Catholic Links
Here are some useful links to websites that provide Catholic information and resources. Enjoy!
Note: Just because a newspaper, magazine, or website says it is Catholic doesn't make it so! Do your homework before putting your trust in a "Catholic" media organization. A good place to start is checking whether a Catholic organization has the seal of approval of its local bishop. There is at least one prominent "Catholic" online newspaper that has repeatedly been asked by its local bishop to remove the word "Catholic" from its name, due to its advocating positions contrary to Church teaching, but it has refused to do so. The sites we list below are reliably orthodox and faithful Catholic websites.
The Church
- The Holy See: http://w2.vatican.va/content/vatican/en.html
The official website of the Vatican and the Pope, containing many valuable resources, such as Pope Francis' homilies and public addresses, Vatican news, and a Resource Library containing complete texts of the Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the Code of Canon Law, and the complete documents of the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II)
- The US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB): http://www.usccb.org/
The official website of the USCCB, featuring comprehensive information about the Church's doctrines and social teachings, the sacraments, and Sacred Scripture, as well as about US dioceses and their current bishops
- The Archdiocese of Washington: http://www.adw.org/
The official website of the Archdiocese of Washington, which has lots of information about current Archdiocesan ministries and offices, outreach and evangelization efforts, and marriage, family, pro-life, and vocations programs
Catholic News and Media
- Official Vatican News Network: http://www.news.va/en
Official website featuring Vatican news stories, articles from L'Osservatore Romano (the official Vatican newspaper), and Vatican Radio audio files in addition to other Vatican news and media
- Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN): http://www.ewtn.com/
The official website of EWTN, offering complete TV and radio listings, information on Catholic beliefs and devotions, and live streaming of their current TV and radio programming
- The National Catholic Register: http://www.ncregister.com/
The official website of the Catholic newspaper owned by EWTN
- The Catholic News Agency (CNA): http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/
National Catholic news organization with great online resources, especially related to religious freedom and Church/state issues
- The Catholic World Report: http://www.catholicworldreport.com/
A good source of Catholic news stories and media; they also offer a free eNewsletter
- LifeSite News: https://www.lifesitenews.com/
Great Catholic media site devoted to stories about life, family, and culture
- Zenit: http://www.zenit.org/en
International Catholic news agency devoted to publishing the Pope's messages and addresses and reporting on happenings within the Church, major international religious events, and international current events related to "human rights, peace, and development around the world"
Apologetics and Educational Resources
- Catholic Answers: http://www.catholic.com/
Official website of the wonderful Catholic Answers apostolate, with extensive video, audio, and written apologetics resources as well as a popular user forum
- Dynamic Catholic: http://dynamiccatholic.com/
Website devoted to evangelization with lots of video and multimedia resources
- Catholic Culture: http://www.catholicculture.org/index.cfm
Excellent website featuring news and commentary, a vast resource library, free eBooks available for download, and thorough theological and practical reviews of 700+ other Catholic websites
- Catholic Education Resource Center: http://www.catholiceducation.org/en/
Website featuring thousands of articles on a vast array of topics by theologians and writers faithful to the Catholic Church
- New Advent: http://www.newadvent.org/
Catholic resource library featuring a full Catholic encyclopedia, complete texts of the Bible and Summa Theologica of St. Thomas Aquinas, writings of the Church fathers, and papal encyclicals
Sacred Scripture
- Catholic Revised Standard Version (RSV) Bible Search: http://www.ewtn.com/devotionals/biblesearch.asp
This translation of the Bible, which tends toward a literal rendering of the original language, is widely recommended for Catholics for both private devotional reading and Bible studies.
- Douay-Rheims (Challoner) Bible Online: http://drbo.org/
This literal translation of the Bible, which was initially completed in 1609 (just a few years prior to the King James Version), is generally considered to be the "Catholic version" of the King James in terms of beauty and poetic power.
