Spero News

Newt Gingrich explains how the West can rebuild Notre Dame by comparing it to what happened with the Campanile in Venice collapsed in 1912:

As Callista and I sat watching the terrible fire in Paris that was burning the Cathedral of Notre Dame, our thoughts went back to the many times we had visited Paris. We always visited the great Cathedral. On a number of occasions, we went to Mass there. One unforgettable Mass, they had brought the great bells down from the bell towers, and they were placed right in the middle of the Cathedral. We were sitting just a few feet from one of the bells. When they rang it during Mass, you could feel it in your bones – the vibrations were so powerful.

Notre Dame is one of the greatest examples of gothic architecture. When you stand inside, you feel lifted to the heavens by the very shape of the building. Consider that prior to 1900, the overwhelming bulk of visitors lived in small houses. The scale and majesty of Notre Dame must have been overpowering.

Such a symbol of Western civilization and Christianity cannot be allowed to disappear. As President Trump said, “It's one of the great treasures of the world… it might be greater than almost any museum in the world.”

President Trump noted the tragic fire transcends politics, saying Notre Dame Cathedral “is beyond countries, that's beyond anything. That's a part of our growing up. It's a part of our culture. It's a part of our lives. That's a truly great cathedral. And I've been there, and I've seen it, and … there's probably no cathedral in the world like it.”

Callista and I were delighted when French President Emmanuel Macron said, “We'll rebuild this cathedral all together, and it's undoubtedly part of the French destiny and the project we'll have for the coming years.”

President Macron appealed for international support to help rebuild this great monument to our way of life.

Here in the United States, Monsignor Walter Rossi of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception (the largest Catholic Church in America) announced the Basilica was helping raise support for Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris:

“The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, in solidarity with the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris, is welcoming donations through a special online collection in the wake of the devastating fire on April 15, 2019.

“The National Shrine, also called America’s Catholic Church, is facilitating donations and prayer intentions through a special website at www.SupportNotreDame.org to support Notre Dame and those affected by this tragedy.

“The devotion of the faithful made the Cathedral of Notre Dame a welcoming place of worship and pilgrimage for more than eight centuries and now will rely on the generosity of the world to rebuild this sacred place of worship.

“The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception encourages those whose lives have been touched by this iconic Cathedral, to support the effort to resurrect and rebuild this church which has touched the hearts and souls of the world.”

Over Christianity’s long history, many cathedrals and churches across the world have been destroyed and rebuilt.

The best example of a determination to rebuild, however, is in Venice, Italy. ...read more

Newt Gingrich: How Venice's tower can inspire a new Notre Dame As Callista and I sat watching the terrible fire in Paris that was burning the Cathedral of Notre Dame, our thoughts went back to the many times we h ...

Pat Buchanan describes how Democrats are in danger of division with a rising minority of Leftist minorities: Both of America's great national parties are coalitions.

But it is the Democratic Party that never ceases to celebrate diversity — racial, religious, ethnic, cultural — as its own and as America's "greatest strength."

Understandably so, for the party is home to a multitude of minorities.

It is the domain of the LGBTQ movement. In presidential elections, Democrats win 70 percent of Hispanics, Jews and Asian-Americans, and 90 percent of African-Americans.

Yet, lately, the party seems to be careening into a virtual war of all against all.

Democratic Governor Ralph Northam and Attorney General Mark Herring of Virginia have both admitted to using blackface.

Northam imitated Michael Jackson's "moonwalk" in a 1984 dance contest. Herring, in 1980 at the University of Virginia, did a blackface impression of rap icon Kurtis Blow, who called it ugly and degrading.

The resignations of both have been demanded by Virginia's black leadership. Northam and Herring, however, are defying the demands.

Meanwhile, Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, only the second black ever to win statewide office, has been charged by two women with r**e. And the demands for his resignation are growing louder and most insistent.

Yet if Fairfax is forced out, while the white governor and white attorney general get a pass, black leaders warn, all hell is going to bust loose.

The Democratic Party of Virginia was already convulsed over all the monuments, statues, schools, parks, highways and streets that bear the names of slave owners, Confederate soldiers and 19th- and 20th-century segregationists.

Across the Potomac, Ilhan Omar, the first ever Somali-American to serve in Congress, and a Muslim, ignited a firestorm last week when she gave this as the reason Congress faithfully votes the AIPAC line on Israel: "It's all about the Benjamins, baby."

The reference is to $100 bills, on which Ben Franklin's face appears. The line is a rap lyric from a 1997 song by Puff Daddy.

Omar was saying Congress has been bought. ...read more

Pat Buchanan: Democrats in danger with rising minority of far-Left minorities Both of America's great national parties are coalitions. But it is the Democratic Party that never ceases to celebrate diversity — racia ...