Brian Clapp 🇻🇦

Catholic husband and father

[Brian Clapp 🇻🇦 @Brian_Clapp]

@spencer_askew Here for the Lewis and Tolkien quotes. Have no idea who you are or why you got new followers.

[Bishop Robert Barron @BishopBarron]

The horror film “Obsession” is a surprise hit at the box office this summer. Made for around one million dollars, it has already grossed over a hundred and fifty million. But it's not only a financial success; it's also a spiritually quite interesting film. What drives the plot is a young man's ardent desire to be loved by the woman whom he loves. Seeking a gift for Nikki in an occult store, Bear finds a device that advertises itself as “One Wish Willow.” If you break the stick and make a wish, it will come true. In his desperation, he follows the instructions, and it works like a charm. The previously diffident Nikki becomes totally devoted to the delighted Bear. All his dreams, it seems, have come true. Then things go, shall we say, south. I won't spoil any more of the plot. Suffice it to say that Nikki proceeds to devour the young man and push him toward despair.

Throughout this film, I kept thinking of Oscar Wilde's famous line: “the only thing worse than not getting what you want is getting what you want.” The spiritual issue here is one that the masters have recognized for centuries and one that stands at the very heart of Biblical revelation: if you tie your deepest desire to anything or anyone other than God, you will find, not satisfaction, but destruction. This is the moral teaching behind the great Shema prayer: “Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is Lord alone.” Jesus reiterates this when he says, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and all your strength.” The psalmist affirms it when he sings, “Only in God will my soul be at rest.”

During the rite of Confirmation, I ask the young people a series of questions, the first of which is “do you renounce Satan and all his works and empty promises?” Up and down the ages, Satan has made the same empty promise: I will give you something less than God and it will make you happy. In point of fact, it will ruin you, and the more you seek to acquire it, the unhappier you will become. What becomes clear in the course of “Obsession” is that the owners of the occult shop where Bear bought the fateful wish-willow are in fact involved with very dark spiritual powers. In my conversations with exorcists, I hear over and over again that those who get ensnared by the devil commence by dabbling in the occult.

“Obsession” is a good horror movie. If you like the genre, and you're not too squeamish, go see it. For it won't just scare you; it will offer some important spiritual truths.

[👑King Coach I :P🇻🇦☧ @CatholicCoachP]

A much older cousin of mine lives down the street. She left the church sometime after her divorce, although she never remarried. She raised her sons Catholic(one is my age), both have since left and no longer attend Mass, except maybe holidays.
Often when I walk, I pass by their house and would think about stopping by to invite them back to church. I was too afraid to seem pushy and drive them away. So I just started praying for them. I’ve been praying for them, (and many lapsed family) to return for years now.
Today before mass there was a larger line than normal for confession. I was sitting there reading waiting my turn, and I looked up, and she was there. She had come to confession. We hugged. She started crying, I told her she couldn’t know how happy I was to see her. My eyes started watering. She had her notes on a scratch paper. She went in to confession after I got out. She stayed and prayed the rosary before mass. She stayed for Mass and received the Eucharist.

Words can’t express how it feels to pray for family and see them return. God is good.
Don’t give up.
Keep praying.
It may be years, but just know, your prayers are heard.

[Brian Clapp 🇻🇦 @Brian_Clapp]

@CoachDanGo Two 24g whey protein + 1 tbsp psyllium husk shakes

[Knights of Columbus @KofC]

Statement From Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly:

In recent days, many Catholics and other people of goodwill have been deeply disappointed by the disparaging comments directed at Pope Leo XIV by the President of the United States. The Successor of Saint Peter is not a politician — he is the Vicar of Christ, entrusted with proclaiming the Gospel and shepherding souls.

The Knights of Columbus has always stood in solidarity with the Holy Father, recognizing in him a spiritual father who calls the world not to division, but to unity, not to conflict, but to peace. In this moment, we reaffirm that commitment with clarity and conviction.

At the same time, we recognize that faithful Catholics can and do engage vigorously in the public square, and that nations have a right and duty to safeguard the security of their own people — always in accordance with the demands of justice and the pursuit of peace. The Church does not ask Catholics to withdraw from civic life, but to engage with and elevate it — bringing to our civic dialogue the light of truth, respect for the dignity of every human person, and a steadfast concern for the common good.

Pope Leo XIV has consistently called for peace, dialogue, and restraint in a world marked by war and suffering. The Holy Father’s words are not political talking points — they are reflections of the Gospel itself. Whether one agrees or disagrees with particular policy judgments, the Holy Father’s prophetic voice deserves to be heard with respect and engaged seriously.

