As we approach Triduum, here are a few resources to deepen our commitment to Jesus Christ.
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Palm Sunday Soul Booster
To get deeper into the spirit of Holy Week, and to help you to do the same, I’ll be posting daily “soul boosts” containing the following: (1) a hymn tied to the liturgical day; (2) a timely Biblical text; (3) a beautiful piece of religious art; (4) a spiritual reflection; and (5) a Saint you should get to know (or get to know better). Today’s Palm Sunday, also called Passion Sunday (or “Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord”).
Let’s start with the obvious: why does this day go by two different titles?
3 Reasons to Love St. Joseph
Today, as you might imagine, is a special day for me. It’s my “name day,” the feast day of St. Joseph. One aspect of celebrating your name day is to know and love your namesake Saint. So let me share with you three things that I love about St. Joseph:
The Pope and the Mongols
As the State Department has just acknowledged, we are currently witnessing the attempted genocide of Christians by ISIS. But this isn’t the first (and won’t be the last) time that someone tries to wipe the Church off of the map. One of the most frightening was the invasion of the Mongolian “Golden Horde” in the 13th century. We could learn a thing or two from Pope Innocent IV’s response.
A Biblical Walk Through the Mass
Think Mass if boring? You might change your mind after considering these 8 parts of the Mass, and their connection to Sacred Scripture.
How to Think About the Virgin Mary’s Salvation
Does Mary’s sinlessness eliminate her need for a Savior or for grace? Or is her sinlessness the result of those? Plus, what does Mary’s sinlessness mean for the salvation of angels or the Saints in Heaven?
Karl Barth v. Keith Mathison on the Early Church & Sola Scriptura
Did the early Christians believe in “sola Scriptura” (Scripture alone)? Or did they also believe in Apostolic Tradition? Keith Mathison, in his book “The Shape of Sola Scriptura,” claimed that the Catholic view wasn’t found in the first centuries of the Church, and that the earliest Church Fathers believed in sola Scriptura.
Mathison’s views are thoroughly debunked by (of all people) Karl Barth, the Reformed theologian Christianity Today called “the most important theologian of the twentieth century.” And Barth capably proved the Catholic Patristic case… even though he personally believed in sola Scriptura!
But Only God Can Forgive Sins!
The Catholic Church teaches that the Apostles were given the ability to forgive penitents of their sins. One of the frequent objections to this is that “It is blasphemy! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (Mark 2:7). Ironically, that objection originally comes from the Scribes and Pharisees, and Jesus’ response explains precisely how we can know that the Apostles were given authority to forgive sins.
How George Carlin Misunderstood Prayer
The famous comedian George Carlin was a fervent atheist, and had a particular disdain for Christian prayer. He argued that it was arrogant of us to ask the God of the Universe for anything. He’s got a Divine plan, and then we come along to ask Him for special favors.
But Carlin also viewed prayer as either destructive or worthless. After all, God is the all-powerful, all-knowing, all-good God of the Universe, and He has a Divine Plan. If our prayers cause Him to change that plan, Carlin reasoned, we’re making things worse. If our prayers don’t cause Him to change His plans, what’s the point?
Martin Shkreli and the Crisis of Corporate Conscience
Martin Shkreli has been labelled the “most hated man in America” after his company, Turing Pharmaceuticals, raised the price of their potentially life-saving anti-parasitic drug Daraprim by over 5000%. But if you support the HHS Mandate, you can hardly complain about Turing Pharmaceuticals. You don’t get to spend years harassing Hobby Lobby and the Little Sisters of the Poor for bringing conscience into the marketplace, and then turn around and complain that the markets are amoral.