Free Republic

Greek Orthodox Church 1254. What is the Greek Orthodox Church? There are some 16 different Orthodox Churches existing independently of one another. After the first really definite break with Rome when Photius, Patriarch of Constantinople, left the Catholic Church in the ninth century, the Eastern Church followed in the path of all schismatical Churches, splitting up into further divisions. Eight of these separate sections of Orthodoxy have their own Patriarchs, namely, Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria, Constantinople, Bulgaria, Rumania, Russia, and Servia. The others lack definite rule. The term "Greek Orthodox Church" is popularly applied to any or all of these Churches;...

Coptic Church 1251. I have read recently that the Abyssinians belonged to the Coptic faith, the earliest sect of the Christian denominations, to which all the Christian world adhered until the rise of the Church of Rome. It is true that the Abyssinians belonged to the Coptic Church. But the rest of the statement is erroneous. Firstly, a sect is a group of dissentient people who abandon a previous position in order to set up a new form of Church. If the Coptic Church were the original Church to which the whole Christian world adhered, then it is not a...

Eutychianism 1249. What was the Eutychian heresy? Eutyches was the Superior of a Monastery in Constantinople who strongly opposed Nestorius. Unhappily his reaction against the errors of Nestorius led him into an opposite error. The Catholic doctrine teaches that in Christ there is one Person only, that of the Eternal Son of God, and two natures, the one Divine and the other human. Nestorius had wanted two persons and two natures. Eutyches, to safeguard the one Person of Christ, taught that the human nature was so absorbed into the Divine Nature as to lose its identity, so that as a...

Nestorianism 1248. Will you explain the teachings of Nestorius? As opposed to the Arians who would not admit that Christ was God, Nestorius insisted that we must adore Christ as God. But in explaining how Christ is God, he fell into error; and as he had become Patriarch of Constantinople in 428 A.D., his very influence demanded immediate decision by the Church. Nestorius said that we must adore Christ as God because God dwelt in Christ. However we could not identify Christ with God, and apart from the indwelling of God within Him, Christ was a merely human Person. There...

Arianism 1247. What was the heresy of Arius? Arius was born in Lybia in 256 A.D., and was ordained a Catholic priest in 313 A.D. In the year 318, at the Synod of Alexandria, the Patriarch of that city gave a discourse on the doctrine of the Most Holy Trinity. Arius declared that the Patriarch had fallen into error, and proceeded to set out his own ideas of Christian doctrine. He denied that Christ was really the Eternal Son of God, equally sharing in the Divine Nature with the Father. According to him, the Person of Christ existed before all...

Manichaeism 1246. What was Manichaeism? Manichaeism tried to blend Indian and Persian philosophy and mythology with Christian doctrine. It commenced in the third century, became very widespread, but split up, and lingered on until the thirteenth century in various forms, the chief of its later forms being Albigensianism. It therefore had a long run of nearly ten centuries. Encoding copyright 2009 by Frederick Manligas Nacino. Some rights reserved. Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 http://www.celledoor.com/cpdv-ebe/

Gnosticism 1245. What was Gnosticism? Gnosticism arose in the second century, being a blend of Greek philosophy and pagan mythology with Christian doctrine. It split up into many independent heresies such as Marcionism and Montanism, and lingered on until about the seventh century. The history of most of these heresies is much the same. Protected by civil authority in many cases, each became fairly widespread, or even very widespread; then split up into warring sections, and eventually died out, or lingered on in a state of stagnation. Encoding copyright 2009 by Frederick Manligas Nacino. Some rights reserved. Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No...

Defections From the Catholic Church 1243. How many were the major forms of defection from the Catholic Church since the time of the Apostles? As a general estimate, I would say seven, namely, Gnosticism, Manichaeism, Arianism, Nestorianism, Eutychianism, Greek Orthodoxy, and Protestantism. I have given them in the order of their appearance on the stage of history. 1244. What was the principle cause of desertion in each case? That is a very comprehensive question, and I can but give here a general answer. In each case the dissident movement began either in a denial of the teachings of the Catholic...

Catholic Action 1237. Would you kindly explain in detail the aims and objects of Catholic Action? The aim of Catholic Action is the same as that of the Church — the salvation of souls, and the establishing of the reign of Jesus Christ in all phases of individual, family, and social life, so that Christ is ever better known, loved, and served by men. The object is to secure the coordinated action of the Catholic laity in union with, and under the direction of the Bishops for the defense of religious and moral principles, and for the development of a...

