Thursday 28th March 2024

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Purgatory: A Place Of Mercy

October 23, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Purgatory: A Place Of Mercy

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER The Feast Of All Souls Readings: Wisdom 3:1-9 Romans 5:5-11 John 6:37-40 Today we have the great privilege of praying in a special way for those who have died yet still await the fullness of life in Heaven. We remember today the holy souls who are in Purgatory. It is rare that we hear about Purgatory these days, so thankfully the Church reminds us of this great reality. Perhaps we need to consider the question of Purgatory before saying anything else. There are many people today who think that the Church no longer believes in Purgatory. Others do not want to think about Purgatory because they think it is a place of punishment. To address the…Continue Reading

Pope’s Message To Bishop Of Avila . . . St. Teresa Tells Everyone: “Do Not Cease To Be Joyful!”

October 22, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Pope’s Message To Bishop Of Avila . . . St. Teresa Tells Everyone: “Do Not Cease To Be Joyful!”

VATICAN CITY (ZENIT) — Here is a translation of the message that Pope Francis sent October 15 to the bishop of Avila, Spain, Jesus Garcia Burillo, on the occasion of the opening of the Teresian Jubilee Year for the fifth centenary of the birth of St. Teresa of Jesus, doctor of the Church. The saint’s liturgical memorial is observed October 15. ZENIT News Agency provided the text of this message. All rights reserved. + + + Vatican, October 15, 2014 To Most Rev. Jesus Garcia Burillo, Bishop of Avila Dear Brother: On March 28, 1515, a girl was born in Avila who in time would be known as St. Teresa of Jesus. As the fifth centenary of her birth approaches,…Continue Reading

A Leaven In The World . . . Being Exposed To Synod’s Deliberations Is Not For The Fainthearted

October 20, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven In The World . . . Being Exposed To Synod’s Deliberations Is Not For The Fainthearted

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK “But the one who peers into the perfect law of liberty and fixes his attention there, and does not become a forgetful listener but one who lives it out — he will be blessed in what he does” (James 1:25). “Peering into freedom’s ideal law,” as St. James’ letter exhorts and as the fathers of the Extraordinary Synod in Rome attempted to do, is not at all easy and, for some, can be a bumpy ride. Being exposed to the deliberations of the Extraordinary Synod is not for the fainthearted. The release of the draft document, or relatio, midway through the deliberations, was met with squeals of delight from the “gay lobby,” among whose cheerleaders…Continue Reading

Debunking The Myth… Sola Scriptura Is Unscriptural

October 19, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Debunking The Myth… Sola Scriptura Is Unscriptural

By RAYMOND DE SOUZA, KM Part 3 Evidently, Jesus did not stay with the apostles and disciples for long after the Resurrection. He founded a Church, His Church. Now, did He found it as a visible Church, with authority to guide, teach, and sanctify the people? Or didn’t He? Either He did or He didn’t. It is one or the other. And what is meant by a visible Church? Just a building upon a hill? Or a congregation sharing unity in one Lord, one faith, one Baptism (Eph. 4:5), under the same government, being taught the same truths, obeying the same Commandments, following the same moral laws, being sanctified by the same sacraments, in short, the one Church of God,…Continue Reading

Divine Revelation: Gradual And Progressive

October 18, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Divine Revelation: Gradual And Progressive

By DON FIER We left off last week reflecting on God’s motive for revealing Himself to us in a supernatural manner. In a word, His sole motive was that of boundless love for mankind. God gratuitously and unconditionally chose to “communicate His own divine life to the men He freely created, in order to adopt them as His sons in His only-begotten Son” (CCC, n. 52). In the words of St. Paul, “[God] destined us in love to be His sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will” (Eph. 1:5) in order that it might be possible for mankind to satisfy the innate desire for happiness that is written into our hearts and that can only be…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

October 17, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Editor’s Note: R.H.T. of Florida writes to say that “this week’s question [The Wanderer dated October 16, 2014] about Doctors Without Borders caught my attention. If R.B. from Michigan is interested in supporting an organization like Doctors Without Borders, but one that is absolutely committed to strict adherence to the Catholic Church’s rules on things like abortion, contraception, etc., I strongly suggest you contact Light of the World Charities in Palm City, Fla. “LOTWC was started about 15 years ago by an operating room nurse named Theresa Banks, a fabulous conservative Catholic (to most of us a living saint), to serve at that time the needy and destitute in Honduras. They joined forces with the Franciscan Friars in Honduras and…Continue Reading

Union With The Afflicted

October 16, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Union With The Afflicted

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Thirtieth Sunday In Ordinary Time (YR A) Readings: Exodus 22:20-26 1 Thess. 1:5c-10 Matt. 22:34-40 In the second reading today St. Paul commends the Thessalonians for the way they received the Gospel and for the manner in which they lived it out. First he says that they received the Word in great affliction, then he reminds them that they became a model for all believers. In the midst of affliction, the Word of God is like a balm in that it brings a sense of freedom and peace. It does not remove the affliction, but it allows those afflicted to see their struggles from a different perspective. Beyond this, it reminds us that Jesus came into…Continue Reading

Cardinal Erdo’s Greetings To Pope At CCEE . . . Europe Needs Christ!

October 15, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Cardinal Erdo’s Greetings To Pope At CCEE . . . Europe Needs Christ!

VATICAN CITY (ZENIT) — Below are words of welcome to the Holy Father given October 3 by Peter Cardinal Erdo, president of the Council of European Episcopal Conferences (CCEE), on the occasion of the council’s plenary assembly. The CCEE was meeting Pope Francis for the first time. In his talk, Cardinal Erdo stressed that: “Europe needs Christ! Today when a lot is said about the economic crisis, we know that even before Europe was suffering a crisis of humanity and the lack of hope and a perspective on life, which only God can give.” + + + Most Holy Father, It is with great joy that we have come here to meet Your Holiness. We are from the whole of…Continue Reading

A Leaven On The World… Synod Theme Is The Family, Not Divorce

October 13, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven On The World… Synod Theme Is The Family, Not Divorce

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK In the words of Lorenzo Cardinal Baldisseri, the October 5-19 Extraordinary Synod of Bishops in Rome is on the family, and not divorce. Cardinal Baldisseri serves as the secretary general of the Synod of Bishops. Why, one might ask, if the Church is compassionate, does not the Church in this synod focus first on those with an obvious need for compassion and loving-kindness, such as broken families who suffer from the continuing effects of divorce, single parenthood, and civil remarriage? And one might well answer that the Church does what she does precisely because she is compassionate. You see, being around other sick does not help the sick get healthier; that’s why one of the…Continue Reading

Debunking The Sola Scriptura Myth . . . Sola Scriptura Is Unscriptural

October 12, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Debunking The Sola Scriptura Myth . . . Sola Scriptura Is Unscriptural

By RAYMOND DE SOUZA, KM Part 2 Is the Bible alone sufficient for us to know all about divine Revelation? Is the written word of God the sole rule of faith? What does the Bible itself have to say about it? The fact is that, according to Sacred Scripture itself, the Bible is not, and was never meant to be, the only source of divine Revelation and sole rule of faith. Jesus, in His infinite bounty and love for us, gave us much more: the Apostolic Tradition and the Magisterium of His Church. To demonstrate this truth, let us establish a basic, simple premise with which all baptized Christians agree: Everything that Jesus said or did was God speaking to…Continue Reading