BIG C CATHOLICS

Fr. Charles Irvin Senior Priest Diocese of Lansing ( Click here for today’s readings ) Pope Francis caused a bit of a stir when in a homily he suggested that everyone, even atheists, could be saved. This excited newspaper reporters all over the world to declare that according to the Pope everyone will be saved. Actually the news reporters got it wrong. Cooler heads realized that the Pope was simply stating what is found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church . It is God’s desire that all men and women of good faith be saved. To that end His Son, Jesus Christ, suffered and died to redeem us, to bring us back to God our Father. Everyone has been, by Christ’s death and resurrection, redeemed. But that doesn’t mean that everyone will be saved. There is a huge distinction between being redeemed and being saved. In His Son, Jesus Christ, God has redeemed all of the children of Adam and Eve. He has breached the chasm between us and released us from the power of death. The word “rede

If you have not already done so, have a priest enroll you in the Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, or popularly known as the "Brown Scapular" and begin wearing it as a sign of your love for Our Lady. A priest enrolls people in the Brown Scapular only once. The Scapular can then be replaced afterwards by other scapulars or the scapular medal, which has on one side the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and on the other, the image of Mary. The medal needs to be blessed by a priest, but the cloth scapulars do not require a blessing (separate from enrollment). Wearing the Brown Scapular is not an automatic guarantee of salvation. It is not a magical charm, nor is it an excuse to live in a way contrary to the teachings of the Church. It is a sacramental which has been approved by the Church for over seven centuries and is a sign of one's decision to follow Jesus as did Mary, the perfect model of all the disciples of Christ. In addition to being an introduction into t

Unfortunately today, there is growing confusion in society about gender, to the extent that gender ideology has destroyed personal meaning throughout North America. In response to the Obama administration’s recent guidelines on the use of bathrooms by those who call themselves transgendered, Cardinal Donald Wuerl emphasized that the human body "is not extraneous, but goes to our very essence." The Cardinal added: One of the enervating forces of our culture is the assertion that everything is up for grabs. What was once grasped as objective truth is now dismissed as mere construct, and there is a growing relativism that seeks to reconstruct the most fundamental realities. Last year we saw a societal redefinition of marriage and family. Today, the concept of humanity itself is called into question with an aggressive "gender" ideology which holds that whether a person is male or female is not an objective reality, but is subjectively determined. Increasingly, t

Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, June 3, 2016  I promise you in the excessive mercy of my Heart that my all-powerful love will grant to all those who receive Holy Communion on the First Fridays in nine consecutive months the grace of final perseverance; they shall not die in my disgrace, nor without receiving their sacraments. My divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment. — Our Lord to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque Only the Heart of Christ who knows the depths of his Father's love could reveal to us the abyss of his mercy in so simple and beautiful a way ( Catechism 1439 ). The prayer of the Church venerates and honors the Heart of Jesus just as it invokes his most holy name. It adores the incarnate Word and his Heart which, out of love for men, he allowed to be pierced by our sins. Christian prayer loves to follow the way of the cross in the Savior's steps ( Catechism 2669 ). The Sacred Heart of Jesus is the Infinite Love of Christ The Chu

Since April 2009, the blog, Shameless Popery , has provided inquiring Catholics faithful, thoughtful articles about their faith . These include theological commentary, apologetics, scriptural exegesis and more. With writing that is clear and concise, Joe Heschmeyer, a seminarian for the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, tackles questions of interest from the controversial to the sublime. Recent post titles include "It’s Time to Re-Re-Evangelize the World", "The Incomprehensible Love of the Holy Trinity", "The Catholic Church Doesn’t Look Like the Early Church? Good." and "Why I’m a Theist, a Christian, a Catholic, and a Seminarian". The later, a 35 minute video, is worth watching. High school students especially would benefit from Heschmeyer's testimony. The Catholic blogosphere hosts thousands of websites. Shameless Popery is among those that present Catholicism's rich intellectual heritage alongside contemporary analysis

Plenary indulgences are available to the faithful on the Feast of Corpus Christi. An indulgence remits our temporal punishment in purgatory due to our sins. It may be either partial or plenary. It is partial if it pardons part of the temporal punishment due to sin, and plenary if it pardons all punishment. Only one plenary indulgence per day can be earned. The following acts will merit a plenary indulgence — provided the conditions for a plenary indulgence are met. (See below.) Down in adoration falling ( Tantum ergo ) Down in adoration falling, Lo! the sacred Host we hail; Lo! o'er ancient forms departing, Newer rites of grace prevail; Faith for all defects supplying, Where the feeble senses fail. To the everlasting Father, And the Son who reigns on high, With the Holy Spirit proceeding Forth from each eternally, Be salvation, honor, blessing, Might and endless majesty. Amen. V. You have given them bread from heaven, R. Having all sweetness within it. Let u

Here is Raymond Cardinal Burke's address before the Rome Life Forum last week entitled "Martyrdom for the Faith in our times", via Life Site News . [Read the full text here .] His Eminence quoted the words of Father John Hardon who in speaking of the need for contemporary witness noted present-day Catholics' ignorance regarding the truths of the faith: "In a particular way, Father Hardon knew that the necessary strong Catholic witness depends essentially upon the right understanding of the faith and its demands provided by sound catechesis. He saw how decades of a thin and even false catechesis had created a situation in which many Catholics were illiterate regarding the faith. He saw how many were left in confusion and error regarding the most fundamental tenets of the Catholic faith and of the moral law written upon the human heart and definitively articulated through the word of Christ handed down in the Church. Faith in the Real Presence of Our Lord J

Strengthened by the presence of Christ [cf. Mt. 28:20], the Church journeys through time towards the consummation of the ages and goes to meet the Lord who comes. But on this journey- and I wish to make this point straightaway-she proceeds along the path already trodden by the Virgin Mary, who "advanced in her pilgrimage of faith, and loyally persevered in her union with her Son unto the cross." St. John Paul II from the encyclical Redemptoris Mater , [On the Blessed Virgin Mary in the life of the Pilgrim Church] in which he quotes Vatican II's Lumen Gentium , Dogmatic Constitution on the Church. According to the Catechism , Mary is the model of perfect faithfulness to God found in the New Testament. [Abraham is the example of perfect faithfulness in the Old Testament.] [ CCC 2674 ] "Mary gave her consent in faith at the Annunciation and maintained it without hesitation at the foot of the Cross."

