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As Cardinal Burke warns that the “gay lobby” within the Catholic Church is plotting for disaster at the Synod, civil society is increasingly dominated by a “homo-Fascism,” aided and abetted by the mass media, that demands absolute conformity on the part of Christians to social acceptance of the sin of sodomy. Witness the debacle in Indiana, where a state version of the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act, designed to protect Christians from demands that they accommodate the “gay agenda” in their businesses — as, for example, by selling “gay wedding” cakes with two male figurines on top — came under...

“Remaining in the Truth of Christ”, the “five Cardinals' book” already the object of the famous “raid” at the Vatican (where manipulation, theft, and lies are nowadays called “mercy”) is now available in the Polish version, and carries the endorsement of the Polish Bishop's Conference. One cannot imagine many warning shots clearer and louder than this one. Instead of expressing themselves in favour of the Sacrament in single statements, the Polish Bishops endorse the entire book, en bloc. Let us skip the niceties here, and let us say straight who the addressee of the endorsement is: the Unholy Father himself,...

In one of the numerous interviews he has given over the past few weeks focusing on the next Synod, Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Müller, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, spoke about a new task for his dicastery. It is a task that is never been mentioned in the documents outlining the precise competencies of the former Holy Office. In an interview with French Catholic newspaper La Croix, the German cardinal stated: “The arrival of a theologian like Benedict XVI in the Chair of St. Peter was no doubt an exception. But John XXIII was not a...

MARY'S VIRGINITYThe Bible gives us many ways whereby we can clearly identify the Messiah. One of these ways is called a "sign" and is specifically linked to his miraculous birth. In the Book of Isaiah we read: Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel (Isa. 7:14, KJV). Along with many other Scriptures, that passage clearly points us to the Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, who was born of a "virgin". But even among those who agree that Mary was a virgin, at that...

Q:  What is this about the “brothers” of Jesus in the Bible?  Did Mary have other children besides Jesus?   A:  No.The Church teaches that Mary was a perpetual virgin. Yet, as you mention, the Bible does indeed mention the “brothers” of Jesus.  Mark 6:3, “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon...” The “brothers” of Jesus are clearly mentioned, and named, in the Bible. So, Mary must have had other children and the Catholic Church is wrong when it dogmatically teaches that she was a perpetual...

Featured Term selected at random:ONTOLOGISM A theory that holds that each person has an immediate intuitive vision of God, and this vision is the source and ground of all other human knowledge. Originating with Platonic mysticism, the doctrine was first projected by Marsilio Ficino (1433-99), systematically organized by Nicolas Malebranche (1638-1715), and developed by Vincenzo Gioberti (1801-52). It was condemned in 1861 as erroneous under Pius IX by the Congregation of the Inquisition. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

What Effect Will Pressure to Accept Same Sex Acts or “Marriage” Have on Church Teaching? None! By: Msgr. Charles PopeLast week was Holy Week, so sure enough there were many critical issues in the news that needed attention but we in the Church were off doing more important things like worshipping God and pondering our need for salvation. Permit a brief summary and some predictions from me based on the latest unpleasantness in Indiana last week.I am not a lawyer and neither know nor understand all the legal implications of the law signed by the Indiana governor and then later...

Atheists should drop their easily dismissed scientific, philosophical or historical arguments against Christianity, and instead quiz believers about Old Testament violence and hell, writes John Dickson.

Is the devil real? Here is Msgr. Ronald Knox on that: “It is stupid of modern civilization to have given up believing in the devil, when he is the only explanation of it.” Monsignor Knox, eminent British convert, author, retreat master and translator of the Bible, may have been indulging in irony. But irony doesn’t change the fact that the devil and his demonic associates exist. I came across the Knox quote in Manual for Spiritual Warfare, newly published by Tan Books and edited by Paul Thigpen. “Like it or not,” Thigpen begins his thoughtful introduction, “You are at...

Bishop Paul G. Bootkoski, head of the Catholic diocese of Metuchen, N.J., would not say whether he agrees with the fundamental teachings of the Catholic Church pertaining to homosexuality and marriage as quoted directly from the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Instead, a diocesan spokeswoman directed CNSNews.com to a statement on the diocesan website where the bishop writes, “We have never wavered from our traditional Catholic teachings.” In a March 30 e-mail to Bishop Bootkoski and his office of communications, CNSNews.com asked the following three questions: 1) Do you, Bishop Bootkoski, agree with the Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph...

