not see its effects in the world.

The object upon which the mind is set determines its condition-being steadfast when it is occupied with what is steadfast, and restless when occupied with what is unsteady. St Symeon the New Theologian

A while ago my brother William Hepburn was killed in an accident. His widow, Frances, and orphaned son Matthew asked me to read the poem 'Instructions' by Arnold Crompton at the funeral. Here I re-read it and ask that of your charity you pray for Bill, Frances and Matthew youtu.be/s5Ck076VDss?...

On The Most Holy Rosary of the Virgin Mary ..where you have an existing prayer..and you wish both to say it and to focus your mind on a specific object of contemplation or meditation then you add a relevant word or short phrase to that prayer.. thoughtfullycatholic.wordpress.com/2026/02/27/o...

On The Most Holy Rosary of the Virgin Mary The first new post on thoughtfully catholic in just over a year. I share my approach to praying this most characteristic of Catholic devotions. thoughtfullycatholic.wordpress.com/2026/02/27/o...

October 6, the Feast of St Bruno founder of the Carthusians, is nearly upon us. I expect most of you have already planned for the big day but if not my top tips are- -stay off social media -pray a lot -read a lot -go for a walk -be still and silent.

If you answer the question 'are you one of the good guys?' by listing the things you believe then it would be quicker and more honest to say 'no'. Because if you don't understand the difference between being right and being good then you are not, in fact, one of the good guys.

More than one thing can be true at the same time- a) some people on Bluesky are celebrating the murder of Charlie Kirk b) those people are not representative of most Bluesky users c) what is more representative are the posts that say "this is terrible but.."

September 15, following the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, will be the Feast of the Seven Sorrows of Mary. As a build-up to it perhaps I should link to all my blogposts about this devotion. If I imagine hard enough that you want me to do so then, God willing, I shall.

Viewpoint diversity does not exist where people who agree on all the major first principles dispute with each other on secondary matters. What exists in such circumstances is an illusion of viewpoint diversity which enables those involved to think that they are more representative than they are.

Engels the close colleague of Karl Marx said- 'A revolution is certainly the most authoritarian thing there is; it is the act whereby one part of the population imposes its will upon the other part' Both rioting and policing are authoritarian, the only question is which authority you support.

Adésto, quǽsumus, Dómine, pópulo tuo: et, quem mystériis cœléstibus imbuísti, ab hóstium furóre defénde Be present with Thy people we beseech Thee O lord and defend from the fury of foes those whom Thou hast imbued with the mysteries of heaven #Whitmonday Postcommunion prayer (EF)

Do not bestow your love on the world, and what the world has to offer; The lover of this world has no love of the Father in him. What does the world offer? Only gratification of corrupt nature, Gratification of the eye, The empty pomp of living. (1 John 2:15-16) #KnoxBible

"We have heard them speak in our own tongues the wonderful works of God." (Acts 2:11) The Church is universal because it speaks to each in their own language, not just the languages of the Nations but the languages of the uneducated and the intellectuals within each Nation.

Grant, we beseech Thee, O Almighty God, that the splendour of Thy brightness may shine upon us and that the light of Thy light may confirm by the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit the hearts of those who have been born again by Thy grace. Collect for the Vigil of Pentecost (Extraordinary Form)

May the inpouring of the Holy Spirit, O Lord, purify our hearts, and by penetrating them with His dew render them fruitful. Sancti Spíritus, Dómine, corda nostra mundet infúsio: et sui roris íntima aspersióne fecúndet. Vigil of #Pentecost, Postcommunion (EF)

‘Cursed be anyone who misleads a blind man on the road.’ (Deuteronomy 27:18) At first reading the Mosaic Law seems full of strange and/or disturbing prohibitions, but if you spend time reflecting upon them you find deeper wisdom and wider scope than you might initially think.

Grant, we beseech Thee, O Almighty God, that we who celebrate the coming down of the Holy Spirit, being inflamed by heavenly desires may thirst for the waters of the fountain of life. #VigilofPentecost

On some days I recall that St Jerome wrote that- "The friendship that can cease has never been real". And that the recipient of this letter was his friend Rufinus with whom he then had a spectacular and bitter falling-out.

The thoughts of the wicked are abomination to the Lord (Proverbs 15:26) It is the combination of two things: a wicked thought with a wicked disposition, that is abominated. Virtuous people also have wicked thoughts but they do not then form wicked intentions.

The underlying principle should be that, wherever possible, we should prefer to inconvenience ourselves rather than inconvenience anyone else. The further a society falls away from this principle the more unbearable it becomes to live in that society. Inconvenience is then maximised.

Humanists talk about 'Dignity in Dying' signalling that their greatest concern is not unmanageable pain but a loss of autonomy. Christians, by contrast, see nothing humiliating or degrading about relying on the love and care of others at the end of life as we did at its beginning.

It is possible for us to do or to intend to do things which are morally neutral. Some of those, however, will be sin-adjacent and some will be virtue-adjacent, so, if we are going to get into the regular habit of doing one of those choose wisely which one it is that you do.

As we begin the month of June in this Year of the Lord 2025 remember that it is better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness.

