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February 24, 2015Tuesday of the First Week of Lent    Reading 1 Is 55:10-11 Thus says the LORD:Just as from the heavensthe rain and snow come downAnd do not return theretill they have watered the earth,making it fertile and fruitful,Giving seed to the one who sowsand bread to the one who eats,So shall my word bethat goes forth from my mouth;It shall not return to me void,but shall do my will,achieving the end for which I sent it. Responsorial Psalm PS 34:4-5, 6-7, 16-17, 18-19 R. (18b) From all their distress God rescues the just.Glorify the LORD with me,let...

In his trip to the Philippines, Pope Francis once again defended marriage, and he again edged closer to a firm, unequivocal papal statement against same-sex “marriage.” As Francis clearly continues to carefully move in that direction, liberals, both secular and non-secular, non-Catholic and Catholic, are going to feel a severe sense of betrayal and grave disappointment, contrary to the most optimistic expectations they’ve eagerly imposed upon their first “gay-marriage” pope.Before considering what Francis said last week, I want to back up and reiterate related points I made in a piece posted here a few weeks ago, which created a...

HOLY MATRIMONY The Catholic teaching on Matrimony Marriage was instituted by GOD Himself: "And the Lord GOD said: 'It is not good for man to be alone: let us make him a helper like unto himself'." Genesis 2:18 "Then the Lord GOD cast a deep sleep upon Adam: and when he was fast asleep, He took one of his ribs, and filled up flesh for it. And the Lord GOD built the rib which He took from Adam into a woman: and brought her to Adam." Genesis 2:21-22 "...and they shall be two in one flesh." Genesis 2:24 Matrimony is the...

Becoming the Beatitudes – A Lenten Meditation on the Gift of the Life Jesus Died to Give Us By: Msgr. Charles PopeIn the Beatitudes, and indeed in the whole Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-8), the Lord is painting a picture of the transformed human person. The Sermon on the Mount is the Lord’s great moral treatise. But it is not to be understood so much as a list of things to do (out of our own fleshly power) but as gifts to receive from God’s grace. This is what happens to the human person in whom the Lord...

February 23, 2015Monday of the First Week of Lent    Reading 1 Lv 19:1-2, 11-18 The LORD said to Moses,“Speak to the whole assembly of the children of Israel and tell them:Be holy, for I, the LORD, your God, am holy. “You shall not steal.You shall not lie or speak falsely to one another.You shall not swear falsely by my name,thus profaning the name of your God.I am the LORD. “You shall not defraud or rob your neighbor.You shall not withhold overnight the wages of your day laborer.You shall not curse the deaf,or put a stumbling block in front...

The Patriarch of Moscow laid the intellectual groundwork for Russia’s incursion into Ukraine. But now he is paying an exceedingly heavy price Russia has done shocking things in Ukraine – but, with a display of nerve that should surprise no one, it presents its designs on that country as the legitimate resurgence of an Orthodox Christian civilisation.

Archdiocese of Washington The True Rainbow in the Sky – A Reflection on the Readings of the First Sunday of Lent By: Msgr. Charles PopeOn the first Sunday of Lent, the readings have a very baptismal theme. It makes sense, for it is common on this Sunday that the catechumens report to the Bishop for the Rite of Election, wherein they are recognized as elect (chosen) of God in these final weeks before their baptism.In today’s readings, there are many themes that form the “spokes” of a wagon wheel, and baptism is the central hub around which they turn. And arching over...

"We invite you to criticize our institutions without reserve. One is not insulted by being informed of something amiss, but rather gets an opportunity for amendment, if the information is taken in good part, without resentment.” – Plato, Laws, Bk. 1, 635a In a post which may be found here, Terry McDermott writes, "We live in a litigious society. People sue for every and any reason: finding something gross in their fast food, slipping on an ice-covered driveway, getting one’s feelings hurt. In media, lawsuits abound: copyright infringement and stealing someone else’s work is illegal. When we post an image...

February 22, 2015First Sunday of Lent Reading 1 Gn 9:8-15God said to Noah and to his sons with him: "See, I am now establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you and with every living creature that was with you: all the birds, and the various tame and wild animals that were with you and came out of the ark.I will establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all bodily creatures be destroyedby the waters of a flood; there shall not be another flood to devastate the earth."God added:"This is the sign that I am giving for...

CONFIRMATIONConfirmation was instituted by Christ Our redeemer . This Sacrament was then practiced by His Apostles who were the first Bishops of the Church. "But you shall receive the power of the Holy Ghost coming upon you, and you shall be witnesses unto Me...and even to the uttermost part of the earth." The Acts 1:8 Confirmation is the full outpouring of the Holy Spirit and is usually administered by a Bishop, in accordance with the traditions of the Church. For it is the Bishops who have the fullness of Gifts from the Holy Spirit, the same and equal Gifts...