Capital Punishment 1231. You insist that the State has the right to inflict capital punishment? The State possesses the right on the same principle as an individual who may kill an unjust aggressor, if there be no other efficacious way in which to preserve his own life. Those whose crimes gravely threaten the well-being of society may be put to death by social authority when lesser penalties prove inefficacious as a control upon them. God Himself sanctioned this law in Hebrew society, and it is entirely reasonable. If the extreme penalty could not be lawfully inflicted by the State upon...

The Church and Peace 1204. Your Church seems to be "anti" every effort to give peace on earth and good will towards men in practice. No one could write those words save one who has little or no knowledge of the attitude of the Catholic Church towards the problem of peace. 1205. Your Church is in a wonderful position to bring about peace, if it liked. The Catholic Church could be in a wonderful position to do so, if only the nations would accept her advice and submit to her rulings. Don't forget that, at the beginning of the last...

May Individuals Become Soldiers? 1184. What view does the Church take of a soldier killing another so-called enemy soldier? The Catholic Church takes the view that if the soldier knew quite well that the cause of his own country was unjust, he would be guilty of murder, unless he were acting solely in individual self-defense against some individual soldier of the enemy forces. If, however, he did not have certain knowledge that his own country's cause was unjust, he would be free from personal guilt in obeying his officers and fighting for victory, even though it meant his killing enemy...

Morality of War 1178. Is war justifiable under any circumstances according to the will of Christ? If all men did the will of Christ there would be no war. But if some people refuse to do the will of Christ, those who desire to fulfill His will may be compelled to fight and may quite lawfully do so. 1179. Did not Christ counsel meekness, and say that if we are smitten on one cheek, we should turn the other? An individual is free to practice heroic meekness where his own rights are concerned, if he so desires. But, when smitten...

The Fascist State 1163. Do Roman Catholics place the Pope before the King? What would you say were I to ask you, "Does a Protestant boy place his father before the King?" If you reasoned rightly you would say, "In some things he does; in other things he does not." You see, two different factors come into the case, and it is illogical to jump from one to the other in the same breath. The boy would owe filial piety to his father, and civic loyalty to his King. So, too, Catholics owe spiritual allegiance to the Pope, and civic...

Communism Condemned 1139. Why does not the Church accept Socialism? She cannot accept a system which is based upon merely materialistic views of humanity, as if man were composed of body only, and did not possess an immortal soul, nor have any prospects of a future life. Also Socialism in practice, instead of making your lot any better, would reduce thousands of others to the same distressing state. The Church advocates strongly both social justice and social charity, two things conspicuously absent from the world today. Her principles would mean many reforms in the socialistic direction. But she cannot sanction...

The Remedy for Social Ills 1131. Will the Catholic Church tell us how we can get peace on earth while the material conditions of the present economic order pit men against men and nations against nations? The material conditions of the present economic order are not alone to blame for social discord. The psychological factor of selfishness enters largely into the question. But the faults and the injustice of the present economic order do occasion immense distress, and the peace of all is not possible while things remain as they are. Let me quote to you Pope Pius XI. In...

Catholic Attitude Towards Capitalism 1113. Is it not a fact that the Church even opposes many wise reforms merely from ignorance or unwillingness to accept up-to-date ideas? That is not a fact. The Church has many of her clergy devoting their lives to sociological study, who are experts in such subjects. They are neither ignorant, nor in the least unwilling to abandon out-of-date ideas. But they insist upon weighing new ideas on their own merits and if they oppose some of them, they but seem to be opposing wise ideas to those who have not sufficiently studied the matter. 1114....

The Church and World Distress 1096. The real business of life is to alter the form of society, by revolution if necessary, and give everybody a fair share of the good things kept by the lucky few. So please discuss that. Altering the form of society will be useless unless you alter the human beings composing that society. Give everybody an equal share of the "good things of this world" tomorrow, and inequalities will at once begin to develop. Envy, jealousy, dishonesty, laziness, dissipation, immorality, imprudence, and every kind of excess, will still be there. Some will accumulate, others recklessly...

The Education Question 1092. Speaking of education, what is the real reason for Catholic antipathy to our state schools? Whatever others may think of our public policy of free, compulsory, and secular education, Catholics cannot in conscience accept that system as being suitable for the education of Catholic children. The real reason is that the religious training of the children is not sufficiently provided for, the time allotted for religion being quite inadequate, even were it utilized. The State system demands the "3 R's," reading, writing and arithmetic. Catholic principles demand the "4 R's," religion, reading, writing and arithmetic; and...