“God asks us to mortify ourselves in small things rather than in big ones, because the big occasions are rare, whereas the small ones are continuous.” Venerable Teresa Valsé Pantellini

The Ascension of Christ is exaltation for us, and whither the glory of the Head of the Church is passed in, thither is the hope of the body of the Church called on to follow. Let us rejoice with exceeding great joy, and give God glad thanks. Pope St Leo the Great

When newly qualified doctors were overwhelmingly male they were content to be called 'junior'. Now that they are overwhelmingly female they insist on being re-designated as 'resident'. What can we deduce from this?

And now I am not in the world, And these are in the world, And I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep them in thy name whom Thou hast given me; That they may be one, as we also are. (John 17:11) Vigil of the Ascension of Our Lord

An occasional reminder that no one who is rude to waiting staff or baristas should be considered virtuous, no matter how many good opinions they may have, and no matter how frequently and loudly they may repeat them.

Very early in their existence the historical Protestant denominations produced Confession's of Faith and Catechisms on the grounds that if literate people were just left alone with their Bibles they would be unlikely to spontaneously deduce the 'correct' doctrines.

St Monica is a patron for those with alcohol misuse problems. Bear in mind that pre-emptive prayer is a thing. Get into the habit of invoking her aid before you feel the desire for a drink not afterwards. It is easier to stop a temptation before it starts than it is to play catch-up.

'Young US men are joining Russian churches promising 'absurd levels of manliness'' Make of that what you will. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Since ancient times it has been characteristic of Catholic monasteries, convents and priories to possess a library. Often they will have two, one specifically for novices and postulants. Reading books may not be essential to the spiritual life. But it really can help. A lot.

"The people when given all they need to be 'happy' will precisely then turn on themselves and their world in a frenzy of dissatisfaction. For the hunger of man cannot be satisfied by worldly bread; man must have otherworldly bread — or a clever substitute." Seraphim Rose

Any sentence which follows the words "I condemn this horrible murder" with the word "but" is a moral abomination.

People struggle with the idea that 'the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom'. But if they look at the world around them and ask themselves just how much wisdom is to be found societies where there is no fear of the Lord then it may become a less difficult idea to grasp.

Modernism being a deviation from Christian Truth, it may be fully understood only by reference to that Truth through the denial of which it owes its whole existence. The standard of measuring modernism is, and can only be, Christian Truth. Seraphim Rose

Without a utopia, modern man would despair. It is a sure thing when deprived of it, he will despair. In normal times, in such a despair he would turn to God, but most people today no longer believe He exists, so despair is futile and self-destroying. Seraphim Rose

So, I'm working my way through a Jewish commentary on the Psalms, Tehillim from the ArtScroll Tanach series, and I learn somewhat to my surprise that Doeg the Edomite is a super-villain in the whole David story, and a symbolic figure for evil more generally.

If you think that this is a perfect argument- a) A good deal requires you to make compromises. b) You have made compromises to get this particular deal. c) Therefore this particular deal is a good deal. Then you need to get out less, and spend a good deal more time reading books.

At once the man recovered his sight, And followed Him, glorifying God; All the people, too, Gave praise to God at seeing it. (Luke 18:43) There is a little manifesto of right action in this. What Bartimaeus did and what the witnesses did is what we also should do.

O God, who makest the minds of the faithful to be of one will: grant unto Thy people to love that which Thou commandest, and to desire that which Thou dost promise; that amidst the changes of this world, our hearts may be there fixed, where are true joys. Collect, Sunday IV after Easter (EF)

"The drug increases sensitivity not consciousness (or only very secondarily)..[It] causes a change in perception, in the subjective state- *not* a change in *being*, which is what religion wishes" Seraphim Rose about psychedelic drugs.

It is the responsibility of government leaders to work to build harmonious and peaceful civil societies. This can be achieved above all by investing in the family, founded upon the stable union between a man and a woman. Pope Leo XIV, Audience with the Diplomatic Corps, May 16 2025.

Every day set aside some time to read from the Sacred Scriptures. Aim for quality not quantity, depth not width, slowness not speed. It is better to read the same sentence or phrase twice than to read twice as many sentences or phrases.

Hard cases make for bad laws. If the Church accepts in principle that it should act as an unpaid informer (even Judas got 30 pieces of silver) for the surveillance State then the scope of its informing will be incrementally widened. Ultimately Confession will effectively be abolished.

If everything in politics is framed in Manichean and Apocalyptic terms then, in due course, the public will become unable to distinguish between the truly evil and the merely unpleasant, or between an existential crisis and a bump in the road.

Am reading 'Father Seraphim Rose: His Life and Works' and I notice his American college years were only slightly later than those of Sayyid Qutb. Both those young men rejected the empty materialism of that epoch, but only one of them went on to live a saintly life.

"Unless you repent, you will all perish." (Luke 13:3) "Unless you repent, you will all perish." (Luke 13:5) When Jesus says something twice we should probably pay some attention to it.

An occasional reminder- "No other institution is left standing which carries the mind back to the times when the smoke of sacrifice rose from the Pantheon, and when camelopards and tigers bounded in the Flavian amphitheatre." Thomas Babington Macaulay on the Catholic Church.