Q. Can you tell me something about the four military chaplains who gave up their lives when their ship was attacked during World War II? Were they all Catholics? — T.L., New York.
A. No, only one of them — Lt. John P. Washington — was a Catholic. The other three were Lt. Clark V. Poling, a minister in the Reformed Church of America; Lt. Alexander D. Goode, a Jewish rabbi; and Lt. George L. Fox, a Methodist minister. Here is the story behind their heroic sacrifice.
The four were assigned to the U.S. Army transport vessel Dorchester, which was carrying 902 military and civilian passengers to Greenland when it was struck by German torpedoes in the North Atlantic on February 3, 1943. The ship went down in less than 20 minutes. As the vessel was sinking, the four chaplains gave up their own lifejackets while helping passengers into lifeboats. About 230 persons survived the attack, and they later described the stirring scene of the four men of God, standing together with their arms locked and singing, as the ship went down.
The quartet posthumously received the Distinguished Service Cross and Purple Heart in 1944, a U.S. stamp was issued in 1948, bearing the words “These Immortal Chaplains,” and Congress in 1988 proclaimed February 3 as an annual celebration of “Four Chaplains Day.”
Recalling this story recently, Most Rev. Timothy P. Broglio, archbishop of the Military Services, USA, and supervisor of U.S. military chaplains, said that the men “came from different faith traditions, but they were united in their service to humanity. In giving up their lifejackets, they stripped themselves of their only hope for survival. This was faith in action. They didn’t wake up that day thinking they would be heroes. They acted because of their faith and their values. The challenge is to live what you believe.”
For more information, see the website fourchaplains.org.
Q. At this year’s Good Friday service, the priest wore red vestments. Shouldn’t he have worn purple or black? — J.S., via e-mail.
A. According to the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, in its section on Sacred Vestments, “the color red is used on Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion and on Friday of Holy Week (Good Friday), on Pentecost Sunday, on celebrations of the Lord’s Passion, on the ‘birthday’ feast days of Apostles and Evangelists, and on the celebration of Martyr Saints” (n. 346b).
Paragraph “d” says that “the color violet or purple is used in Advent and Lent. It may also be worn in Offices and Masses for the dead.” Paragraph “e” says that “besides the color violet, the colors white or black may be used at funeral services and at other Offices and Masses for the Dead in the Dioceses of the United States of America.”
Q. In answering my question about some books and newspapers that are against the Divine Mercy devotion, you said you didn’t know what I had been reading and that my sources were “way off base.” Well, that shows that your reading is not enough. Catholic Family News, Angelus Press, and some others don’t believe in Divine Mercy Sunday. Enclosed is an article that says you still have to be punished for the sins you commit and confess. — M.G., Alabama.
A. In our original reply, we wrote about Jesus’ appearances to St. Faustina, His commissioning her to have the Divine Mercy image painted, and His promises of mercy to the most hardened sinner if that sinner were to repent of his sins. We also noted that Pope St. John Paul II in the year 2000 established Divine Mercy Sunday on the Sunday following Easter. With that kind of magisterial authority, as opposed to the opinions in Catholic Family News and Angelus Press, we stand by our statement that those who object to the Divine Mercy devotion are “way off base.”
We read carefully the article you enclosed, which was apparently from a parish bulletin and was written by someone who identified himself as “Joe Sixpack.” In the article, the author talked about the temporal punishment attached to mortal sins that have been forgiven. He mentioned “a partial indulgence, which remits a portion of the temporal punishment due to forgiven sin,” and “a plenary indulgence, which remits all the temporal punishment due to forgiven sin.” Yes, the author of the article you sent said that there is temporal punishment attached to forgiven sins, but he also noted that the punishment can be partly or totally removed in this life by means of indulgences.
In our original reply, we did not deny the doctrine of temporal punishment, but said that since there is a plenary indulgence attached to the proper carrying out of the Divine Mercy devotions, all Catholics ought to take advantage of that annual opportunity to clean the slate, so to speak, and possibly avoid the need for purification in Purgatory.
Q. When a non-Catholic adult who has been previously married and divorced converts to Catholicism, what is the status of that person in the eyes of the Church? Can you comment on the following two examples? — D.M., via e-mail.
A. Example one: A person who was married and divorced and that spouse is still living and there are children. After conversion to the Catholic faith, is the convert still married in the eyes of the Church? Or is he or she free to marry someone else within the Church?
The answer is no. Converting to Catholicism does not change the status of the person who was married and divorced. The person is still presumed to be married and is not eligible to marry again without a decree of nullity or the death of the other spouse.
However, the person could still convert to Catholicism as long as they had no intention of entering into an adulterous union. A divorced person who remains single can live the life of a faithful Catholic, but a divorced person who remarries while the first marriage bond still exists cannot.
Example two: A person who has been married and divorced and is currently remarried, and all spouses are still living and there are children in all marriages. After conversion, is the current marriage valid in the eyes of the Church, and would it matter if the spouse also converted to Catholicism at the same time?
Again, the answer is no. Since both parties were married before, and that first marriage has not been annulled, their second marriage is invalid since the Church views them as still being married to their first spouse. Conversion does not change that objective situation and, in this second example, a priest would encourage them to regularize their situation, i.e., by entering into the process of having the first marriage declared null, before allowing them to receive the Sacraments of Baptism (if necessary), Holy Eucharist, and Confirmation.
Q. A friend of mine who attended Mass at a Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) Church for many years died recently. I went to the funeral, but did not receive Communion since I had already been to Mass in my parish earlier that day. What I’m wondering is whether I can attend an SSPX Mass and receive Communion, whether I can go to Confession at an SSPX church, and whether a marriage in that church would be valid in the eyes of the Catholic Church? — W.B., via e-mail.
A. First, a letter dated March 27, 2017, and signed by Gerhard Cardinal Muller and Archbishop Guido Pozzo of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, gave local bishops the authority to grant faculties to SSPX priests to preside at marriages “if there are no priests in the diocese able to receive the consent of the parties.” This means that the marriages of those who adhere to the Society would be valid.
Second, on November 20, 2016, Pope Francis said in his apostolic letter Misericordia et Misera that he was extending the faculty of giving sacramental absolution to SSPX priests “for the pastoral benefit” of those who attend SSPX churches, “lest anyone ever be deprived of the sacramental sign of reconciliation through the Church’s pardon.” He said that he was “trusting in the good will of their priests to strive with God’s help for the recovery of full communion in the Catholic Church.”
Third, as for receiving Communion, you should not, even though the sacraments in an SSPX church are valid, because by attending Mass there and receiving Communion, you are signaling your approval of a church that is not in full communion with the Roman Pontiff.
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