Eucatastrophe, a term coined by J.R.R. Tolkien as the opposite of Greek tragedy’s “catastrophe,” was a central concept in his conception of literature and reality. In the lecture “On Fairy-Stories,” he defines it as “the sudden joyous turn” in a narrative, something that brings joy out of what seemed like sorrow. We see it over […]

By Lucia A. Silecchia I love a foggy morning. Perhaps this is a luxury I can enjoy because I am not a pilot, a seafarer or a driver on winding country roads. For those such as these, the inability to see in the distance is not a welcome treat. But, when I wake up in […]

There is no Advent as short as those that come in the years like this, when Christmas falls on a Monday. When the fourth Sunday of Advent is also Christmas Eve, there seems to be – and, indeed, there is — almost an entire week missing from this season of anticipation. The child I once […]

By IHE Scholar Kevin Kambo I went up, last summer, to Muskegon Correctional Facility, as a teacher for the Hope-Western Prison Education Program (HWPEP). Not unlike Socrates, I cannot offer a neat and tidy catalogue of the motivations that took me to prison. I confess no Tocquevillian ambition to survey the American penitentiary system. My […]

If you are a letter writer, a highlight of Advent is the opportunity to put pen to paper and greet friends and loved ones with Christmas cards reminding them that they are close to your heart in the great celebrations to come. For me, a good cup of coffee, Christmas music in the background, and […]

“God is truth. All who seek truth seek God, whether this is clear to them or not.” This has become one of the most famous statements of the German Jewish philosopher and Catholic convert Edith Stein, who is now known as Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. Her words point toward the unity of faith […]

By Lucia A. Silecchia I miss shopping for clothes with my mom. Some of that stems from that too-familiar ache known to all those who have loved and lost. The desire to run an ordinary errand, exchange a quick phone call or share a cup of coffee together just one more time is a deep […]

By IHE Graduate Fellow Bridget Knuffke, a doctoral candidate in the School of Philosophy Many Catholics are familiar with the story of Walter Ciszek, S.J., from his autobiography, With God in Russia. Father Ciszek, an American Jesuit priest, was assigned to missionary work in eastern Poland in 1938, which came under Soviet occupation not long […]