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The Practices of Prayer Msgr. Charles Pope • October 15, 2016 • Today’s readings speak to us of the power of persistent prayer. The first reading (Exodus 17:8-13) in particular depicts prayer quite powerfully. In it, we can discern six fundamental teachings on prayer. I. The Problem for Prayer – In those days, Amalek came and waged war against Israel. None of us like problems, but one good thing about them is that they help to keep us praying. Israel was at war and their enemies were strong; it was time to pray.In today’s Gospel concerns a widow who...

Fr. Jose Gabriel Brochero NICOLAS FLORES WAS supposed to live the rest of his life in a vegetative state, but today he walks, talks and swims – one of the miracles attributed to a “cowboy priest” who will become Argentina’s first saint today. Sixteen years ago, when Nicolas was nearly killed in a car crash, his father prayed to a late priest named Jose Gabriel Brochero, who is revered in Argentina for his supposedly miraculous healing powers. Brochero, a blind leper who lived from 1840 to 1914, was known for traveling on a mule across the vast Argentine pampas, or...

October 16, 2016 Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Ex 17:8-13 In those days, Amalek came and waged war against Israel.Moses, therefore, said to Joshua,“Pick out certain men,and tomorrow go out and engage Amalek in battle. I will be standing on top of the hillwith the staff of God in my hand.” So Joshua did as Moses told him:he engaged Amalek in battleafter Moses had climbed to the top of the hill with Aaron and Hur.As long as Moses kept his hands raised up,Israel had the better of the fight,but when he let his hands rest,Amalek had the...

Chicago's cardinal-elect is a pastor who identifies strongly with Pope Francis's vision for the Church. As Archbishop of Chicago, he embodies the pope's idea of shepherds who know their flock and are there for them -- especially in times of suffering and need. [On Sunday, Oct. 9, Pope Francis announced a consistory on Nov. 19 for the creation of 17 new cardinals, including 13 under the age of 80 and therefore eligible to vote for the next pope. Crux is offering a series of profiles of the new cardinals.]When new Chicago Archbishop Blase Cupich arrived in that city in the...

What is it really like to be a new mother superior of a monastic order? Mother John Mary, C.P. knows all about it and graciously agreed to talk with Aleteia.Mother was actually Sister John Mary for 21 years before being elected new leader of her community this past June. Originally from Indiana — “a born and bred Hoosier,” she tells us — Mother entered the monastery in August 1995 when the community was in the process of a major relocation. In December that year they moved 13 miles from their original location in Owensboro, Kentucky, to 170 acres of hills, woods and fields in Whitesville, Kentucky. There...

Levels of sin? While all sin is offensive to God, Church teaches the difference between mortal and venial sin Msgr. Charles Pope 9/21/2016 Question: I think the Catholic notion of mortal and venial sin is flawed. All sin is serious, and since it offends God, it is an infinite offense. The Catholic distinction leads to ignoring many sins and only focusing on some. All sin is a grave offense against God.— John Malvine, Boulder, Colorado Answer: It should first be noted that the distinction between mortal and venial sin is found in Scripture. The First Letter of John says, “There...

Today I present to you a post from Fr. Jerome entitled: Why Pope Francis Is A False-Prophet. Fr. Jerome is a pseudonym. Due to the times in which we lives, this has become necessary.The subject matter is difficult, but he has handled it in a very careful manner and it needs to be read. Fr. Carota was never shy about tackling subjects that were difficult. In fact, he received a lot of flack for doing just that. This is something that we need to think about carefully and something that should drive us to our knees beseeching God to have...

John Zmirak makes all the right heads explode. For that alone, we should be grateful.John caused quite an Internet kerfuffle a few years ago with a column called Illiberal Catholicism where he identified and took apart a tendency he spotted among young Catholics who were trending toward a hatred of America, a belief now rampant in some circles that America was badly founded and is therefore always incompatible with Catholicism. He also noted their hatred of the free market. We both saw it among the traditionalists we knew in New York in the 1990s. During a Mass on Thanksgiving...

October 14, 2016 8:05 pm By Raymond Ibrahim 49 Comments The nation of Hungary recently did something as unprecedented as it is commonsensical and humanitarian: it “has become the first government to open an office specifically to address the persecution of Christians in the Middle East and Europe.”Zoltan Balog, Hungary’s Minister for Human Resources, explained: Today, Christianity has become the most persecuted religion, where out of five people killed [for] religious reasons, four of them are Christians.In 81 countries around the world, Christians are persecuted, and 200 million Christians live in areas where they are discriminated against. Millions of Christian...

By Archbishop Charles Chaput, Archdiocese of Philadelphia:Back in 2008, in the weeks leading up to the Obama-McCain presidential election, two young men visited me in Denver.  They were from Catholics United, a group describing itself as committed to social justice issues.  They voiced great concern at the manipulative skill of Catholic agents for the Republican Party.  And they hoped my brother bishops and I would resist identifying the Church with single-issue and partisan (read: abortion) politics.It was an interesting experience.  Both men were obvious flacks for the Obama campaign and the Democratic Party — creatures of a political machine,...

