Saturday 28th January 2023

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Catholic Replies

January 27, 2023 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. When Joseph and Mary came to the inn in Bethlehem, the innkeeper said that there was no room and told them to “go on.” That night an angel of the Lord came to Joseph in his dream and said, “It is you who shall go on and on.” Is this true? — J.B., Pennsylvania.A. Not according to the Gospel accounts of the birth of our Lord. In St. Luke’s account of the Nativity, he makes no mention of the innkeeper, but says only that Mary wrapped Jesus “in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn” (2:7). There are no recorded words of the innkeeper.The next time an angel…Continue Reading

New Book By Ganswein On BXVI

January 26, 2023 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on New Book By Ganswein On BXVI

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK Part 2 Upon his death we shared the witness that Pope Benedict lived in the words he uttered. Archbishop Georg Ganswein’s book Nothing But the Truth recounting his life with the great Pope is now out in bookstores. Here I share some vignettes of that volume from an advance unofficial English translation.In October 1978 the future Benedict XVI shared the following words at a Munich requiem for John Paul I, sentiments which, the world would soon witness, he himself lived.“The only greatness in the Church is to be saints. And her saints are the pillars of light that show us the way. Henceforth he too will be a part of these lights. And from what…Continue Reading

Basics Of Christian Anthropology

January 25, 2023 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Basics Of Christian Anthropology

By MSGR. CHARLES POPE Part 1 (Editor’s Note: Msgr. Charles Pope posted this article on January 13 and it is reprinted here with permission.) + + Anthropology is, most simply, the science or study of human beings through time and space. Different specialties focus on the analysis of biological/physiological characteristics and the examination of societies/cultures. In the religious sense, anthropology deals with the origin, nature, and destiny of human beings.In our times there are many moral issues emerging from viewpoints that diverge widely from our given nature, both physical and spiritual. Numerous false notions (e.g., “transgenderism”) have arisen that either disregard or even deny physical data. Other errors involve ignoring the clear evidence of humans’ spiritual nature, which so distinguishes…Continue Reading

Grace And Humility

January 23, 2023 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Grace And Humility

BY FR. ROBERT ALTIER Fourth Sunday In Ordinary Time (YR A) Readings: Zeph. 2:3, 3:12-131 Cor. 1:26-31Matt. 5:1-12a In the first reading today, the Lord calls all the humble of the Earth to seek Him. Interestingly, He then calls them to seek justice and humility with the hope that they would be sheltered on the day of the Lord’s anger. In other words, these people who are already humble must continue to strive for greater humility. From this greater humility will flow justice and charity. It is precisely these virtues that will provide the foundation for the renewal of humanity after the day of the Lord’s anger.Before we address the necessity of humility for what is coming, we need to…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

January 20, 2023 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Editor’s Note: This series on the Bible is from the book Catholicism & Scripture. Please feel free to use the series for high schoolers or adults. We will continue to welcome your questions for the column as well. See the contact information at the end of this column. Special Course On Catholicism And Scripture (Chapter 11) Following the path of other Old Testament wives who were barren (Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel), Hannah pleaded with God for a son and promised that she would dedicate him to God as a Nazarite, like Samson, who would not drink wine or liquor or let his hair be cut. God heard her plea and Hannah bore a son whom she named Samuel. She turned him…Continue Reading

Ganswein’s New Book On Benedict XVI

January 19, 2023 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Ganswein’s New Book On Benedict XVI

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK Benedict XVI, man of great intellect and learning that he was, lived the radical truth that faith, the direct graced contact with God, must be the starting point for all theological inquiry. Dating back to Augustine and Anselm of Canterbury (c. †1033-1109), the phrase “faith seeking understanding” is first mentioned by the latter in his Proslogion. It was this conviction which set up the great conflict with modernist and heretical forces within the Church.Just as the physical came from the spiritual in Creation, and God existed before all He has made, so we must proceed in all inquiry beginning with God. Perceived and grasped through graced belief, an abiding trust in all His words and…Continue Reading

Hail Mary Full of Grace . . . Punch The Devil In The Face

January 18, 2023 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Hail Mary Full of Grace . . . Punch The Devil In The Face

By MSGR. CHARLES POPE (Editor’s Note: Msgr. Charles Pope posted this article on January 4, 2023, and it is reprinted here with permission.) + + Some years ago I wrote a blog post, “Is the Church a Cruise Ship or a Battleship?” I was surprised at the amount of negative commentary I got. For example, “How dare you compare the Church to an instrument of war!” Other comments lamented recourse to any violent imagery, ever. Still others called for bans on songs such as Onward Christian Soldiers, I am On the Battlefield for My Lord, and so forth. You might say that the response from the anti-military group was “militant.” I certainly wasn’t feelin’ the love! Most of those comments…Continue Reading

Faithful Lost In A Place Of Confusion

January 16, 2023 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Faithful Lost In A Place Of Confusion

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Third Sunday In Ordinary Time (YR A) Readings: Isaiah 8:23-9:31 Cor. 1:10-13, 17Matt. 4:12-23 In the second reading, St. Paul urges the people of Corinth, and us through them, that there be no divisions among us. When we look around at what is happening in our own nation, and around the world, in our own families, and especially to children and babies, it should be clear to everyone that there is an intentional movement to cause division. This division is in every possible manner they can conceive: racial, economic, “gender,” political, medical (whether you received the COVID shot[s] or not), and so on.Even within our own Church there are forces trying to cause division. We have,…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

January 13, 2023 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. Is it necessary to bow to the altar when there is nothing on it? When the priest holds the Book of the Gospels up high, just about everyone bows to it. Is this necessary? I know the Gospel is God’s Word, but people rarely bow to the tabernacle. Sad. — P.S., via e-mail.A. Yes, one should bow when passing the altar, even when it is bare, because it is the sacred table upon which the Lord descends from Heaven during the Consecration of the Mass. The General Instruction of the Roman Missal says that “a bow signifies reverence and honor shown to the persons themselves or to the signs that represent them,” and it mentions the bow “made by…Continue Reading

The Legacy Of BXVI

January 12, 2023 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Legacy Of BXVI

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK At the end of Pope Benedict’s earthly sojourn with his death on the last day of 2022, we are moved to look back with gratitude upon his life and legacy. It is indeed a rich one, blessed with a fruitfulness indicating the Lord’s good pleasure in the labors of his humble servant.At the cusp of a new year it was as if, with his last breath, our beloved Pope Emeritus delivered his final homily about the brevity of our lives in comparison with the great treasure of the eternal Kingdom which awaits us. His words were always carefully and lovingly chosen, with a desire to effectively communicate the Lord and His Gospel. In the end…Continue Reading