The direct basis for these beliefs are found in three passages, taught by Jesus Himself: Matthew 16:19 (RSV) I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Matthew 18:18 Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. John... Read more
A Catholic parish is not a monastery. That is, it’s not an all-male environment (thus, the propriety of altar girls and not just altar boys). *** An anonymous commenter opined underneath my post, Do Altar Girls Alter Intentions of Would-Be Altar Boys? This is my reply. My words from my previous post are in green, his words in blue, and my present responses in black. *** Some thoughts, Mr. Armstrong: If a boy feels led to be an altar server, he... Read more
Jonathan Bonomo is the senior pastor at Calvary Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. *** These discussions about penance occurred on the blog, Evangelical Catholicity. I was responding in a thread entitled Paenitentiam Agite, having to do with why St. Jerome used the phrase “do penance” at Matthew 3:2 and 4:17, when the more straightforward translation would seem to be “repent.” Pastor Bonomo’s words will be in blue; Laurence K. Wells’ words in green, and Kevin D. Johnson’s in brown. * * * * * I... Read more
From: John A. Hardon, S. J., Modern Catholic Dictionary, Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1980, 199): ***** Examination of Conscience Reflection in God’s presence on one’s state of soul, e.g., in preparation for the sacrament of penance. Examen, General Prayerful daily periodic examination of one’s conscience to determine what faults have been committed, which call for repentance, and what good actions were performed, for which God should be thanked. Examen, Particular Regular prayerful examination of one’s conscience... Read more
This article has been re-uploaded under the title, “Do Altar Girls Alter Priestly Vocations of Altar Boys?” *** (originally 5-19-14) Photo credit: High Tridentine Mass. Photograph by Lumen roma (June 2008) [Wikimedia Commons / Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license] *** Read more
A Facebook friend wrote: It would really be nice if priests actually presented Catholic teachings from the pulpit. When was the last homily you heard about contraception, The Real Presence, or the like? And they wonder why people don’t believe! Many homilies are feel-good pep talks that are at best marginally Christian, let alone Catholic. This is especially true if the sermon is presented by someone other than the pastor. I replied: We can always read great sermons if we’re... Read more
The following is a preliminary dialogue with Matthew Green: a 28-year-old atheist and former Protestant Christian who dabbled in apologetics and considered the ministry (his words will be in blue). I ran across him at the blog, Debunking Christianity, where I have been hanging around a bit, in-between trying to develop a stable additional part-time income. I have desired to do some more “counter-atheist apologetics” for some time now (having done quite a bit in the past, both as a Protestant and Catholic apologist).... Read more
I’ve noticed these motifs coming up again and again in reviews of this book and in comments opposing critiques of it (such as my own): Fallacy #1: Lawler’s Temperament: Phil Lawler is a mid-mannered, temperate, easy-going, moderate, non-fanatical, non-extremist, measured, deliberate, objective, non-reactionary, scholarly person. Example: Dr. Samuel Gregg (The Catholic World Report, 3-2-18): The power of Lawler’s narrative was derived from its calm tone, a meticulous attention to facts, a refusal to overstate or downplay how bad things were, .... Read more
Stephen Phelan is vice president of family initiatives for the St. John Paul II Foundation, based in Houston, Texas. He has produced three documentaries that have been broadcast on EWTN, and his articles have been published in First Things, Lay Witness Magazine, and other publications. He was replying to my Amazon review of Lost Shepherd, on a thread at The Catholic World Report, where my review was linked. His words (reproduced in their entirety) will be in blue. ***** Mr. Armstrong’s article fails... Read more
My good friend Paul R. Hoffer, a regular on my sites (and lifelong Catholic), asked an excellent question: What is the definition of an “evangelical” Protestant? Aside from the denominational labels which are not an altogether accurate description of what an individual Protestant believes, is there something which distinguishes an “evangelical” from a “reformed” or “mainline” Protestant? Or is it more how one perceives the Holy Spirit working in their lives so a person can be both “evangelical” and a... Read more
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