October 15, 2016 Memorial of Saint Teresa of Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church Reading 1 Eph 1:15-23 Brothers and sisters:Hearing of your faith in the Lord Jesusand of your love for all the holy ones,I do not cease giving thanks for you,remembering you in my prayers,that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelationresulting in knowledge of him.May the eyes of your hearts be enlightened,that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call,what are the riches of gloryin his inheritance among the...

The Catholic prelate Pope Francis recently appointed both as a cardinal and the head of the Vatican's new centralized office for laypeople says he considers the pontiff's apostolic exhortation on family life inspired by the Holy Spirit and plans to make it his department's guiding document. Speaking in an NCR interview Thursday, Cardinal-designate Kevin Farrell said he has a hard time understanding why some bishops have reacted negatively to Amoris Laetitia ("The Joy of Love.") "I honestly don't see what and why some bishops seem to think that they have to interpret this document," said Farrell, the head of the...

Everyone has that family member or friend who embarrasses them by saying things they shouldn’t in public. The racist joke, the sexist comment, the unsolicited conspiracy theories…the options run the gamut. Sometimes, they might even say something you might agree with in private, but would never say around strangers. Whatever the case, you just wish they’d try silence for a while. Catholics in 2016 find themselves in the unenviable position of having this same experience with the pope. Our efforts at evangelization are often undermined by the inevitable moment where we have to explain him. I was at the bank...

In the pope’s diocese, the divorced and remarried can receive communion, in other Italian dioceses no. Because every bishop is deciding as he wishes. A manual by Cardinal Antonelli for confessors who want to remain faithful to perennial doctrine by Sandro Magister ROME, October 14, 2016 – Pope Francis has said plainly right from the first lines of “Amoris Laetitia” that “unity of teaching and practice is certainly necessary in the Church, but this does not preclude various ways of interpreting some aspects of that teaching or drawing certain consequences from it.” And therefore “each country or region can seek...

The Problem of Pretending in the Spiritual Life Msgr. Charles Pope • October 13, 2016 • The Gospel for today’s Mass (Friday of the 28th Week) opens up some important insights on the problem of “pretending” in the Christian life. One of the difficulties in arriving at these insights is the understanding we have today of the word hypocrisy. To some extent, it seems to have lost its subtler distinctions and nuances. To most of us, hypocrisy refers to our deeds not matching our truest beliefs, to saying one thing and doing another. While this is part of hypocrisy,...

October 14, 2016 Friday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Eph 1:11-14 Brothers and sisters:In Christ we were also chosen,destined in accord with the purpose of the Onewho accomplishes all things according to the intention of his will,so that we might exist for the praise of his glory,we who first hoped in Christ.In him you also, who have heard the word of truth,the Gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him,were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,which is the first installment of our inheritancetoward redemption as God’s possession, to the praise of his glory. Responsorial...

Caritas India, an official agency of the Catholic Church, has decided to fight against an openly discriminatory mentality, announcing the launch of a programme for the assistance and social promotion of transgender people. The Catholic Church's social service wing has confirmed the decision in a statement on Monday, Oct. 10 after holding internal talks on its inclusive development policy. "Caritas is open to work with transgender people. I am even open to recruiting them," said Fr Frederick D’Souza, executive director of Caritas India, during the meeting. Referring to the initiative as the “beginning of a new school of thought,” and...

(ANSA) - Vatican City, October 13 - Pope Francis told a group of mostly Lutheran pilgrims on Thursday that proselytism was a potential threat to Christian unity. "The last thing you must do is 'to say, to convince'. It's not right to convince someone of your faith," he said. "Proselytism is the strongest venom against the path of ecumenism". The pope was speaking to around 1,000 pilgrims in the Vatican - most of them German Lutherans - who are in Rome as part of ecumenical preparations for the 500th anniversary of the beginning of the Lutheran reformation. "The Apostle Paul...

A ranking public official in Massachusetts is coming under fire for grilling a judicial nominee about his Catholic faith. Eileen Duff, a member of the Governor’s Council (a body that approves the appointments of new judges), focused on religious issues in her questions of James Gavin Reardon, Jr, who had been nominated for a seat on the Massachusetts Superior Court. Claiming that members of the US Supreme Court have allowed their religious beliefs to influence their decisions, Duff asked Reardon whether his faith would “interfere with your judgment” on some issues. When Reardon declined to discuss his religious beliefs, Duff...

Pope Benedict XVI has contributed to a book marking the Ecumenical Patriarch's 25th anniversary The Pope Emeritus has praised worship ad orientem in a book which celebrates the 25th anniversary of the election of Ecumenical PatriarchBartholomew of Constantinople. In his book extract, the retired Benedict XVI writes: “A shepherd of the flock of Jesus Christ is never oriented only to the circle of his own faithful. The community of the Church is universal, also in the sense that it includes all of reality.” He continues: “This is evident, for example, in the liturgy, which does not indicate only the commemoration...