Bible Teacher and Expositor Jacob Prasch comments on John MacArthur's teaching that people can take the Mark of the Beast and still be saved. You can watch Part 2 here:http://youtu.be/OG0dZ_a38pM Part 3 coming soon! Please visit our website at:http://www.moriel.org

 We know who the disciples saw after the empty tomb was found. But what did they see?As Christians we believe that the same person who had died on the cross, Jesus Christ, really appeared in the flesh-and-blood, even with the same body as before, yet in a glorified condition.But last year, the Boston Globe published an interview with a secular theologian (yes, you read that right), Bart Ehrman who offered a ‘new theory’ about what the disciples had seen.His answer: a hallucination. The disciples were so distraught by the death of their savior, so his theory goes, that their...

Featured Term selected at random:SACRAMENT OF THE ALTAR The Eucharist viewed as the body and blood of Christ, which are offered on the altar in the Sacrifice of the Mass. Also the Eucharist as reserved on the altar for adoration by the faithful. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission. 

The Resurrection Appearances “Chronologically” Arranged By: Msgr. Charles PopeToday’s post is a follow-up to yesterday’s blog.When we encounter the resurrection accounts in the New Testament, we face a challenge in putting all the pieces together in such a way that the sequence of events flows in logical order. This is due to the fact that no one Gospel presents all or even most of the information. Some of the accounts seem to conflict. I have opined before (HERE) that these apparent conflicts are usually not in fact true conflicts. Another difficulty with putting all the facts together in a coherent manner is that...

In an article entitled Saint Patrick the Baptist?, Stephen R. Button tries to claim St. Patrick for Evangelical Protestantism... or at least disassociate him from Roman Catholicism. Button is hardly alone: you can find similar attempts by Don Boys and others, some of them dating back several decades. The argument tends to work like this. From Patrick, we have (in Button's words) only the “84 short paragraphs that make up both his Confession and his 'Letter to Coroticus.'” Baptist authors then mine these texts for any doctrines that Patrick doesn't mention explicitly, and then claim that he must have held...

Jesus is real to me! A homily for Easter Sunday By: Msgr. Charles PopeNearly all of the Resurrection accounts in the Gospels present the apostles and disciples on a journey to deeper faith. In stages, they come out of the darkness of despair and of this world into the light of faith. Matthew’s account (28:1-10), which is read at the Easter Vigil this year and can also be read at Masses during the day, is no exception. I have also commented on the Johannine Gospel that is often read on Easter Morning (here: From Fear to Faith).Let’s look at...

The Resurrection is the Defining MomentIt is the resurrection that separates Jesus from all other good teachers, intelligent gurus and world leaders in history! The resurrection proved that Jesus was and is God, and demonstrated the fact that all of us will have a life after this one. Jesus is the one man who died and then came back to life to tell us about the other side. Even Paul was careful to tell us that without the truth of the resurrection, there is nothing special or powerful about Christianity: 1 Corinthians 15:12-19But if it is preached that Christ...

All seems lost. On Good Friday, we experienced and celebrated Christ’s Passion and Death, and now the Sabbath has come and gone and there is still no sign of Him. Now darkness has fallen, and it seems that the night of death has overcome the Lord of life. As despair prepares to enthrone itself, a large fire is prepared outside the church. The clergy and faithful have gathered together under the stars. Despair will not take the throne after all, for here in the night, at the beginning of the first day of the week, the Great Paschal Vigil...

Roman Catholicism teaches that Jesus instituted the Mass at the Last Supper. According to Rome, Jesus actually turned the bread and wine into his physical body and blood. Since that time, whenever the priest says the same words Jesus said at the Last Supper, the bread and wine of the Mass miraculously turns into the actual body and blood of Christ. While the outer appearance of the bread and wine remain the same, supposedly the inner essence - the substance - changes to Christ’s body and blood and remains that way as long as the bread and wine remain “incorrupted.”...

Where Is Jesus Between His Death and Resurrection? By: Msgr. Charles PopeWhere is Christ after He dies on Friday afternoon and before He rises on Easter Sunday? Both Scripture and Tradition answer this question. Consider the following excerpt from a second century sermon as well as this meditation from the Catechism of the Catholic Church.Ancient Homily for Holy Saturday (ca. 2nd century A.D.):Today a great silence reigns on earth, a great silence and a great stillness. A great silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up...