Social Influence of the Church 1090. Why is it that countries in which Roman Catholicism predominates as a religion are now socially and economically decadent? That question is far too vague, and takes altogether too much for granted. I must ask you to state precisely which countries you have in mind. It is possible that there is a country in which "Roman Catholicism" predominates, yet which is not socially and economically decadent. It is possible that there are countries which are socially and economically decadent, but in which non-Catholic forms of religion predominate. And it is even possible that there...

The Scapular 1082. I read in a Catholic paper that those who wear the brown scapular of our Lady will not go to hell and will be released from purgatory the first Saturday after their death. Your difficulties show that this brief statement was given without the explanation with which Catholics are familiar. 1083. Now I ask you, do you believe, as a man and a priest, that a scapular has such magic power? I certainly do not believe that a scapular has any magic power. Nor does any Catholic. Nevertheless, I myself wear a brown scapular, and hope to...

Lourdes Water 1081. What is Lourdes Water? And can it cure people anywhere? What is known as Lourdes Water, is quite ordinary water, except that it has been brought from Lourdes, in France, being taken from the flowing spring there where God has wrought so many undoubted miracles. Lourdes Water, therefore, contains no naturally curative or medicinal properties. The waters do not cause the cures. It is God who does so, on certain occasions when the waters are applied to sick people. Now God is everywhere, and just as present to people here in our country as to people who...

The Rosary 1076. Why is the Rosary so necessary in the Roman Catholic religion? The Rosary is not a necessary part of the Catholic religion. It is a very useful form of devotion which Catholics are free to adopt or not. Most Catholics are wise enough to adopt it, and the Church makes use of it in her evening devotions very often. 1077. For what reasons are Rosary Beads used by Catholics? In what is known as the Rosary, one undertakes to meditate on each of several aspects of the life and sufferings of Christ, each meditation lasting as long...

Candles and Votive Lamps 1074. Where in the Bible did Jesus tell His disciples to teach us to burn candles for our dead? Nowhere. Yet the Bible recommends prayer for the dead, and nowhere forbids the burning of a candle from religious motives as an expression of prayer and a symbol of our belief in Christ as the Light of the World. 1075. I have read in a Catholic paper of the Votive Lamp system, and would like to know something about it. You are welcome to ask any questions you wish about Catholic teachings or practices. But there is...

Burial Rites 1070. Is the Catholic burial service in any way designed to benefit the soul of the departed? Most decidedly. In fact, abstracting from the fact that it is essentially a part of our liturgical worship offered to God and a bond of union between living members of the visible Church on earth, the whole of the service is one of prayer for the soul of the departed person, imploring God's mercy for that soul, forgiveness of his sins, an early deliverance from expiations due to past infidelities, and a more generous share in the happiness of heaven insofar...

Liturgical Days 1062. Christmas Day is always on December 25th. Why are not our Lord's death and resurrection celebrated on the same day each year? For the sake of convenience, the world has forsaken the Jewish Calendar, which is based on the movement of the moon round the earth, in favor of the Roman Calendar, based on the movement of the earth round the sun. Now the normal procedure of the Church is to arrange her festival days according to the accepted Roman Calendar. By way of exception, however, the Church retains the Jewish Calendar for the celebration of Christ's...

Catholics and "Mother's Day" 1054. Is the Catholic Church opposed to the observance of "Mother's Day"? All depends upon the manner of its observance. The modern "Mother's Day" celebration was originated by an American girl named Miss Anna Jarvis of Philadelphia, U.S.A. On one occasion, while placing a wreath of flowers on her mother's grave, she got the notion that people should wear a white flower on some yearly anniversary in honor of a living mother, instead of waiting to pay the tribute of putting flowers on her grave. It was a pretty sentiment, though quite detached from religious motives....

Women in Church 1053. Why must women have their heads covered when in a Church? That women should cover their heads when in Church is a Christian custom based upon the words of St. Paul in 1 Cor 11:6. There he definitely gives the instruction that Christian women must cover their heads during divine worship. He gives two reasons for his decree, one theological, the other moral. The theological reason is as follows: Every being's true glory and honor is to keep the place assigned to him or her by God. Now God Himself differentiated between the sexes, and that...

Lavish Ritual 1047. All the liturgy of the Catholic Church seems very different from the simple teaching of Jesus, doesn't it? The teachings of Jesus were not so simple as many people suppose. Only an inadequate knowledge of those teachings can speak like that. His doctrines are most profound, and many people profess that they cannot solve what seems to them so involved and at times paradoxical. But the teachings of Jesus are not really involved in your question. The liturgy of the Church concerns her forms of worship. Now I admit that the forms of worship in the Catholic...