- New American Bible Online: http://usccb.org/bible/books-of-the-bible/index.cfm
This dynamic translation of the Bible is used for the readings at Mass; it is widely praised for its readability.
- Septuagint + Knox Translation + Vulgate: http://www.newadvent.org/bible/gen001.htm
Newadvent.org offers the Knox Translation, another beautiful literal translation similar to the Douay-Rheims, side-by-side with the Septuagint (the ancient Greek Bible) and the Vulgate (the ancient Latin translation of the Septuagint). A wonderful resource for those with knowledge of Classical languages!
Catechism and Canon Law
- Code of Canon Law: http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/_INDEX.HTM
Comprehensive code of law, procedure, and general norms governing the Catholic Church
- Canon Law Made Easy: http://canonlawmadeeasy.com/
A great tool, created by a practicing canon lawyer, which "translates" canon law into language that we can all understand
- Catechism of the Catholic Church: http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/_INDEX.HTM
Compilation of the Church's teachings for the use of the universal Church, especially for catechesis and private study
- Modern Catholic Dictionary by Fr. John Hardon: http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/dictionary/
Comprehensive dictionary of terms used in Catholic theology and practice
- Summa Theologica of St. Thomas Aquinas: http://www.newadvent.org/summa/
The masterful, unfinished work of systematic theology composed by the greatest mind of the Medieval Church, St. Thomas Aquinas
Prayer and Spiritual Life
- Good Confession: http://www.goodconfession.com/
A branch-off of the Catholics Come Home website which offers encouragement and resources related to the Sacrament of Reconciliation
- The Divine Mercy: http://www.thedivinemercy.org/
Website maintained by the Marians of the Immaculate Conception and devoted to the transmission of the Divine Mercy message revealed by Jesus Christ to St. Faustina Kowalska
- The Rosary: http://www.how-to-pray-the-rosary-everyday.com/
A website maintained by Catholic laypeople devoted to encouraging everyone to "pray the Rosary every day"; features many resources related to praying the Rosary as well as an eNewsletter
- The Divine Office/Liturgy of the Hours: http://divineoffice.org/
Website featuring information, resources, and an app dedicated to praying the Liturgy of the Hours
- Catholic Spiritual Direction: http://spiritualdirection.com/
Website with many articles and resources devoted to fostering spiritual growth under the guidance of a director
Catholicism in the Public Square
- The Acton Institute: http://www.acton.org/
"The Mission of the Acton Institute is to promote a free and virtuous society characterized by individual liberty and sustained by religious principles." This is not an exclusively Catholic institute, but they are doing valuable work in the area of religious freedom and Church/state issues. Fr. Robert Sirico is the organization's president.
- First Things: http://www.firstthings.com/
First Things is a publication offered by the Institute on Religion and Public Life, founded by Fr. Richard John Neuhaus in 1990. The Institute is devoted to "confront[ing] the ideology of secularism, which insists... that faith has no place in shaping the public conversation or in shaping public policy."
- Catholic Vote: http://www.catholicvote.org/
Catholic Vote is a news website and blog devoted to covering political and electoral stories from a Catholic and natural law viewpoint. They are also a 501(c)4 grassroots lobbying organization with a connected PAC, and in this capacity they lobby Congress for pro-life, pro-family, religious freedom, and subsidiarity-related legislation and endorse candidates who stand up for Catholic and constitutional values.
- Crisis Magazine: http://www.crisismagazine.com/
Online magazine featuring articles on faith and politics for the Catholic lay faithful. The website also publishes a daily and weekly e-newsletter with great features.
