This week’s First Reading at Mass comes from Exodus 22:20-26: Thus says the LORD: “You shall not molest or oppress an alien, for you were once aliens yourselves in the land of Egypt. You shall not wrong any widow or orphan. If ever you wrong them and they cry out to me, I will surely [...]
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God Has You Covered and Will Use You to Cover Your Neighbor (Reflection on the Readings at Sunday Mass)
On Jeremiah’s Expectations (Reflection on the Readings at Mass)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Today’s First Reading at Mass comes from Jeremiah 20:7-9: You duped me, O LORD, and I let myself be duped; you were too strong for me, and you triumphed. All the day I am an object of laughter; everyone mocks me. Whenever I speak, I must cry out, violence and outrage is my message; [...]
What is Purgatory, and is it Reasonable to Believe?
We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. Romans 8:27-29 . . What does it mean to [...]
Prayer is Necessary for Salvation (Reflection on the Readings at Mass)
Brothers and sisters: The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings. And the one who searches hearts knows what is the intention of the Spirit, because he intercedes for the holy ones according to God’s [...]
In Romans, St. Paul Quoted & Themed Heavily from the Book of Wisdom
Concerning the Catholic Bible, which was canonized at the Council of Rome in 382 AD, Protestants often object to our use of the Septuagint for the Old Testament (which has 7 more books than the usual Protestant bible) by saying that Jesus and none of the Apostles ever quoted from it. That is absolutely false! [...]
Jesus & the Holy Spirit – the Magnanimous Dynamic Duo
Jesus said to his disciples: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows him. But you know him, because he remains [...]
The Reasonableness of Hell, and How to Avoid it
During my conversion from agnosticism, I found that of all the Christian doctrines that I encountered, the doctrine of Hell was the most reasonable of them all for me to believe. It just made perfect sense that there was a permanent consequence of my actions. I saw the fact that as each of my actions [...]
Finding God through Ritual
For as long as I can remember, I have always been drawn to ritual, especially when it is connected to pageantry and initiation rites. It is the apparent conveyance of a deeper hidden meaning behind the ritual that captures both my eyes and the imagination. For this reason I was always drawn to the Masonic [...]
Finding Christian Unity through the Holy Eucharist
I recently read a question on a Catholic forum from a poster who asked, “Why do Protestants go to Church if not for Communion?” I thought that was a most profound question because in the simplest way possible it highlighted the key difference between Catholic and Protestant worship. In general, Protestants go to church to [...]
Cooperating with God through Sacred Scripture (Verbum Domini)
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105) On November 11, 2010 Pope Benedict XVI released his post-synodal apostolic exhortation Verbum Domini (The Word of the Lord). This exhortation of the holy Father is his reflection on the 2008 Twelfth Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of [...]
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