Magnificent Edifices 1041. Travelers have told me that the streets of Roman Catholic European countries reek with beggars and starving animals, while the Churches have the most lavish adornment. Would Christ agree with that? You should not readily believe all "Travelers' Tales." I, too, have traveled in Catholic countries of Europe. I have met many beggars in my time at home and abroad. It is quite an exaggeration to say that the streets of Catholic countries abroad "reek" with beggars. And the starving animals are a myth. Some of the Churches are very, very beautiful; some are not, but rather...

Suicide 1034. Is suicide a mortal sin? In itself, the action of taking one's own life is mortally sinful. God is the Author of life and of death, and He has never delegated to each individual the right to take his own life. The commandment, "Thou shalt not kill" extends to one's own life as well as that of others; and to take one's own life is to usurp an authority which belongs to God alone. But while I say that suicide is a mortally sinful action in itself, it does not follow that every man who commits suicide is...

Abortion 1000. Wide publicity has been given to the case of a doctor who was acquitted on a charge involving an illegal operation. That is true. 1001. What is the law or teaching of the Catholic Church on the right or otherwise of a doctor to perform an operation such as he admitted he carried out? The Catholic Church teaches, and ever will teach, that no doctor has any right before God and in conscience to perform such an operation. The deliberate and direct destruction of innocent human life is forbidden by the commandment, "Thou shalt not kill." Another principle...

Attitude to "Free Love" 979. I do not understand all this talk about chastity. Personally, I can see no harm in people seeking outside marriage the pleasures you call sensual and immoral. I am an honest searcher after truth. In other words, immorality for you is not a vice, and chastity is not a virtue. You see no harm in unbridled lust, and think pleasure the only standard of conduct. No wonder you cannot appreciate the Catholic religion! But tell me, honest searcher after truth as you are, if later you do marry and have children, would you advise one...

Sex Education 969. The Catholic Church seems very much behind the times where the training of children in sex psychology is concerned. Experts are against you. 970. Psychology tells us that a child's sense of responsibility simply does not develop in its childhood. That is not true. The conscience of a child or its sense of responsibility, begins to develop from the moment it attains to its first conscious ideas. The basic general intuition that good ought to be done and evil avoided has not to be taught to the child at all, for it is the innate characteristic of...

Attendance at Mass 964. Why are Catholics compelled to go to Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation? Because they owe to God the definite, regular, and public acknowledgment of their indebtedness to Him by the practice of their religion, and because the Sacrifice of the Mass is the highest act of worship in their religion. You must remember that religion is a form of justice, by which we render to God what we owe to Him. Catholics are compelled to fulfill the duties of their religion just as honest people feel compelled to pay their just debts to...

Other Superstitions 951. Can cup readers really see the future of the person whose cup they are reading? No. 952. I have met people who really believe in these things. You would do them a kindness in referring them to a mental specialist. 953. I would like to know what you think about it. It's a lot of silly nonsense. 954. Does the Catholic Church forbid dreams? The Church can hardly forbid a man to dream, for dreams can arise from purely mechanical and involuntary excitation of the imagination. But the Church does forbid people to regard dreams as certain...

Astrology 934. What does the Church teach concerning belief in astrology? That it is superstitious nonsense, and that it is sinful to place any serious reliance upon it. 935. How much is harmless, and how much dangerous? None of it is really harmless, for even if one were to indulge in astrology jocosely there would always be a danger of beginning to take oneself seriously. Real danger commences the moment one begins to entertain the thought that "there might be something in it." And there are many gullible and easily impressed people who do this. The end of the road...

The Inquisition 929. Does the Church give its tacit approval to the Inquisition? It explicitly condemns the extravagances and unwarranted cruelty of certain individuals who held office in the Inquisition. On the other hand, it explicitly approves the Inquisition as it should have been administered according to the social conditions prevailing in those times, and according to the particular evils to be eradicated. She would not approve the same measures in the present era. Changed conditions of society require a different approach to its various problems. 930. As the Church is responsible for religious seal inculcated in its majority membership,...

Censorship 917. Why should the Catholic Church prescribe what its members are to read? The Catholic Church does not prescribe the literature Catholics are to read. She does at times prescribe the literature they are not to read. She was sent by Christ to teach and preserve the true faith in this world. Just as the State forbids the sale of injurious chemicals and poisons, the Church forbids that literature which can poison the mind and soul. She would not be doing her duty if she did not. 918. If your Church has the truth, what have you to fear?...