For Catholic Parents
- The Kids' Bulletin: http://thekidsbulletin.wordpress.com/
A fun Catholic kids' bulletin you can print out and take to Mass; suitable for children aged 6 and older
- Catholic Kids' Bulletin: http://catholickidsbulletin.blogspot.com/
Another kids' bulletin that is more suited to younger children (3-6)
- Decent Films Guide: http://www.decentfilms.com/
We love this website, created by Stephen Greydanus, film reviewer for the National Catholic Register, which is the online home for all of his film-related reviews, articles, and other writings. The site features an amazing "Power Search" option, which allows you to search the site for reviews by genre, year of release, age appropriateness, keyword, title, and many other criteria. Some of our favorite films reviewed on this site: The Passion of Joan of Arc* (1928), The Song of Bernadette (1943), The Searchers* (1956), The Sound of Music (1965), A Man for All Seasons (1966), The Scarlet and the Black* (1983), The Mission* (1986), The Princess Bride (1987), Kiki's Delivery Service (1989), Whisper of the Heart (1995), Sophie Scholl: The Final Days* (2005), and Ratatouille (2007).
*not suitable for all ages; parental review and guidance recommended
- Parents Television Council: http://w2.parentstv.org/Main/
"A non-partisan education organization advocating responsible entertainment." This website offers educational resources, research, in-depth reviews of current movies, TV shows, and DVDs, and other valuable resources to parents.
Other Catholic Sites
- Catholic @pps: http://catholicapps.com/
Site featuring dozens of Catholic-related apps for your smartphone or tablet
- PhatMass: http://www.phatmass.com/
"With orthodoxy, charity and humility, phatmass will infiltrate the entire planet earth with Catholic propaganda. The 'phat' in phatmass stands for 'Preaching Holy Apostolic Truth'. Founded in the year 2000, we are an online community, infiltrator of social media, bold statement maker, and authentic hip-hop production entity."
- Catholic Saints: http://catholicsaints.info/
Website devoted to helping readers identify their patron saints and learn about them
- Saint Wiki: http://www.saintwiki.com/index.php?title=Main_Page
Section of Wikipedia devoted to the lives and writings of the saints; no, really, it's surprisingly good!
- Papal Encyclicals Online: http://www.papalencyclicals.net/
Website with full text of a vast number of papal encyclicals, along with information about the popes and Church councils
- Eye of the Tiber: http://www.eyeofthetiber.com/
It's like The Onion for Catholics, with oddball headlines and articles poking fun at Catholic memes and intramural squabbles
- Big Pulpit: http://bigpulpit.com/
Website that compiles a daily list of the best in Catholic opinion writing and blogging
Catholic YouTube Channels
- Catholic Answers: https://www.youtube.com/user/catholiccom
- Dynamic Catholic: https://www.youtube.com/user/DynamicCatholic
- EWTN: https://www.youtube.com/user/EWTN
- Word on Fire (Fr. Robert Barron): https://www.youtube.com/user/wordonfirevideo
- Spirit Juice Studios: https://www.youtube.com/user/spiritjuicestudios
- Catholic Vote: https://www.youtube.com/user/catholicvote
Vocations
- DC Priest: http://www.dcpriest.org/
Website managed by the Archdiocese of Washington devoted to educating about the priesthood and fostering vocations within our archdiocese
- Institute for Religious Life: http://religiouslife.com/
"Since 1974, the IRL has been a collaborative effort of Catholic bishops, priests, religious and laity to foster and strengthen vocations to the consecrated life. All members of the Church can participate in the IRL’s mission. As Pope Saint John Paul the Great wrote, every Christian is responsible for the consecrated life, and for supporting vocations."
- Servants of the Lord and the Virgin of Matara: http://ssvmusa.org/
Official website of the North and Central American province of the SSVM religious order, with local houses in DC and Upper Marlboro
- Carmelites of Port Tobacco, MD: http://www.carmelofporttobacco.com/index.html
Official website of the Sisters of the Carmel of Port Tobacco, MD
- Franciscans of the Holy Land: http://www.myfranciscan.org/
Official website of the Franciscan Monastery of the Holy Land in America, located in Washington, DC
- For Your Marriage: http://www.foryourmarriage.org/
An initiative of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops devoted to fostering strong, healthy, holy marriages and featuring articles, daily marriage tips, and other useful resources for couples striving to live the sacrament of Holy Matrimony