Early on, during my first initial days within the gay culture of San Francisco, I was bemused by the near reverential treatment paid to the film “The Wizard of Oz.” Yet, thinking back to my
(Above picture: From the below mentioned article.) In an ironic turn of truthfulness, that invariably reveals much about homosexuality and its root causes, a famous gay web-site heralded: “This Father’s Day there’s no shortage of
Marilyn Monroe once said: “I’m a failure as a woman. My men expect so much of me, because of the image they’ve made of me—and that I’ve made of myself—as a sex symbol. They expect
With little exception, every Alfred Hitchcock film, especially “Psycho,” “Rear Window,” and “Vertigo,” are usually rather explicit examinations of the sexual psyche. The aforementioned titles all delved into voyeurism, while “Psycho” gets into homosexuality and
Yesterday, I saw the very sweet film “Heaven Is For Real;” a movie about what happens when a precious, innocent, and untouched little boy has a near-death experience. I could immediately relate, as I too
After seeing the dismally bad Ignatius Press re-edit of “Mary of Nazareth,” in which we are inflicted with a St. Joseph who violently screams at the Virgin Mary, angrily rips down a house with his
Ever since I was a little boy, one of my favorite films has been “The Time Machine” (1960.) The movie was really the last great adventure picture before the advent of the over-sexed spy films,
Since her rise to superstardom, in the early-1980s, the center of Madonna’s creative output has been her continuing and seemingly endless struggle to escape her Catholic upbringing. From “Burning Up,” reaching an apogee with “Like
I first became interested in the fate of Disney child stars when I unintentionally discovered that Bobby Driscoll, the first bonafide live Disney star, who was featured in “Song of the South” and “Treasure Island,”
Looking back upon my childhood, some of the most cherished memories often revolved around jumping into my parent’s station-wagon and heading to the drive-in to see the rereleased Disney animated “classic” films. Yet, also, one
Recently, international sensation Rihanna posted home-made pornographic images of herself on Instagram. Never shy about going topless, or bottomless for that matter, Rihanna has successfully redefined what is main-stream pop-culture and what is porn. The
Scott Sewperman (heart failure) Raphael (?) Bobby Williams (auto accident) Alex Stone (AIDS) David Thompson (liver failure) Koh Masaki (surgery complications) Boris Mateho (accidental shooting) Arpad Miklos (suicide) Wilfried Knight (suicide) Karim (heart failure) All
Ever since I walked into my first San Francisco “gay” piano bar and heard an impromptu chorus of men singing Wayne Newton’s “Daddy Don’t You Walk So Fast,” I have been fascinated by songs which
With the recent death of actress Joan Fontaine, I am reminded of a favorite film: Rebecca (1940.) The movie is remarkable, aside from the extraordinary performances from the three main leads: Laurence Olivier, Fontaine, and
Lately, coincidentally as Christmas draws near, I have been receiving a number of e-mails from men: lamenting their oftentimes horrendous childhoods – filled with stories about taunting, bullying, and even physical abuse by classmates, their
FIGURE 1. Estimated percentage of persons diagnosed with HIV with infection attributed to male-to-male contact or male-to-male contact and injection drug use, by area of residence — National HIV Surveillance System, United States, 2011. In
“There are many things from which I might have derived good, by which I have not profited, I dare say,” returned the nephew. “Christmas among the rest. But I am sure I have always thought
St. John of the Cross once wrote, to one of his many correspondents, who were constantly asking him for spiritual advice: “God deliver from ourselves.” Truer words were never put down on paper by a
“And they were both naked: to wit, Adam and his wife: and were not ashamed.” (Genesis 2:25) “Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and
Saints Sergius and Bacchus: - The Lie - their inclusion in John Boswell's book “Same-Sex Unions in Premodern Europe" have made them symbols of gay marriage in the homosexual community; some groups have even proclaimed them
"Christ on the Cross," (above) Pietro da Cortona: 1661 and "St. Francis of Assisi embracing the crucified Christ," (left) Bartolome Murillo: 1668-69. “Our Lord proclaimed through St. Matthew: ‘My yoke is sweet and my burden
The decision to publish a Catechism was taken at the Extraordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops that was convened by Pope John Paul II on January 25, 1985 for the 20th Anniversary of the
It’s always been my contention that all truly great artists: learn from the past, study it, absorb it, and then move on. A new favorite is Silvio Consadori (1909–1994). This Italian painter encapsulates the best
A wonderful old book about the battle for chastity in an increasingly unchaste world is the timeless “The Difficult Commandment” (1925) by C.C. Martindale, S.J. This section is one of my favorites: “Catholics have, besides
11. Saint Charles Lwanga: Burned alive in Africa for defending the Faith and the holiness of purity. A great intercessor for those with same-sex attraction. 12. Saint Padre Pio: Usually regarded as rather stern, but
Here are my Top 10 favorite Saints (besides Our Lady; who is in a category all her own,) and why I love them: 1. Saint Joseph: He literally saved me; the male part of my
When I read this quote, the first person I think of is my dear protector Saint Joseph: "There is nothing so strong as gentleness and there is nothing so gentle as real strength." ~ Saint
Today is the feast day of Saint Theresa of Avila. I was rereading a few of her works when I came across something very interesting that she wrote: “I often experience that there is nothing
One of the dearest people in the world to me, a Catholic priest who literally helped save my life, came up with this prayer at a recent spiritual conference: “Oh God, I give you myself
One day, somebody made the following quip to me: “If God doesn’t destroy San Francisco, then He has to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah.” At the time, I didn’t think it was particularly funny. It
The Catholic Church, after over 2,000 years, continues to astound. Just yesterday, while attending a parish mission given by the extraordinary Fr. Christopher Crotty, I learned that an ex-satanic priest is on his way to
I am often asked: “Why the devotion to St. Joseph?” Without going into a lengthy explanation, which I do in my book, I usually say that everyone, especially males, young or old, should have a
Jennifer Jones does the first modern "selfie" in "Madame Bovary." One of my favorite books, and films, of all time is ‘Madame Bovary” by Gustave Flaubert and the 1949 film version starring Jennifer Jones. At
There are certain Saints in the Catholic Church who have been so thoroughly misconstrued, maligned, and mockingly absorbed into pop-culture, that the real person beyond the myth and misinformation is often difficult to excavate. One
Our Lord Jesus Christ has given us a powerful advocate in heaven: His Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary. In the Catholic Church, we honor the Mother of God who is the highest of all mortal
The following quotation is from Saint John Bosco (1815-1888,) a Catholic priest who worked with wayward boys and juvenile delinquents in the industrial Northern Italian city of Turin. Although, his life ended near the beginning
On this question, I am admittedly biased. I have never had a drug or alcohol addiction, although I did occasionally try different illegal substances when I was in my 20s; but it was always to
I loved 1950s Hollywood musicals as a kid: “Calamity Jane,” “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers,” “Singin’ in the Rain.” When I grew-up, I learned that this proclivity was not unusual among boys who later entered
Some very misguided parents are attempting to carve-out a career for themselves as the ambitious trail-blazing stage-mothers and fathers of so-called transgender children. It appears to be an odd mixture of Munchausen by proxy syndrome
