Thursday 18th April 2024

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Mary’s Perpetual Virginity . . . Summing Up

May 25, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Mary’s Perpetual Virginity . . . Summing Up

By RAYMOND DE SOUZA, KM Part 8 The Gospels mention Jesus’ brothers and sisters (Matt. 13:54-57; also Mark 6:2-3 et alia), and anti-Catholic bigotry sees in this a supposed “argument” against the Catholic teaching of the perpetual virginity of our Lady. But bigotry ignores that in the Hebrew and Aramaic languages, there was no clear distinction between “blood-brother” and “cousin.” Their culture was not centered on the “nuclear family” as we have it today, but the extended family, in which cousins were known as brothers and sisters. The New Testament was not written in English. In Hebrew and Aramaic, “brethren” does not mean only brothers and sisters from the same father and mother, as in English, but also near kinsmen.…Continue Reading

Sacred Scripture And Sacred Tradition

May 24, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Sacred Scripture And Sacred Tradition

By DON FIER Over the past three weeks, our primary focus has been on God’s supernatural divine Revelation. We’ve examined how “by love God has revealed Himself and given Himself to man [and]…thus provided the definitive, superabundant answer to the questions that man asks himself about the meaning and purpose of his life” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 66). We’ve seen that in the fullness of time God established an everlasting covenant with mankind by sending His Son as the “Father’s definitive Word, so there will be no further Revelation after Him” (CCC, n. 73). The stage is now set for us to look at God’s master plan for transmitting His Revelation to mankind throughout the ages. In other words, how…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

May 23, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Editor’s Note: Responding to the person who asked where he could send a large collection of Catholic books that he had acquired over the years, G.T.G. of Maine suggested getting in touch with Sr. Stephen Larson, OSB, librarian of Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary, P.O. Box 147, Denton, NE 68339. This seminary was established in 1991 and has been building its collection of Catholic books ever since. Sr. Stephen can also be reached by phone at 402-797-7700, ext. 136. We would suggest that you talk to Sr. Stephen first to see what books she would welcome, rather than automatically ship books to her. Q. Would you kindly inform us of the history of the “gift of tears”? The why and…Continue Reading

Everything Is From The Father

May 22, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Everything Is From The Father

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Seventh Sunday Of Easter (YR A) Readings: Acts 1:12-14 1 Peter 4:13-16 John 17:1-11a In the Gospel reading today, our Lord says to His Father in prayer that He has revealed the Father’s Name to those whom the Father had given Him out of the world. He then acknowledges that these people belonged to the Father and that the Father had given them to Him, and now, these people have kept the Word of God. I hope that, as you read, you realize that you are counted among those about whom our Lord is speaking. In the context you might think these words apply only to the apostles, but it is clear that the meaning is…Continue Reading

Homily On The Blessed Virgin Mary Of Pompeii . . . Mary Continues To Help The Apostles Of Our Day

May 21, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Homily On The Blessed Virgin Mary Of Pompeii . . . Mary Continues To Help The Apostles Of Our Day

By PIETRO CARDINAL PAROLIN (Editor’s Note: The following is a translation of the homily that the Vatican secretary of state, Pietro Cardinal Parolin, gave during the Eucharistic Celebration at Pompeii, on May 8, the Day of Prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary. ZENIT News Agency provided the text; all rights reserved.) +    +    + Dear Brothers and Sisters, I am grateful to His Excellency Tommaso Caputo, archbishop prelate of Pompeii, for his courteous invitation to preside over this celebration on the Day of Prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary of Pompeii. I thank the mayor and the other civil and military authorities for their kind presence, a testimony of their affection for the shrine and the importance it entails for…Continue Reading

A Leaven In The World… Confirmation As Gateway To Mature Adult Faith

May 19, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven In The World… Confirmation As Gateway To Mature Adult Faith

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK Confirmation season is upon us, and once again we face the prospect in its aftermath of watching some of our young people fall away from practice of their faith in attending Sunday Mass on a regular basis. This phenomenon has been rued for years by bishops, priests, faith formation leaders, catechists, and parents as well. As a result, various creative solutions have been implemented with varying results. Our young people are often confirmed around the eighth grade at the same time as they look forward to beginning high school a few months hence. This has led to a tendency in which Confirmation has been viewed as a “must have” in connection with the other rituals…Continue Reading

Mary’s Perpetual Virginity… The “Other Mary” And St. Joseph’s “Other Children”

May 18, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Mary’s Perpetual Virginity… The “Other Mary” And St. Joseph’s “Other Children”

By RAYMOND DE SOUZA, KM Part 7 “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, Joseph, Jude, and Simon? And are not also his sisters here with us? And they took offense at him” (Mark 6:3). So, after all, Jesus appears to have had four brothers, named James, Joseph, Jude, and Simon, as well as two or three sisters, right? Let’s investigate the issue. Three women are called “Mary” in the New Testament: Mary, the Mother of Jesus; Mary Magdalene; and “the other Mary.” And, because of this, a little confusion has been established, which gave an excuse to anti-Catholic bigotry to raise its ugly head against the perpetual virginity of Our Savior’s Mother. “Then…Continue Reading

Public Revelation Vs. Private Revelation

May 17, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Public Revelation Vs. Private Revelation

By DON FIER Our previous installment ended by citing a pair of remarkable verses from the Letter to the Hebrews, verses that concisely summarize God’s divine pedagogy, His master plan of divine Revelation: “In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by a Son, Whom He appointed the heir of all things, through Whom also He created the world” (Heb. 1:1-2). As expounded last week, God’s Old Testament revelation, mediated to mankind through the patriarchs and prophets, was gradual and partial — it was revealed in stages and progressively supplemented throughout successive epochs and ages of salvation history. But its culmination in the…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

May 16, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. It always puzzles me when minors take a drink of wine at Communion. Isn’t that sort of unlawful? I know in some states it is. — A.N., Oregon. A. First of all, don’t forget that what looks and tastes like wine is really the Precious Blood of Jesus, so it shouldn’t be called wine after the consecration. While it might be unlawful for minors to drink wine in some states, we are sure that those laws have to do with consuming large quantities of alcohol, which is not the case at Mass. It is up to parents to decide if their minor children can receive the Precious Blood at Mass, but the quantity received is so small that parents…Continue Reading

The Spirit Gives Us Words And Wisdom

May 15, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Spirit Gives Us Words And Wisdom

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Sixth Sunday Of Easter (YR A) Readings: Acts 8:5-8, 14-17 1 Peter 3:15-18 John 14:15-21 In the Gospel today our Lord promises that He will send another Advocate to be with us always, the Spirit of Truth whom the world cannot accept because it cannot see Him and does not know Him. The word that is translated as advocate is paraclete, which has a variety of meanings but essentially means someone who speaks on behalf of another. Hence, the concept of an advocate. It is like an attorney if you are in a courtroom; the attorney is your advocate or paraclete. It is wonderful to know that we have Someone who will speak for us. St.…Continue Reading