The head of the  Satanic group seeking to conduct a "black mass" at the Oklahoma City Civic Center Music Hall this August has responded to our post discussing it . He contacted us to say the following: We are Ahrimanists, and actually worship the original devil from Persia. Our federally recognized church is Hindu. Please take note as to what you are really dealing with.  Original devil? There is only one devil. He is the father of lies and a cruel deceiver of men. When we pray the Lord's Prayer, we ask that God, "... lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." The Catechism of the Catholic Church ( §2851 ) states: In this petition, evil is not an abstraction, but refers to a person, Satan, the Evil One, the angel who opposes God. The devil ( dia-bolos ) is the one who 'throws himself across' God's plan and his work of salvation accomplished in Christ. Remember: The devil is 'an active force, a living, spiritual being' . We

I am very happy to inform you that last August's blog of note,  The New Theological Movement , which ceased publication in December 2014, appears to be publishing articles once again. The New Theological Movement Blog emanates from the minds of Father Ryan Erlenbush and a fellow diocesan priest who is the site's webmaster. NTM is a treasure trove of theological commentary, apologetics, scriptural exegesis and more. From the About page: "The aim of this blog, first and foremost, is to write for the benefit of the Catholic faithful and clergy. We will try to make the articles neither too academic such that they would belong in a theologically technical publication, nor merely 'popular.'" Fr. Erlenbush describes his method of theological interpretation thusly: " The Catechism of the Catholic Church is 'the sure norm of truth' to which we will remain faithful. (John Paul II, Laetamur Magnopere ). It goes without saying that whatever is written

The straight forward but constantly misinterpreted doctrine that " Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus ": "Outside the Church there is no salvation", is the source of much confusion among many Catholics and non-Catholics alike. Does it condemn anyone not in communio sacris with the Church to damnation? To answer in the affirmative would place limits on God's grace and the salvific Incarnation and ministry of Jesus Christ. So, what exactly does this doctrine mean? The Catholic Church teaches that a person may be saved outside the visible boundaries of the Church, ( Lumen Gentium , sec. 19 ) provided the following conditions are met: A person who, through no fault of his own, is ignorant of the truth that Christ established the Catholic Church and desires all men to obtain salvation through it ( invincible ignorance ). A person lives according to the truth that he is capable of discerning. A person responds to the graces that he has been given. Or, re-formula

The ordination of men only to the priesthood is a doctrine of the Church. A common criticism of the Catholic Church is that she "does not change with the times." To answer this objection we must distinguish between Church doctrines, which cannot change, and disciplines, which can — as well as discuss doctrinal development. Doctrine vs. Discipline A doctrine is a formal, infallible teaching of the Church which cannot be altered. Doctrines are central truths of the faith (i.e., Christ's divinity, the Eucharist is the body and blood, soul and divinity of Jesus). Doctrines address matters of faith and morality. They are proclaimed not invented . Disciplines are the Church's man made laws (i.e., priestly celibacy). They are not Church teaching. They do not concern matters of faith and morals expressly, but actions and behaviors informed by the current state of the Church. They may be altered, but rarely are. The all-male priesthood is a doctrine of the Church

From "Mary the Ark of the New Covenant by Steve Ray (Editor's note: As explained below, the Ark of the Covenant contained the Ten Commandments the sign of the Covenant God made with Moses. The Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus, has been compared to a new Ark of the Covenant in carrying Christ in her womb. Just as the Ark of the Covenant bore the Ten Commandments; Mary bears Christ within her. Parallels between the Ark of the Covenant and Mary are found throughout Scripture. Any first century Jew would recognize the similarities.) God loved his people and wanted to be close to them. He chose to do so in a very special way. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says, "The prayer of the people of God flourished in the shadow of the dwelling place of God’s presence on earth, the ark of the covenant and the temple, under the guidance of their shepherds, especially King David, and of the prophets" (CCC 2594). God instructed Moses to build a tabernacle surrounded by heav

_________________________ From the Catechism of the Catholic Church ___________________________ HANDING ON THE FAITH: CATECHESIS Quite early on, the name catechesis was given to the totality of the Church's efforts to make disciples, to help men believe that Jesus is the Son of God so that believing they might have life in his name, and to educate and instruct them in this life, thus building up the body of Christ. "Catechesis is an education in the faith of children, young people and adults which includes especially the teaching of Christian doctrine imparted, generally speaking, in an organic and systematic way, with a view to initiating the hearers into the fullness of Christian life." While not being formally identified with them, catechesis is built on a certain number of elements of the Church's pastoral mission which have a catechetical aspect, that prepare for catechesis, or spring from it. They are: the initial proclamation of the Gospel or m

________________________ from the Catechism of the Catholic Church _____________________________ THE LIFE OF MAN - TO KNOW AND LOVE GOD God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men, scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Savior. In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life.