September 5, 2026
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Welcome to the website of Catholic author Mark Shea! Read his recent musings on the blog, or purchase his books from the store.
Recent Posts
Luther once remarked that he would rather be ruled by a good Turk than a bad Christian
Relatedly, I would rather be ruled by a good atheist than a bad Christian. But, of course, best of all would be to be ruled
September 4, 2026
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Prophetic Clarity and Hope
It is one of the great paradoxes of a uniquely Christian form of hope that David Bentley Hart can have such a clear-eyed and prophetic
September 3, 2026
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“Pro-life” MAGA Catholic Bloodlust
Item: Last year alone the Sunshine State executed 19 death row inmates, and this year the number is already at 12, with three more to
September 2, 2026
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Dive into the Sheavings
Self-Control: The Unpopular Fruit of the Spirit
St. Paul teaches there are nine fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). Some of those fruits are sweet as peaches in August. After all, who wouldn’t want fruits like love, joy and peace? That’s why they get most of the press and decorate all those baptismal and confirmation cards from Hallmark. But
Reading the Bible Like a Grown-Up
As we saw last time, antique atheists like Bill Maher still imagine that people who take the Bible seriously must read it literalistically, as he does. However, there is a difference between literalistic interpretation—which is the habit of all fundamentalists, whether atheist or Christian—and the literal sense of Scripture. The Catechism
Ten Commandments: The 1.5 Commandment
The tricky thing about the commandments is figuring out how to break them up. Astute readers of Scripture and Catholic catechetical materials will notice that there are actually different ways of breaking up the Ten Commandments. The original Hebrew text refers to them as (pedantry alert!) the “Ten Words” but
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About Mark Shea
Greetings! I’m Mark P. Shea, a Catholic author and blogger who’s also done a spot of podcasting and even acting here and there, as well as radio and TV work. My latest book, The Church’s Best-Kept Secret: A Primer on Catholic Social Teaching was published in September 2020 by New City Press. Other works include By What Authority?: An Evangelical Discovers Catholic Tradition (Ignatius), Mary, Mother of the Son, This is My Body: An Evangelical Discovers the Real Presence (Christendom), and Making Senses Out of Scripture: Reading the Bible as the First Christians Did (Basilica), Salt and Light: The Commandments, the Beatitudes, and a Joyful Life (Servant), The Heart of Catholic Prayer: Rediscovering the Our Father and the Hail Mary (Our Sunday Visitor) and The Work of Mercy: Being the Hands and Heart of Christ (Servant).
I can also be found on Facebook (here and here) and Twitter. If you like my work and want to see more of it, please become one of my supporters on Patreon…..
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Making Senses Out of Scripture: Reading the Bible as the First Christians Did (Kindle)
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