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Stay In The State Of Grace

April 26, 2021 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Stay In The State Of Grace

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Fifth Sunday Of Easter (YR B) Readings: Acts 9:26-311 John 3:18-24John 15:1-8 In the Gospel reading our Lord tells us that He is the True Vine and we are the branches. On the natural level, because the sap flows through the vine and into the branches, fruit can be borne by the branches only when they are connected to the vine. Our Lord tells us that we are to bear fruit, but if we are the branches, we cannot bear fruit unless we are united to the Vine. God is the author of grace, so the divine life flows through us only when we are united with Jesus.However, our Lord makes this point in a way…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

April 23, 2021 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Editor’s Note: Thirty years ago this week, the first Catholic Replies column appeared in the pages of The Wanderer. More than 1,500 columns and thousands of questions later, we are still in business thanks to the editors and readers of this newspaper, which is a vitally important source of Catholic truth. Many thanks for all of your questions. We hope that our replies have been helpful to you and that you will keep the questions coming.They have certainly been beneficial to one reader, S.A. of California, who recently e-mailed us to say that “I started getting The Wanderer soon after I reverted to the Church after spending 20 years in Protestantism. I went to a National Family Conference and they…Continue Reading

A Leaven In The World… “Do Not Be Conformed To This World”

April 22, 2021 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven In The World… “Do Not Be Conformed To This World”

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK There really is no debate that the Church is in crisis, or perhaps undergoing a series of crises. Some crises come from inside the Church and some from circumstances outside the Church. Vatican II was a crisis or change, no matter your point of view, that originated from within the Church. However, Vatican II was at the same time a response precisely to the world that exists outside ecclesial bounds.The trouble with responses is that they are based on perceptions, and perceptions are not always precise and differ for each person.Our responses are always based in part on a mix of emotions and reason. Only a very honest and severe examination can separate the one…Continue Reading

An Easter Exhortation For Tough Times

April 21, 2021 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on An Easter Exhortation For Tough Times

By MSGR. CHARLES POPE (Editor’s Note: Msgr. Pope posted this blog about living through a tough Easter Season on April 12.) + + As we all know, this was perhaps the strangest Easter that any of us have experienced, at least collectively. The liturgical calendar shouts new life and victory over the grave, and yet throughout the world, many are hunkered down in the fear of death. Despite the Easter glow these are dark days for many who suffer illness or economic stress. But, to be sure, the first Easter was experienced in great uncertainty and danger.Recent readings from Scripture have this theme. The readings in daily Mass this past week (from the Acts of the Apostles) show the joy…Continue Reading

A Beacon Of Light . . . Follow The Example Of The Early Church

April 19, 2021 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Beacon Of Light . . . Follow The Example Of The Early Church

By FR. RICHARD D. BRETON JR. (Editor’s Note: Fr. Richard D. Breton Jr. is a priest of the Diocese of Norwich, Conn. He received his BA in religious studies and his MA in dogmatic theology from Holy Apostles College and Seminary in Cromwell, Conn.) + + On April 4, 2021 we entered the joyful season of Easter which celebrates the Resurrection of Christ. This season extends seven weeks and includes the Scripture passages of Jesus revealing Himself to the disciples. Looking deeper into the Easter Season we find an important aspect of the Church. What do we find? We find the Church at the moments prior to her birth! We encounter Jesus, the Resurrected Lord, in the final moments as…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

April 16, 2021 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. Your answer to D.M. of Virginia, stating that “no prayers are wasted,” is certainly correct. But I think there is something more to say on the subject, namely, that our infinite God, who knows all, can surely anticipate these prayers. My now-deceased mom told a very frightening story of a man who followed her home one night when she was in her teens. By the grace of God and the help of a stranger, she avoided a potential assault. For some reason I have often prayed for my mother when she was a teenager, particularly for deliverance from that situation — and I am sure that these prayers always counted in her favor. — R.M., Connecticut.A. Since God lives…Continue Reading

A Leaven In The World . . . Fierce Persecution Brings Powerful Witness

April 15, 2021 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven In The World . . . Fierce Persecution Brings Powerful Witness

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK Alleluia! Happy Easter.The darkest places on Earth become the greatest sources of light when Christians remain steadfast in witnessing the faith. Ireland leads the way.Easter is about the ultimate victory. God’s love over human hate. Holiness over sin. The Eternal life of joy over eternal pain of death in Hell.This year for many, the Easter solemnity seemed in human terms a defeat. Europe imposed lockdowns before Easter. In many places, public Mass was canceled once again. Ireland suffered the worst penalty: Churches were locked and it was illegitimately declared illegal to pray holy Mass. Ironically, just over the border in Northern Ireland under British hegemony churches remained open. After many years of suffering under the…Continue Reading

Cardinal Dziwisz . . . St. John Paul II’s Last Days Offer Hope During The Pandemic

April 14, 2021 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Cardinal Dziwisz . . . St. John Paul II’s Last Days Offer Hope During The Pandemic

(CNA) — People around the world continue to draw strength from the way that St. John Paul II faced his final days, his former personal secretary said on the sixteenth anniversary of the Polish Pope’s death.Stanislaw Cardinal Dziwisz noted that this year’s anniversary fell on Good Friday amid a pandemic that has claimed more than 2,800,000 lives worldwide.The 81-year-old Polish cardinal said that the last weeks of John Paul II’s 27-year pontificate offered a message of interpersonal solidarity.“The lesson that John Paul II gave to the world when he was leaving for the Father’s house can be a source of consolation and solace for those who are desperate after the death of their loved ones, as well as for those…Continue Reading

Remember The Suffering Of The Messiah

April 12, 2021 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Remember The Suffering Of The Messiah

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Third Sunday Of Easter (YR B) Readings: Acts 3:13-15, 17-191 John 1-5aLuke 24:35-48 In the fourth week of Lent we had a break and looked forward to the joy that was coming in Easter. That day reminded us to be joyful and spurred us on to continue with our Lenten penances, knowing we had made it more than halfway through the penitential season. Now, in the third week of Easter, we take a break to remind us that, in the midst of our rejoicing in the Resurrection, we need to remember the sufferings of our Lord and the reason for His suffering.For this reason, St. Peter, in the first reading, reminded the people of how they…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

April 9, 2021 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. Can you explain what righteous anger is? I thought anger was one of the seven deadly sins, so how can it ever be righteous? — T.S., via e-mail.A. The glossary at the back of the Catechism of the Catholic Church defines anger as “an emotion which is not in itself wrong, but which, when it is not controlled by reason or hardens into resentment and hate, becomes one of the seven capital sins. Christ taught that anger is an offense against the fifth commandment.”When Jesus chased the moneychangers out of the Temple (cf. John 2:13-22), He demonstrated a righteous indignation that was controlled by reason and was not motivated by hate or a desire for revenge. St. Paul remarked…Continue Reading