Catholic History

The Battle That Made Church Bells Ring at Noon: The Siege of Belgrade, 1456

by

A preacher, 2,000 farmers, and the empire that had just taken Constantinople In July 1456, a 70-year-old Franciscan friar stood in front of roughly 2,000 farmers armed with slings and scythes, and pointed at an Ottoman army of some 60,000 men. He was not a soldier. He had been a lawyer. And within hours, the … Read more

The Forgotten Virgin: Spain’s Mysterious Guadalupe

by

Introduction When most Catholics hear the name “Guadalupe,” they immediately think of Mexico, of Juan Diego’s tilma, and the Virgin surrounded by stars. But long before that—two centuries earlier—a miraculous discovery unfolded in the mountains of Spain. There, a poor shepherd found not just a lost cow, but a buried statue of the Virgin of … Read more