Thursday 25th April 2024

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Amen — So Be It

March 26, 2016 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Amen — So Be It

By DON FIER At the end of time when the resurrection of the dead and the General Judgment take place, an essential tenet of our faith — one that should fill the faithful with great hope and expectation — assures us that there will be an incredible transformation not only of humanity, but of all visible creation. We will behold “new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13). “The universe itself, freed from its bondage of decay, will share in the glory of Christ,” affirms the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. “Thus, the fullness of the Kingdom of God will come about, that is to say, the definitive realization of the salvific…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

March 25, 2016 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. What should I do with my Liturgy of the Hours according to the Roman Rite? I have the four volumes, but now I use the Internet. Is there somewhere I could send them where they would be used? — E.C., via e-mail. A. We will ask our readers for their thoughts, but in the meantime have you asked any priests you know? Or what about a Catholic high school or college or seminary library? Q. In a CD entitled The Dead Sea Scrolls, Dr. John Bergsma says that Jesus and His disciples could have been part of the Essene community, who wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls and who were a sort of monastic, celibate group of men who thought that…Continue Reading

Live By Faith In Jesus Christ

March 24, 2016 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Live By Faith In Jesus Christ

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Second Sunday Of Easter (Divine Mercy) (YR C) Readings: Acts 5:12-16 Rev. 1:9-11a, 12-13, 17-19 John 20:19-31 On this great day of the Octave of Easter, as we continue to rejoice in the Resurrection of our Lord from the dead and celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday in a particular way, we are faced with a challenge to our faith. We know that Jesus is God and that all power has been given to Him both in Heaven and on Earth. We also know that our Lord dwells within us and that He is truly present in the Most Holy Eucharist. At the same time, we see the astronomical increase in sin as well as the persecution and…Continue Reading

The Stations Of The Cross . . . Follow The Final Earthly Journey Of Christ

March 23, 2016 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Stations Of The Cross . . . Follow The Final Earthly Journey Of Christ

By FR. EDWARD McNAMARA (Editor’s Note: Following is a question on whether or not stations of the cross are liturgical or not, answered by Legionary of Christ Fr. Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy and dean of theology at the Regina Apostolorum university. (Fr. McNamara writes the “Liturgy Q-and-A” column for ZENIT News Agency, which provided this text. All rights reserved.) + + + Q. Are the stations of the cross liturgical, and who qualifies as the minister? — B.A., Enugu State, Nigeria. A. The stations of the cross are not liturgical as such but fall under the heading of pious exercises. The Holy See’s 2001 Directory for Popular Piety gives the following definition of these exercises: “7. The expression ‘pious…Continue Reading

A Leaven In The World . . . A Parish, No Matter How Small, Saves Souls

March 21, 2016 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven In The World . . . A Parish, No Matter How Small, Saves Souls

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK The pastor of a parish that is somewhat more diminutive in size was visiting a family one evening for dinner. The host family usually attends a parish a few hundred families larger in size. The father of the family turned to the priest at one point during the evening and asked, “Do you even have any teenagers in your parish?” or words to that effect. Although the priest did not respond such, the best rejoinder probably would have been to pose another question, “What’s your point?” He instead pointed to a strong young adult presence as an indicator of strong parish dynamics of a different sort. Chauvinism is unfortunately just as much a temptation in…Continue Reading

An Apologetics Course . . . More On Whether The Pope Can Be Infallible

March 20, 2016 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on An Apologetics Course . . . More On Whether The Pope Can Be Infallible

By RAYMOND DE SOUZA, KM Part 46 The teaching on papal infallibility was not revealed to the Church in the 19th century at the First Vatican Council proclaimed by Pope Pius IX for the first time in history, as if nobody had heard of it before. Not at all. The proclamation of the dogma at Vatican I was simply a clear definition of its extensions, limits, and modes of realization. History and Church Tradition show ad nauseam that, centuries before Luther, the teachings of the Bishops of Rome were held in highest regard, over and above the teachings of all the other successors of the apostles — the bishops. The voice of Tradition, as we have seen before in the…Continue Reading

Life Everlasting — New Heavens And A New Earth

March 19, 2016 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Life Everlasting — New Heavens And A New Earth

By DON FIER The end of human history as we know it, as we saw in last week’s column, will be marked with the Final Judgment. It is also at that time that Purgatory, God’s merciful provision for purification of sin after death, will cease to exist. Only the two ultimate eternal destinies for mankind — Heaven and Hell — will remain. “The final or universal judgment,” teaches the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “consists in a sentence of happiness or eternal condemnation, which the Lord Jesus will issue to the ‘just and the unjust’ (Acts 24:15) when he returns as the Judge of the living and the dead” (n. 214). The hour and the day, however,…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

March 18, 2016 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Editor’s Note: Following up on a recent column about the threat of radical Islam to our fellow Christians and to our country, here are some perceptive comments from Fr. George Rutler of the Church of St. Michael in New York City: “Back to Greek: I indulge apophasis, which means saying that I am not going to say what I am going to say, to remark that there is no need to mention, in this rose-colored time of Lent, that our brothers and sisters in the faith in Iraq and Syria are suffering terribly. The Pope and various national leaders have used the word that our chief executive will not pronounce: genocide. If a hapless youth is shot on one of…Continue Reading

The Reality Of The Resurrection

March 17, 2016 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Reality Of The Resurrection

By FR. ROBERT ALTIER Solemnity Of Easter (YR C) Readings: Acts 10:34a, 37-43 Col. 3:1-4 John 20:1-9 Today we celebrate the single greatest event that humanity has ever known: the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. In our day of modern medicine, there have been many people who have been resuscitated, but of the seven billion people who now inhabit the Earth, not a single one of us has ever witnessed a resurrection. Technically, the apostles did not witness the actual event of our Lord’s Resurrection, but they bore witness to the Resurrection because the proof was irrefutable. It must be made clear before speaking of anyone else, that Our Blessed Lady never doubted that her Son would rise…Continue Reading

Religious Freedom . . . A Fundamental Human Right That Cannot Be Brushed Aside

March 16, 2016 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Religious Freedom . . . A Fundamental Human Right That Cannot Be Brushed Aside

VATICAN CITY (News.Va) — The Vatican on Wednesday, March 9 said there is “a lack of political will on the part of the different institutions of the international community” to address attacks on the right of religious freedom. The comments were made during a United Nations Human Rights Council discussion on the Report of the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief. “Minimizing the essential role that religion has in all societies will not be the answer to the current challenges found in the interplay of [the freedom of religion and the freedom of expression],” said Msgr. Richard Gyhra, chargé d’affaires of the Permanent Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva.…Continue Reading