I had some concern about writing this column, worried that it might be construed as self-pitying or a way of drawing attention to myself. But as a Catholic I wanted to bring attention to myself so prayers would come my way. So this is why I am writing about the news I received a few weeks ago that my liver cancer had returned.

Recently I was listening to a report that explained why margarine was bad for you, which concluded that we would all be much better switching to butter.

Soon after moving to work at The Red Deer Advocate in 1978 I learned that Albertans do not fit the stereotype outsiders have of them. Even in supposedly redneck Red Deer, a rapidly growing centre servicing the petroleum and agriculture industries, there was significant diversity of opinion.

There has been a massive resurgence of a kind of Neo-Apocalypticism of late, due in no small part to the persisting coronavirus pandemic with all its fallout; the embrace of Socialism/Marxism/Communism by the West (particularly among the young); racism in the spotlight again; civil unrest and violence; emerging globalist totalitarianism; the dominance and imposition of gender ideology; the undermining of the family and rights of parents; ever more radical abortion and euthanasia policies; “surveillance capitalism”; the rise of “fake news”; and now, sweeping censorship of free speech by left-leaning Big Tech.

I am writing this in early February on the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. The account of that great biblical scene appears in Luke.

A Catholic theologian and professor is under public attack by students at McGill’s School of Religious Studies who want books he has authored removed, and exemptions granted from required courses he teaches.

The storming of Capitol Hill in the U.S. is among recent outcomes of a growing and insidious trend: the dispersal of false and, in many cases malicious, lies passed off as being “the truth.”

It was, evident to everyone who knows anything about Vatican finances, a monstrous lie from the beginning. Or at least a monstrous mistake. But that it was believed by many is an indication that what a great number think they know about the Vatican is not true.

One of my favourite authors is George Mackay Brown, who rarely left his native Orkney, a remote island off the coast of Scotland.

General Motors, the auto manufacturer which made billions from the sale of Hummers and other gas guzzlers, has committed itself to end production of petroleum powered vehicles by 2035 and be carbon neutral by 2040. The announcement is a significant step forward in the battle against climate change. Not only will the decision eliminate tailpipe emissions from GM’s vehicles, it will also encourage other automakers to step up their work in developing electric cars.