Monday 15th August 2022

Home » Our Catholic Faith » Recent Articles:

Fortnight For Freedom . . . The Redemption Of Jesus Christ Sets Us Free

July 9, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Fortnight For Freedom . . . The Redemption Of Jesus Christ Sets Us Free

By MOST REV. JAMES D. CONLEY (Editor’s Note: Bishop James Conley of Lincoln, Neb., gave this homily at an ecumenical prayer service for religious liberty at Zion Church in Lincoln on Friday, June 27, 2014. After the prayer service, representatives of the Diocese of Lincoln, the Nebraska Family Alliance, and faculty members for the University of Nebraska conducted a roundtable discussion on religious liberty. (Bishop Conley delivered this homily only days before the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores Inc. (The Diocese of Lincoln kindly granted The Wanderer reprint permission for Bishop Conley’s homily. All rights reserved.) +    +    + Pastor Kearns, dear brother priests and clergy members, dear brothers and sisters in Christ. It is…Continue Reading

A Leaven In The World… The Synod On The Family And Humanae Vitae

July 7, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven In The World… The Synod On The Family And Humanae Vitae

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK The instrumentum laboris for the “III Extraordinary General Assembly” has been published and is entitled, The Pastoral Challenges of the Family in the Context of Evangelization. As we study the document and prepare for the upcoming synod this fall, we also find ourselves in July, the anniversary month of Humanae Vitae, judged by many to be the signal document issued by Pope Paul VI, who is to be beatified also this fall in connection with the synod. The central teaching of Humanae Vitae is that “every use of artificial contraception is a moral evil.” The document develops the Church’s teaching on God’s plan for marriage and family, such that every marital act must be open…Continue Reading

Is The Rosary A Prayer Of “Vain Repetitions”?

July 6, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Is The Rosary A Prayer Of “Vain Repetitions”?

By Raymond de Souza, KM When I allowed two Jehovah’s Witnesses (JW for short) in my house one Saturday afternoon, I had the opportunity to practice a bit of Catholic Apologetics. This is how it went: The older man noticed a rosary on the coffee table and said, “Roman Catholic. You are actually a Roman Catholic!” he repeated with a triumphant smile, as though he had discovered my darkest secret. He went on, “Surely you know that that object you’ve got there is used for vain repetitions, which Jesus condemned in the Bible.” “Is that so?” I asked, “Could you please show me where in the Bible Jesus condemned praying the rosary?” His Bible was already in his hands. Two…Continue Reading

The Canon Of Scripture

July 5, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Canon Of Scripture

By DON FIER For several weeks in this series we’ve been examining how God, in His loving Providence, has made Himself known to us. We’ve discussed the twofold means by which His divine Revelation has been transmitted to mankind — Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture — and how the two together are inseparable elements of a single Deposit of Faith. Most recently, we’ve examined how Sacred Scripture is read and interpreted through the eyes of the Church, that is, through the complementary use of the literal and spiritual senses of interpretation. The question we’ll now seek to answer is how the specific content to be included in the Bible was determined. In other words, how did the Canon of Scripture…Continue Reading

Catholic Replies

July 4, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Catholic Replies

Q. In his homily on the statement of Jesus that we are not to judge others (cf. Matt. 7:1), my pastor seemed to rule out any criticism of the moral failings of others, but is this what Jesus meant? I seem to recall a spiritual work of mercy that we are to admonish the sinner. But how can we do that without judging him? I’m confused. — T.L.H., Massachusetts. A. It is a very common reaction these days that when you criticize moral evils, you are often accused of being judgmental. And those who know little or nothing about Jesus’ moral code seem to know just enough to quote the Lord when He said, “Stop judging, that you may not…Continue Reading

The Word Of God

July 3, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Word Of God

BY FR> ROBERT ALTIER Fifteenth Sunday In Ordinary Time (YR A) Readings: Isaiah 55:10-11 Romans 8:18-23 Matt. 13:1-23 In the Gospel reading today our Lord tells the parable of the sower and the seed. As He speaks of the four different types of soil onto which the seed falls we, of course, all want to be the good soil which receives the seed and produces thirty, sixty, or one hundredfold. So, we need to look closely at our own selves and ask honestly if we can include ourselves among those who are producing abundant fruit for the Lord. It is somewhat easy to suggest that we are not among the first two groups of which our Lord speaks because the…Continue Reading

At The March For Marriage . . . Building A Civilization Of Truth And Love

July 2, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on At The March For Marriage . . . Building A Civilization Of Truth And Love

By MOST REV. SALVATORE CORDILEONE (Editor’s Note: Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco on June 19 delivered the address below to participants in the March for Marriage in Washington, D.C. The Office of Media Relations of the Archdiocese of San Francisco provided the text; all rights reserved.) +    +    + In our Catholic faith tradition, young people around the age of junior high school or high school receive the Sacrament of Confirmation, normally administered by the bishop. At a Confirmation ceremony I celebrated recently in a large, Hispanic parish, two of the young people shared some reflections on what their Confirmation meant to them. They said that their Confirmation gave them the grace to go forth and “build a civilization…Continue Reading

A Leaven In The World… Pope Speaks On Freedom From Ideology In Liturgy

June 30, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on A Leaven In The World… Pope Speaks On Freedom From Ideology In Liturgy

By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK School’s out for the summer. This good news for many of our young people also brings with it another phenomenon of pastoral concern for priests everywhere: absence from Mass of many families with young children for long periods not explained away by vacations. Yes, some families do spend weekends away from home in the summer and it is not these that are of concern, as we certainly hope that they are attending Mass wherever they are. My family was rarely at our home parish on summer weekends. As sail-boaters we often attended Holy Mass in Annapolis, Md., or in other little towns around the Chesapeake Bay, our habitual cruising territory in season, or sometimes further…Continue Reading

Is The Rosary A Prayer Of “Vain Repetitions”?

June 29, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on Is The Rosary A Prayer Of “Vain Repetitions”?

By Raymond de Souza, KM When I allowed two Jehovah’s Witnesses (JW for short) in my house one Saturday afternoon, I had the opportunity to practice a bit of Catholic Apologetics. This is how it went: The older man noticed a rosary on the coffee table and said, “Roman Catholic. You are actually a Roman Catholic!” he repeated with a triumphant smile, as though he had discovered my darkest secret. He went on, “Surely you know that that object you’ve got there is used for vain repetitions, which Jesus condemned in the Bible.” “Is that so?” I asked, “Could you please show me where in the Bible Jesus condemned praying the rosary?” His Bible was already in his hands. Two…Continue Reading

The Senses Of Scripture

June 28, 2014 Our Catholic Faith Comments Off on The Senses Of Scripture

By DON FIER Part 2 The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) teaches that the spiritual sense of interpreting Sacred Scripture can be subdivided into three senses: allegorical, moral, and anagogical. Last week, we discussed the allegorical sense in some detail and found that through its use, as expressed by the Catechism, “we can acquire a more profound understanding of events by recognizing their significance in Christ” (n. 115). The specific historical event cited as an example of the application of this interpretative technique was the recognition of the hidden, deeper meaning of the crossing of the Red Sea by the Israelites during their flight from Egypt. In light of the coming of Christ, this Old Testament event can be…Continue Reading