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Mary's Immaculate Conception Is Fitting as Well as Faithful to Scripture Msgr. Charles Pope • December 7, 2015 • Today's Solemn Feast of the Immaculate Conception is often (mistakenly) thought to refer to the conception of the Jesus in the womb of the Blessed Mother. It does not. Perhaps it does not help the confusion that the Gospel chosen for today's feast is in fact the gospel of the Annunciation, wherein Jesus was conceived in Mary's womb by the power of the Holy Spirit! But there is a reason this gospel is chosen, as we shall later see. The dogma...

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- A donation to the Vatican by a U.S. businessman enabled Pope Benedict XVI to peruse a few pages of the oldest existing copy of the Gospel of St. Luke and one of the oldest copies of the Gospel of St. John. The Catholic businessman, Frank J. Hanna III, and his family were present in the pope's library Jan. 22 when Pope Benedict got his first look at pages from the famous Bodmer Papyrus XIV-XV. Hanna is the Atlanta-based chief executive officer of HBR Capital Ltd., an investment management company, and co-chairman of President George W. Bush's...

Dr. Adam Bradford believes third Gospel was originally a legal document. He says it was written by Luke, a Greek physician, as a letter of support for St Paul who was imprisoned for the political crime of supporting Jesus. Details about Jesus' childhood could only have come from Mary, he claims. He argues feminine words in the scripture give away the true author.

“The Chronicle of Luke: ‘That You May Have Certainty’” (Luke 1:1-4)This past Sunday was the First Sunday in Advent, and thus it was the beginning of a whole new church year. In our congregation, and in thousands of churches all around the world, this is known as “The Year of St. Luke.” You see, in the three-year lectionary, the system of appointed readings that we use, Series A is the Year of St. Matthew--his gospel is the one predominately read throughout that church year. Series B is the Year of St. Mark. And now, starting this week, Series C is...

A little six-year-old Protestant boy had often heard his Catholic companions reciting the prayer "Hail Mary." He liked it so much that he copied it, memorized it and would recite it every day. "Look, Mommy, what a beautiful prayer," he said to his mother one day. "Never again say it," answered the mother. "It is a superstitious prayer of Catholics who adore idols and think Mary a goddess. After all, she is a woman like any other. Come on, take this Bible and read it. It contains everything that we are bound to do and have to do." From that...