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The Sacrament Of Holy Matrimony

December 2, 2017 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Sacrament Of Holy Matrimony

By DON FIER Having thus far examined the Church’s teaching as presented by the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) for six of the seven sacraments, it remains for us to treat the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony. Along with Holy Orders, it is identified as a sacrament “at the service of communion,” for as described in an earlier installment (see volume 149, n. 51; December 22, 2016), it can accurately be stated that Ordination and marriage confer graces that are especially “directed towards the salvation of others; if they contribute as well to personal salvation, it is through service to others that they do so” (CCC, n. 1534). The Catechism begins its treatment of marriage by citing a key canon…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

December 1, 2017 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. Is it permissible for a Catholic funeral to be held in a place outside of a church? — M.S., via e-mail. A. Yes. According to the Order of Christian Funerals, “The funeral liturgy outside Mass is ordinarily celebrated in the parish church, but may also be celebrated in the home of the deceased, a funeral home, parlor, chapel of rest, or cemetery chapel” (n. 179). Q. In the parish I am attending, it is customary to insert Baptisms, Confirmations, First Communions, and even weddings into the scheduled Masses on holy days of obligation. Shouldn’t those sacraments be administered separately? Also, Confessions are heard face-to-face without the option for confessing anonymously. — C.G.D., via e-mail. A. Although the sacraments you…Continue Reading

Why St. John The Baptist Drew The Crowds

November 30, 2017 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Why St. John The Baptist Drew The Crowds

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Second Sunday Of Advent (YR B) Readings: Isaiah 40:1-5, 9-11 2 Peter 3:8-14 Mark 1:1-8 I recall seeing a comment to rock and roll fans from a person who is an opera aficionado. It was an invitation to come to the opera, but it was the reason that I found most moving: It was because people who go to the opera do not care what the singer’s body looks like; what they care about is the voice. In a society that has made the human body into an object this insight was quite profound. It does not matter what the person looks like; all that matters to an opera fan is the quality of his voice…Continue Reading

Pope John Paul II Advent 1997… “Watch At All Times”

November 29, 2017 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Pope John Paul II Advent 1997… “Watch At All Times”

(Editor’s Note: The following homily from Pope John Paul II for the first Sunday of Advent, November 30, 1997, focused on preparing to meet the Savior. John Paul also emphasized the then upcoming Jubilee of the Year 2000, and he welcomed members of Rome’s City Mission who were present. (The homily is published on www.vatican.va; all rights reserved.) + + + “But watch at all times, praying that you may have the strength . . . to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21:36). Christ’s words, taken from Luke’s Gospel, introduce us to the profound meaning of the liturgy we are celebrating. On this First Sunday in Advent, which marks the beginning of the second year of immediate preparation…Continue Reading

A Leaven In The World… Sexual Revolution Continues To Destroy Lives And Careers

November 27, 2017 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven In The World… Sexual Revolution Continues To Destroy Lives And Careers

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK The so-called sexual revolution promised a paradise of pleasure. No boundaries, no mores, no hidebound and outmoded practices such as chaste dating or waiting until marriage. False promises of the possibility of love without commitment, permanence, or children lured many into a pit akin to Hell. The pill came along almost as a satanic blessing on this evil and destructive impulse to attack marriage and family life. The 50th anniversary of Humanae Vitae will soon be upon us with the new year 2018. The warnings of Pope Paul VI in his prophetic encyclical as to the results of cutting sex loose from marriage have been abundantly confirmed. Neither men nor women ever benefit from severing…Continue Reading

The Sacraments Instituted By Christ… Sacramentals Defined

November 26, 2017 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Sacraments Instituted By Christ… Sacramentals Defined

By RAYMOND DE SOUZA, KM Part 4 To touch the holy water fountain and cross oneself with the water is a common thing for Catholics to do when we enter or leave a church. To wear a scapular, light a candle, or pray a rosary are also common actions. These and several other things are called the “sacramentals” of the Church. They are not sacraments like Baptism, Communion, and Confession, which were instituted by Jesus Christ. They are sacramentals, instituted by the Church of Jesus Christ. It is important to know the difference, since oftentimes non-Catholics or mediocre Catholics raise objections against the sacramentals. So, let us begin by defining them: Sacramentals are sacred signs that symbolize and obtain certain…Continue Reading

The Effects Of The Sacrament Of Holy Orders

November 25, 2017 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Effects Of The Sacrament Of Holy Orders

By DON FIER Conferral of the Sacrament of Holy Orders in each of its three degrees, as we saw last week, occurs “by means of the imposition of hands [matter] on the head of the ordinand by the Bishop who pronounces the solemn prayer of consecration [form]” (Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 331). Furthermore, we saw that “only validly ordained bishops, as successors of the apostles, can confer the sacrament of Holy Orders” (n. 332) and that the sacrament “can only be validly received by a baptized man” (n. 333). Important to comprehend and wholeheartedly accept is that no one has a right to receive the Sacrament of Holy Orders — it is a vocational call…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

November 24, 2017 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. I have two questions: 1) The Jewish Talmud depicts Christ as the bastard offspring of Mary and a Roman soldier. Is there any truth to this? 2) Pope Francis has called upon the nations of the world to open their borders without reservation to refugees fleeing their own lands. Since the Vatican is a sovereign state, shouldn’t the Pope, to be consistent, open the borders of the Vatican to accommodate, say, a couple of thousand refugees? — P.A., New York. A. 1) The Talmud is a collection of Jewish writings compiled over several centuries before and after the time of Jesus. In his book Jesus in the Talmud, Peter Schafer, professor of Judaic Studies at Princeton University, says that…Continue Reading

Advent And The Time Of Testing

November 23, 2017 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Advent And The Time Of Testing

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER First Sunday Of Advent (YR B) Readings: Isaiah 63:16b-17, 19b, 64:2-7 1 Cor. 1:3-9 Mark 13:33-37 As we begin a new Church year, we kick off with a question that burns in the hearts of many people: You are our Father, our Redeemer; why do you let us wander from your ways and harden our hearts so that we fear you not? Of course, the answer is that God made us with free will and allows us to exercise our freedom, even if that means using it against Him. It certainly demonstrates the love He has for us, but it also demonstrates the lack of love we have for Him. Still, these same people would press…Continue Reading

Fr. Brian Harrison Says… It’s Not “Dissent” To Criticize “Confusing Cascade Of Papal Novelties”

November 22, 2017 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Fr. Brian Harrison Says… It’s Not “Dissent” To Criticize “Confusing Cascade Of Papal Novelties”

By DIANE MONTAGNA ROME (LifeSiteNews) — Earlier this year, a group of over 60 scholars issued an almost unprecedented “filial correction” to Pope Francis, charging him with permitting the spread of seven heresies. This measure, unseen since the fourteenth century, has generated controversy around the world, while the number of signatories has risen to 250 professors and priests since it was made public on September 24. Some writers, however, have accused the signatories of the Filial Correction of transgressing the requirement of a 1990 document of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith — Donum Veritatis — which lays down the circumstances in which scholars might legitimately draw the attention of the Holy See to “deficiencies” in an official…Continue Reading