I was asked why Catholics pray the Hail Mary, when Jesus tells us to pray the Our Father. He thought this was disobeying God. Here’s my reply: Answer: Jesus gives us a model prayer, but I don’t know any Christian who only prays the Our Father. We pray the Our Father at every Mass (we… Continue reading Why Pray The Hail Mary?
Tag: faith
The Real Debate On Faith and Works
I think C.S. Lewis said it best when he said, “Regarding the debate about faith and works: It’s like asking which blade in a pair of scissors is most important.” There is a real difference between the sola fide position and the Catholic position, but not half as much as might be claimed. It seems… Continue reading The Real Debate On Faith and Works
Common Misunderstandings About Catholic Tradition
What do Catholics mean by the statement that they believe in Scripture plus Tradition? Here are some sources of common confusion amongst non-Catholics (and even some poorly catechized Catholics) that I’ve run into. I hope this helps:(1) Tradition is a Separate Deposit of Faith from Scripture. (Alternatively: Tradition and Scripture Are Identical).Neither view is correct.… Continue reading Common Misunderstandings About Catholic Tradition
Papal Lineage
Catholic Eye Candy, a blog which aims to depict the beauty of all things Catholic, had a very nice post on papal lineage, consisting of a series of popes meeting with their successors (e.g., Pope Paul VI meets with the future Pope John Paul I, JPI meets with the future JPII, JPII meets with the… Continue reading Papal Lineage
Be Wary of the “Sabbatine Privilege”!
Today is the Optional Memorial of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. I hate to be a wet blanket, but a lot of the legends surrounding the so-called brown scapular (that is, the Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel) are just that: legends. If you go to daily Mass, you may hear something about it,… Continue reading Be Wary of the “Sabbatine Privilege”!
For More on Holdren
I suggest you check out GetReligion’s great piece contrasting the media attention given to geneticist Dr. Francis S. Collins, on account of his being publicly an evangelical (and thinking it compatible with science), vs. the virtual silence given to Holdren. It also has a list of crazy views he’s espoused, and cites appropriately to another… Continue reading For More on Holdren
Less “Ironic,” More “Terrifying”
Contuing the Reverse Cassandra theme, Obama has picked neo-Malthusian John Holdren to be “Science Czar.” It would be hard to find a less qualified pick. Harriet Myers would be a better candidate than this guy. Wikipedia has this to say about Holdren: In 1969, writing with Paul R. Ehrlich, Holdren claimed that, “if the population… Continue reading Less “Ironic,” More “Terrifying”
Does the Eucharist Deny Chalcedon?
C Michael Patton, over at Parchment and Pen, is one of the most lucid Calvinist bloggers I know of. He has a strong respect for the Early Church Fathers and for Church History, although he obviously understands it differently than Catholics do. In addition, he’s as irenic as he is intelligent, so even when I’m… Continue reading Does the Eucharist Deny Chalcedon?
“Athiest Pastor” Not Disciplined
This is technically old news (it’s from March), but I hadn’t heard about it before, and it’s worth the heads up. Klaas Hendrikse, a Dutch Protestant pastor, wrote a book in 2007 called “Believing in a God who does not exist: manifesto of an atheist pastor”. Yet he remains a pastor in good standing with… Continue reading “Athiest Pastor” Not Disciplined
The Pope and the President
I. Leadup to the Visit: Is the Pope a Liberal?If you haven’t heard, Pope Benedict XVI met with President Barack Obama on Friday. In the leadup to this, certain voices from the Catholic Left (particularly those who are more Left than Catholic) put their money on the pope taking a soft-line approach towards Obama’s pro-choice… Continue reading The Pope and the President