As Knights, we are called to be men of unity, as followers of Christ and patriotic citizens. I encourage all Knights of Columbus to pray for the Holy Father, to pray for civic leaders, and to pray for peace and those working to achieve it. And let us recommit ourselves to charity in our public discourse. May we be known not for echoing the divisions of our time, but for healing them. In a moment of tension, the path forward is not louder conflict, but deeper fidelity — to truth, to charity, and to the Gospel.

[Brian Clapp 🇻🇦 @Brian_Clapp]

@DouthatNYT @jeffspross https://t.co/tYdtKEAS4c

[Brian Clapp 🇻🇦 @Brian_Clapp]

@DouthatNYT @jeffspross CCC 2312 helps illuminate here:

2312 The Church and human reason both assert the permanent validity of the moral law during armed conflict. "The mere fact that war has regrettably broken out does not mean that everything becomes licit between the warring parties."

[U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops @USCCB]

Read the full release at: https://t.co/7UCk12LLCy

[Amigo de Frodo @bpdflores]

Public officials may opine about theology, as is their right.
The Successor of Peter teaches. This is his office.
If what he teaches doesn’t sound like what we want to hear, we should admit the likelihood that the problem is in what we want to hear, and not in what he teaches.

[U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops @USCCB]

U.S. Bishops’ Chairman on Doctrine Issues Clarification on Just War Theory
“When Pope Leo XIV speaks as supreme pastor of the universal Church, he is not merely offering opinions on theology, he is preaching the Gospel and exercising his ministry as the Vicar of Christ.”

[Catholic Answers @catholiccom]

.@counseloftrent on President Trump’s depiction of himself as Jesus:

“What else is there to say except: it was insane, it was blasphemous, and should never have been posted in the first place.”

[The Catholic Engineer @TheCatholicEngr]

>"I'm a Catholic"

>Goes to Mass once a year

Be for real right now

I don't know who needs to hear this but weekly Mass isn't optional

[T. Becket Adams @BecketAdams]

How, exactly, is war not a matter of morality?

[Fr. Patrick Mary Briscoe, OP @PatrickMaryOP]

The support for Pope Leo across the aisle demonstrates, among other things, that the revival of faith we’re seeing in the US and elsewhere is not a political movement.

[Trad West @trad_west_]

"The Church was not founded to adapt to the world but to convert it." 🇻🇦

[camillao 🕊️💙 @Mar90490]

I love America. That one 👇

[#FreeJimmyLai @SupportJimmyLai]

Under Hong Kong’s national security law, 78-year-old Jimmy Lai has been sentenced to 20 years in prison - effectively a life term. After more than 1,800 days in solitary confinement, he now faces the prospect of dying behind bars. World leaders are demanding his release.

[Catholic Arena @CatholicArena]

'Nobody has said that the United States should have open borders'

Pope Leo XIV

[RosarySon @SkyVirginSon]

With all due respect to the Office of the President, this post contains several claims that are factually inaccurate and theologically misguided, and as a Catholic I feel compelled to respond.

1. The Pope was not elected to please any president.

Pope Leo XIV was elected by 133 cardinals from across the world in a sacred conclave, on the fourth ballot, on May 8, 2025. 

The Holy Spirit guides the conclave, not American politics.

To suggest that “if I wasn’t in the White House, Leo wouldn’t be in the Vatican”  is not only historically ignorant but theologically offensive to every Catholic on earth.

2. He was not an unknown outsider.

Pope Leo XIV served as Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops under Pope Francis, one of the most powerful roles in the Vatican, responsible for selecting bishops for dioceses worldwide. 

He was one of the most qualified candidates in the College of Cardinals.

3. He is deeply rooted in service, not politics.

An Augustinian missionary who worked for decades in Peru, Pope Leo XIV dedicated his life to the poor and the Gospel long before any political figure noticed him. 

His name honors Leo XIII, the Pope who championed workers’ rights and the poor during the Industrial Revolution, a tradition of Catholic Social Teaching that predates any modern political party.

4. The Pope’s role is prophetic, not partisan.

When the Pope speaks on peace, nuclear weapons, immigration, or the dignity of nations, he is fulfilling the mission of Christ, not opposing any government.

His first words as Pope were “Peace be with you all,”  echoing the Risen Christ (John 20:19).

A Pope who is silent on injustice would be failing his divine mandate.

5. Demanding a Pope “get in line” with a president contradicts 2,000 years of Church history.

From St. Peter before Nero, to St. Thomas More before Henry VIII, to John Paul II before Soviet communism, the Church has never existed to validate earthly power.

“We must obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5:29)

As Catholics, we pray for all leaders, including President Trump.

But we stand firmly with our Holy Father.

Habemus Papam. And he answers to God alone.

[Pray The Rosary @PrayTheRosary]

Pray in reparation for blasphemy and for the conversion of President Trump