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Catholic Replies

October 12, 2018 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. I thought the matter of no women priests was settled by Pope John Paul II back in the nineties. But I keep hearing about this possibility. Do you foresee this ban ever changing? — J.M., via e-mail. A. No, we don’t because St. John Paul, in his 1994 apostolic letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, made the following infallible pronouncement: “Wherefore, in order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter which pertains to the Church’s divine constitution itself, in virtue of my ministry of confirming the brethren (cf. Luke 22:32), I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by…Continue Reading

Over 100 Young People . . . Tell Synod-Bound Scottish Archbishop: We Love Catholic Doctrine

October 10, 2018 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Over 100 Young People . . . Tell Synod-Bound Scottish Archbishop: We Love Catholic Doctrine

By DOROTHY CUMMINGS McLEAN EDINBURGH, Scotland (LifeSiteNews) — Over 100 young Catholics have a message for the Scottish archbishop chosen to attend the Youth Synod: We love the doctrines of the Church. The Catholics aged 18 to 35 signed a letter to Archbishop Leo Cushley of the Archdiocese of St. Andrews and Edinburgh sharing their thoughts on their faith. While expressing their gratitude for the ministry they have experienced in Scotland, the writers worry that some synod members are suggesting that “difficult aspects” of Catholic doctrine should be “downplayed and even put aside.” “Some even imply that priests who hold to orthodox teaching are out of touch with the lives of lay people, and of young people especially. However, it…Continue Reading

Inspired By Wisdom

October 9, 2018 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Inspired By Wisdom

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Twenty-Eighth Sunday In Ordinary Time (YR B) Readings: Wisdom 7:7-11 Heb. 4:12-13 Mark 10:17-30 In the first reading Solomon explains how he prayed and pleaded with the Lord and was given prudence and Wisdom. He tells us he preferred wisdom to anything: scepter and throne, riches, health, and comeliness. This was the priority for Solomon, but what are our priorities? It could be that Solomon, being quite intelligent, sought wisdom for himself. Perhaps, we might think, if he had a different personality or different circumstances, he would have made something else his priority. Thinking in that manner, we can easily justify our own set of priorities if they vary from Solomon’s. However, we need to ask…Continue Reading

A Leaven In The World… The Other Side Of #MeToo

October 8, 2018 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven In The World… The Other Side Of #MeToo

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK “Believe Women” says a full page ad in the Wall Street Journal. The accuser Christine Ford and the accused Brett Kavanaugh had both been heard in a historic hearing on Capitol Hill viewed by millions of Americans the Thursday previous to when this column was written. Both witnesses were emotionally compelling, but she had a very loose relationship either with the truth or with her own memories. Victims are very sympathetic characters. No one with a modicum of compassion wants to victimize a sexual assault victim a second time by lacking a sympathetic response. All victims need to be heard when they choose to speak out. Many of us, however, seem erroneously to confuse compassion…Continue Reading

The Sacrament Of Confession… The Sins Against The Holy Spirit

October 7, 2018 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Sacrament Of Confession… The Sins Against The Holy Spirit

By RAYMOND DE SOUZA, KM Part 7 The sins against the Holy Spirit are seen in the Gospel and must be considered very seriously. It was Jesus Christ who said that “whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come” (Matt. 12:32). Doesn’t it seem to contradict our Lord’s teaching on mercy to all sinners? How come, then, He distinctly says that a sin against the Holy Spirit is unforgivable? What was the context that our Lord was referring to, when He said that the sin against the Holy Spirit was not forgivable either in this life or in the next? In the context, our Lord Jesus Christ was…Continue Reading

Virtues Related To Justice

October 6, 2018 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Virtues Related To Justice

By DON FIER As we continued our consideration of the four cardinal virtues in last week’s column, we saw that the second, justice, “consists in the firm and constant will to give God and neighbor their due” (Catechism of the Catholic Church [CCC], n. 1836). As articulated by Christoph Cardinal Schönborn in volume 3 of Living the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “Among all the virtues that prudence [the first cardinal virtue] guides, justice stands in the first place” (p. 35). Its underlying importance for man’s peaceful personal and social coexistence is apparent. In short, “to be a just person means to refrain from doing any evil to others and to do the good to others that they deserve” (Fr.…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

October 5, 2018 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. People keep describing the clergy sexual abuse problem as a violation of celibacy. But isn’t it really an abuse of chastity? — D.T., Pennsylvania. A. Yes. Celibacy is the state or condition of those who have chosen to remain unmarried for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven in order to give themselves entirely to God and to the service of His people. Chastity is the moral virtue by which we conform our sexuality to the divine plan of God and live a life of purity. So a priest, bishop, or cardinal who engages in sexual activity, whether of the heterosexual or homosexual variety, is not violating his vow of celibacy since he is not married. He is, however,…Continue Reading

“This Is All I Can Do Now”… Applying A Practice Of St. Catherine Of Siena To Our Current Crisis

October 3, 2018 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on “This Is All I Can Do Now”… Applying A Practice Of St. Catherine Of Siena To Our Current Crisis

By MSGR. CHARLES POPE (Editor’s Note: Msgr. Charles Pope posted the following on his blog of September 24, 2018, and it is reprinted here with his kind permission.) + + + Many Catholics have struggled to find a voice that has been nearly washed out of us by our training. We remember a time when it was unthinkable to criticize a priest; those who did were quickly rebuked, with little opportunity for explanation. Bishops and especially the Pope were not to be questioned let alone criticized. We have now seen the sometimes horrifying toll of unhealthy deference, of setting a class of men apart from critique or accountability. Respect surely has its place; we should not correct with unneeded harshness,…Continue Reading

What God Has Joined Together

October 2, 2018 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on What God Has Joined Together

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Twenty-Seventh Sunday In Ordinary Time (YR B) Readings: Gen. 2:18-24 Heb. 2:2-9 Mark 10:2-16 When we consider the effects original sin has had on our souls by darkening our minds and weakening our wills, then with the enemy of our souls taking advantage of that situation, the result is downright terrifying. In today’s readings we are presented with two of the greatest blessings humanity possesses: marriage and children. In the first reading we see God creating the woman and establishing the institution of Holy Matrimony. In the Nuptial Blessing at a wedding ceremony there is a beautiful line reminding us that marriage is the one gift which was not forfeited by original sin or washed away…Continue Reading

A Leaven In The World… What’s A Catholic To Do? Letter To A Bishop

October 1, 2018 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven In The World… What’s A Catholic To Do? Letter To A Bishop

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK Last week my run-on column had to be cut short in the print edition by my very patient editors. I begin here with the last paragraphs of “As For Me and My House, We Will Serve the Lord,” wherein I was offering advice for families who wish to persevere in these very trying times for Catholics. “Each of us must maintain a guard over body and soul, keeping ourselves pure. Life is a gift over which we do not have ultimate control, coming as it does from God and ending at His pleasure. We can pray for long life and even live with expectation of such if we so choose. But we must be ever…Continue Reading