Tolerance 915. Is it the policy of the Roman Church to indulge in a campaign of hatred, abuse, and criticism of everything that savors of Protestantism? No. The policy of Catholics, insofar as they are Catholics, is to seek first the Kingdom of God and His justice. Primarily they must sanctify their own souls, clothing themselves with the virtues of Christ. Secondarily they must labor to save other souls by prayer, good example, and a readiness to give an account of their own faith to all who desire a knowledge of it. But in all their relations with others their...

Scandal 909. In Mt 18:7, we read, "It must needs be that scandals come; but nevertheless woe to that man by whom the scandal cometh." St. Luke, Lk 17:1, records our Lord as saying, "It is impossible that scandals should not come, but woe to him through whom they come." Why does He threaten men for what they cannot possibly avoid? He does not do so. Knowing the malice of men in general, He predicts that some will, as a matter of fact, give scandal. But the prediction that scandals will occur does not impose any necessity upon this or...

Charity 905. Is there any true charity without a supernatural motive? We might say that there is no "supernatural" charity without a supernatural motive. The word "charity" comes from the Latin word "carus" which means "dear;" and not primarily in the "moonlight" sense of the word, but rather as "expensive," something for which I am willing to sacrifice quite a lot. Now it is possible to do good to others at one's own expense without a supernatural motive. But such natural kindness has no supernatural value. St. Paul rightly says, "If I should distribute all my goods to feed the...

Truth 903. How would you define a lie? I would define it as the uttering of what one knows to be false, and that whether by speech, writing, or gesture. 904. Would it be a lie to say what is untrue to a person who has no right whatever to the information sought? Yes. A lie is wrong in itself, not merely in reference to the rights of others. If others have a right to the truth, a lie is by that fact a still graver sin. But, even if they have no right, to say what one knows to...

Conscience 901. I should be grateful if you would define conscience for me. Conscience is simply a judgment of the intelligence applied to moral matters. In mathematics the mind concludes that two and two make four. In music it will judge as to whether the notes harmonize with one another or not. In moral conduct, it judges that good must be done, and evil avoided. And when some particular course of action presents itself, it will decide as to whether that course of action is in harmony with good principles or not. Whence come the principles with which conduct is...

The End of the World 883. Do Catholics believe in the Second Coming of Christ? Yes. 884. What does the expression in the Creed mean: From thence He shall come to judge both the living and the dead? Those words refer to the general judgment of the whole human race at the end of the world. God has revealed that, in due time, our Lord will come in great power and majesty to judge all mankind. 885. An atheist friend of mine says that, if that be true, we should not believe that a person is judged the moment he...

The Resurrection of the Body 877. What is the sense of the doctrine that our bodies will rise from the dead? Where will be the need for a material body in heaven? The sense and the need of the human body in heaven follow from the necessity of the survival of man. Man is not his soul only. He is a composite being, consisting of both body and soul, and must survive in his complete nature. Even though the soul attains happiness before its reunion with the body, it will be in an abnormal and unnatural state, its full powers...

Heaven 867. You speak of life as a preparation for heaven. But what is this heaven, and how do you know it exists? The Catholic teaching is that heaven is an eternal state of perfect happiness rendered possible by the very Vision of God Himself, and that this happiness will be granted to such of mankind as attain the salvation of their souls. The justification of this teaching lies in the fact that God Himself has promised such a destiny, a promise reiterated and confirmed by Christ during His life in the midst of men. 868. We have no destiny...

Indulgences 863. What does an indulgence mean? I am a non-Catholic, and feel that many other non-Catholics must wonder what it means. You can be quite sure that many other non-Catholics have no idea what is the meaning of an indulgence according to the Catholic teaching. It is the remission of the temporal punishment due to sin after the sin itself has been forgiven. For example, let us suppose that a child disobeyed his father and was to be put in a dark room without supper. But he showed such remorse that his father forgave him the offense but insisted...

Purgatory 851. What Scriptural authority has the Catholic Church for teaching that there is a purgatory? The Catholic Church has Scriptural authority for whatever doctrines she teaches, insofar as she was appointed to be the teacher of mankind by Christ. It would not really matter whether a given doctrine were contained in Scripture or not. While everything in the Bible is true, not everything true is in the Bible. I am getting rather tired of being asked to prove everything from the Bible, as if the Bible were the only test of what we must accept or reject. And even...

Hell 834. What is hell? According to Christ, it is a state of eternal misery and suffering, the pain of which is best likened to that caused by fire. As there is both good and evil in this world, so do their counterparts exist in eternity. And as evil is the opposite of good, so hell is the opposite of heaven. If heaven is light and happiness, liberty and peace, hell is darkness and misery, servitude and torment. As a man sows, so shall he reap. If a man dies identified with the good, he will save his soul and...