Editor’s Note: Invited by a friend to speak to her tenth-grade Confirmation class, we tried the following approach: First, we put just the numbers below on the board and asked the class what religious persons or things the numbers might be referring to. Some of their answers were not what we were looking for, but that was okay. We were still able to focus on the topics below and expand on each one as time allowed. Near the end of class, we passed out the full explanation so they could reflect on it later.
There were 25 students present, and they participated in the class both actively and enthusiastically. One of them told the teacher that the presentation was “savage,” which apparently is a compliment. Please feel free to use this exercise yourself.
One — God
Two — Divisions of Bible into Old and New Testaments
Two — Natures of Jesus: God and man
Three — Persons in the Blessed Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
Four — Gospels written by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John
Five — Decades of the rosary
Six — Holy Days: Solemnity of Mary (January 1), Ascension of Jesus (40 days after Easter), Assumption of Mary (August 15), All Saints (November 1), Immaculate Conception (December 8), Nativity of Jesus (December 25)
Seven — Sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Eucharist, Penance, Holy Orders, Matrimony, Anointing of the Sick
Seven — Gifts of the Holy Spirit: Wisdom, Understanding, Knowledge, Counsel, Fortitude, Piety, Fear of the Lord
Eight — Beatitudes: 1) Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. 2) Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 3) Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 4) Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 5) Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. 6) Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 7) Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 8) Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in Heaven.
Nine — Choirs of Angels: Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominions, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels, and Angels
Ten — Commandments: 1) I am the Lord your God: you shall not have strange gods before me. 2) You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain. 3) Keep holy the Lord’s Day. 4) Honor your father and your mother. 5) You shall not kill. 6) You shall not commit adultery. 7) You shall not steal. 8) You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 9) You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. 10) You shall not covet your neighbor’s goods.
Twelve — Apostles of Jesus: Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James, Thaddeus (Jude), Simon, Judas
Thirty-three — The number of years Jesus lived on earth
Seventy-three — Number of books in the Bible
265 — Number of Popes from Peter to Francis
Q. I am a pre-Vatican II Catholic who has returned to the Latin Mass conducted by priests of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter. The church is full of young people lined up to go to Confession. Question: Why was the Prayer to St. Michael eliminated at the end of Mass? — L.E., Kansas.
A. The prayers after Mass prior to the Vatican II liturgical reforms included three Hail Mary’s, the Hail Holy Queen, the prayer for the “conversion of sinners and for the liberty and exaltation of our holy mother the Church,” the Prayer to St. Michael, and the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus ejaculation three times.
These were removed because they were not an official part of the liturgy. True, they were not part of the Mass at that time — they were said after the Mass was completed — and theoretically they need not have been eliminated since they were not a continuation of the liturgical celebration. Nevertheless, the prayers were removed.
However, there has been a movement to restore at least the St. Michael Prayer since the actions of the Devil have multiplied greatly since the 1970s. In the two different parishes where we live and work, the Prayer to St. Michael is recited after daily Mass and, in fact, a newly ordained priest in one of the parishes leads the faithful in all the original prayers at the end of Mass. He’s a keeper since he also offers Confession after every Mass he celebrates and his homilies are solidly Catholic.
In any case, it’s worth noting that Pope St. John Paul II, on April 24, 1994, urged restoration of the St. Michael Prayer “to obtain help in the battle against the forces of darkness.” Here are the late Holy Father’s words:
“May prayer strengthen us for the spiritual battle we are told about in the Letter to the Ephesians: ‘Draw strength from the Lord and from his mighty power’ (Eph. 6:10). The Book of Revelation refers to this same battle, recalling before our eyes the image of St. Michael the Archangel (Rev. 12:7). Pope Leo XIII certainly had a very vivid recollection of this scene when, at the end of the last century, he introduced a special prayer to St. Michael throughout the Church: ‘St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the Devil.’
“Although today this prayer is no longer recited at the end of Mass, I ask everyone not to forget it, and to recite it to obtain help in the battle against the forces of darkness and against the spirit of this world.”
Q. I know that you have answered similar questions before, but I need to know the answer in this case. My brother is a practicing Catholic and has had an annulment of a previous marriage. His fiancée is taking classes to become Catholic and they plan to marry. She was married previously in a civil ceremony, a marriage that ended in a divorce. Her ex-husband is still living. Later she married again in a civil ceremony and, after 15 years, he passed away. Since she was not Catholic, and it was not in a church, and the first husband is still living, does she need to obtain an annulment? If so, should she apply for it after she becomes Catholic or should she do it now? — J.A., Georgia.
A. Yes, she does need to have her first marriage declared null, and she should start the proceedings immediately. In his book Annulments: 100 Answers to Your Questions, Dr. Edward N. Peters said the following in replying to a similar question (cf. pp. 40-41):
“At the risk of some oversimplification, anything that more or less looks like a marriage among non-Catholics is going to be presumed by the Church to have been a marriage, and hence worthy of the respect due to marriage. What you are being held to is not so much the Church’s law on marriage, but what the Church considers to be God’s law on marriage. In most cases, that implies permanence (lasting till death) and exclusivity (having only one spouse) in marriage. . . .”
Peters said that “whatever kind of first marriage you went through seems to meet the very minimal requirements for a presumably valid, albeit non-Catholic, marriage, and hence, for as long as your former spouse is alive, the Church will consider you bound by that first marriage unless and until its nullity is proven in accord with canon law” (p. 41).
He also cautioned his questioner not to come into the Church “until your marital status is settled” since you would not be eligible “for full sacramental participation….Having seen, correctly, the value of Church membership, don’t let it be cheapened by coming in irregularly” (p, 153).
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