Tag: liturgical year

Reflecting on the Parable of the Talents: You Are Not St. Francis

Yesterday’s Gospel, the parable of the talents (Mt 25:14-30), has some interesting elements: the Master gives one servant 5 talents, another servant 2 talents, and the third servant 1 talent.  .  Talents, if you’re not familiar, are a unit of currency (which we’ll get to below).  The first two servants invest these talents, doubling their investments, while… Continue reading Reflecting on the Parable of the Talents: You Are Not St. Francis

Why Celebrate All Saints Day?

Why does the Church make today a Holy Day of Obligation, requiring Catholics to attend Mass today?  It’s because in seeing the Saints, we see our pathway to Heaven.  In Mark 10:42-45, we learn from Jesus what true greatness looks like: Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as… Continue reading Why Celebrate All Saints Day?

The Three “Reformation Day” Ironies

Today, for most of us, is Halloween.  But a lot of Christians are disturbed by the way that Halloween seems to celebrate evil, and many Protestants choose to celebrate Reformation Day instead.  While I respect the desire to have fun without celebrating evil, I find Reformation Day to be unwittingly hilarious.  Here’s why. Irony #1: Calvinist… Continue reading The Three “Reformation Day” Ironies

Did Jesus Rebuke His Mother in Luke 8:19-21?

Yesterday’s Gospel is an easy one to stumble over as Catholics. It’s from Luke 8:19-21, while Jesus is teaching the crowds: Then His Mother and His brothers came to Him but were unable to join Him because of the crowd. He was told, “Your Mother and Your brothers are standing outside and they wish to… Continue reading Did Jesus Rebuke His Mother in Luke 8:19-21?

Why Aren’t Christians Bound by the Saturday Sabbath?

An earlier post I wrote, Answering Seventh-day Adventism, has generated some helpful feedback from both current and former Adventists.  The consensus seems to be that even if Catholics can show that the founders of Seventh-day Adventism were false prophets, that won’t be good enough. At its core, the logic is simple: Sabbath observance is part of… Continue reading Why Aren’t Christians Bound by the Saturday Sabbath?

Answering Seventh Day Adventism

There are two major distinctive claims of Seventh Day Adventism, which separate it from the rest of Christianity: First, that Christians are supposed to keep Saturday, the Sabbath, holy.  They oppose worshiping on Sunday, arguing that it’s against the Ten Commandments and generally anti-Scriptural. Second, that the founder of Seventh Day Adventism, Ellen G. White,… Continue reading Answering Seventh Day Adventism

Why Do Catholics Abstain from Meat on Fridays?

As a society, American Catholics tend to give up meat on Fridays in Lent… and that’s it. That’s not good. We’re called to give up meat or something else on every Friday, not just those during Lent. Here’s the relevant part of canon law: Can. 1249 The divine law binds all the Christian faithful to… Continue reading Why Do Catholics Abstain from Meat on Fridays?

Did the Apostles Doubt Christ When He Appeared in Galilee?

Happy Ascension Thursday, maybe!  In some parts of the US, we celebrate Ascension Thursday today. In other parts of the US (including here in Virginia), we celebrate Ascension Thursday on Sunday.  Depending on where they are on Thursday and Sunday, travelers may celebrate today twice, or not at all.  It’s a mess. I agree with Fr.… Continue reading Did the Apostles Doubt Christ When He Appeared in Galilee?