February 21, 2015Saturday after Ash Wednesday    Reading 1 Is 58:9b-14 Thus says the LORD:If you remove from your midst oppression,false accusation and malicious speech;If you bestow your bread on the hungryand satisfy the afflicted;Then light shall rise for you in the darkness,and the gloom shall become for you like midday;Then the LORD will guide you alwaysand give you plenty even on the parched land.He will renew your strength,and you shall be like a watered garden,like a spring whose water never fails.The ancient ruins shall be rebuilt for your sake,and the foundations from ages past you shall raise up;“Repairer...

In a previous blog post, I talked about the error of both Fr. Robert Baron and Hans Urs von Balthasar in positing the real possibility that Hell could be empty for all eternity. This post led to people asking more questions about the nature of Hell itself. What is it? Is it really "eternal?" and more.Below find my answers to some of those questions.By definition, according to CCC 1033, hell is “[the] state of definitive self-exclusion from communion with God and the blessed.” Some people cannot fathom how Hell could be a reality if God is truly an “all-loving” and...

Featured Term selected at random:VAIN OBSERVANCE A form of superstition that tries to achieve a certain effect by the use of unsuitable means. Implicit in vain observance is the belief that there are hidden preternatural forces at work in the world which dispense with the need of using ordinary, natural, or supernatural means for obtaining a desired effect. Vain observance also implies the expectation of an infallible result whenever certain words are said or actions performed. There is only a shade of difference between vain observance and divination. In both cases reliance on the evil spirit in involved. But vain...

The Blessed Eucharist "He hath made a remembrance of his wonderful works" - Psalm 110:4The sacrament of the Blessed Eucharist is the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ under the appearances, or accidents, of bread and wine. Unlike the other sacraments, it not only bestows grace, but contains the Author of Grace Himself. According to St. Thomas Aquinas (S.T. III, q.65 a. 3, C.), all the other Sacraments point to, or are servants of, the Blessed Eucharist. The Minister of this sacrament is the Priest or Bishop who consecrates the Blessed Eucharist at Mass. He is therefore...

The Gift of Sorrow for Sin – A Meditation on the “Mass for the Gift of Tears” in the Missal By: Msgr. Charles PopeMost pastors and confessors are aware that in any parish there are going to be a few who are scrupulous, even in times like these. Some have a kind of scrupulosity that is mild and almost admirable.  A sensitive conscience is a beautiful thing and bespeaks a kind of innocence that is rare today.Some others have a more unhealthy form of scrupulosity, rooted too much in cringing fear of a God who is seen more as a...

SAN FRANCISCO (KPIX 5) – Students and parents from schools controlled by the Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco protested at Saint Mary’s Cathedral on Ash Wednesday, saying the church should stay out of teachers’ bedrooms and drop proposed morality clauses in teacher contracts. On Ash Wednesday, one of the holiest days on the Catholic calendar, the students and parents are hoping Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone will change his mind on the clauses, as the church heads into 40 days of Lenten reflection. "We’re here because if Jesus were alive today, he’d be standing right next to us,” Mairead Ahlbach, a student...

February 20, 2015Friday after Ash Wednesday    Reading 1 Is 58:1-9a Thus says the Lord GOD:Cry out full-throated and unsparingly,lift up your voice like a trumpet blast; Tell my people their wickedness,and the house of Jacob their sins. They seek me day after day,and desire to know my ways,Like a nation that has done what is justand not abandoned the law of their God;They ask me to declare what is due them,pleased to gain access to God.“Why do we fast, and you do not see it?afflict ourselves, and you take no note of it?” Lo, on your fast day...

ALL ABOUT LENT James Akin Q: What is Lent? A: Lent is the forty day period before Easter, excluding Sundays, which begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy Saturday (the day before Easter Sunday). [This traditional ennumeration does not precisely coincide with the calendar according to the liturgical reform. In order to give special prominence to the Sacred Triduum (Mass of the Lord's Supper, Good Friday, Easter Vigil) the current calendar counts Lent as only from Ash Wednesday to Holy Thursday, up to the Mass of the Lord's Supper. Even so, Lenten practices are properly maintained up to...

Featured Term selected at random:FERULE (ferula) The long rod with which until recently priests of the Vatican Sacred Penitentiary lightly touched penitents. Pope Benedict XIV granted a twenty day's indulgence for observing this symbolic rite. A ferule was also the cane with a short transverse on top with which clergy and the people would support themselves during liturgical services before sitting down was allowed. Maronite monks and dissident Ethiopians and Coptics still use such a staff in choir. All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

CONFESSION " Receive the Holy Spirit. For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained" - John 20:22"He that covers his sins shall not prosper; but whosoever confesses and forsakes them shall have mercy" - Prov 28:13 "My son, give glory to the Lord God of Israel, and make confession unto Him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide it not from me" - Josh 7:19   The Biblical TeachingThe Catholic Priest forgives sinners of their sins in the name of Jesus Christ, by the Authority given to priest...