In a speech to an international congress in Madrid last month, the president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Archbishop Jose Gomez, painted movements of social justice, “wokeness” and identity politics as pseudo-religions.

Praise earned

Re: Led by the Spirit to joyful encounter (Deacon Robert Kinghorn, Nov. 28):

St. Ignatius of Loyola once said, “Hate what the world seeks and seek what it avoids.” The world avoids the poor and rejected people “on the street.” Yet they are the very ones Deacon Robert Kinghorn seeks out and helps.

The bags were almost packed, plane reservations made, hotels booked, schedule set. Then came the news on Dec. 7 that the long-planned, much-delayed meeting between Pope Francis and representatives of Canada’s Indigenous communities is on hold again because of COVID concerns.

Advent, like Lent, is a prayerful time of joyful expectation of a major feast of the Christian year.

Often when a particular friend of mine says certain things, I don’t react right away. In fact, it might require days. Or impose a prudent pause until the 12th of Never.

It would be a long journey, which I suspected would end badly. The American border had been closed for almost two years due to the pandemic, when the Bride decided she was going home to visit her mother.

Catholic Register columnist Glen Argan failed. To his credit he admitted it. After writing a gravely inaccurate column on the residential schools issue, he corrected the facts in his next one.

Address crimes

The consequences of crimes committed to Indigenous people in Canada, the first owners of land, lakes and rivers, over the last century, must be addressed to all Canadian institutions that were involved in the crimes by being deaf, dumb and blind on the crimes committed, or encouraged the crimes, then, each of them to be charged for the full damage it has done, and Canada to ensure that the crimes committed will never repeat again.

It’s full throttle on the Christmas shopping season now and even a pandemic isn’t about to put the brakes on people rushing to line up outside stores by buy gifts.

I’ve had the luxury of having a voice over the past 40 years. It’s a privilege to have had my words read. I hope at times those words have moved readers and perhaps moved them enough to act or at least think more deeply about the important issues of our times.