Through Catholic Lenses - Viewing the world through our Catholic faith

Amoris Laetitia: Communion for the Divorced & Remarried?

February 12, 2019 By Fr. Matthew P. Schneider, LC

Those of you who follow me, may have noted that I have taken a clear stance on Amoris Laetitia. Today, the first half of my more academic take on the topic came out. This is one of the most complete explanations of chapter VIII to date. The document does not allow Communion for the Divorced and remarried who intend to continue relations. Pope Francis does want to offer more help to those who struggle but he is still clear that… Read more

Francis: Being Pro-Life Is the Foundation of Human Rights

February 8, 2019 By Fr. Matthew P. Schneider, LC

This week, Francis spoke to Italian pro-life leaders. In his speech, he spoke about being pro-life as a prerequisite for being pro-justice, pro-human-rights, etc. Here are a few excerpts and my analysis. The Pro-Life Speech Some parts are from the Vatican News article and some are original translations of the original in Italian. Voluntarily extinguishing life in its blossoming is, in every case, a betrayal of our vocation, as well as of the pact that binds generations together, which allows us to look… Read more

Dear German Bishop: Catholic Teaching on Homosexuality Can’t Change

February 6, 2019 By Fr. Matthew P. Schneider, LC

Bishop Franz-Josef Overbeck of Essen recently wrote an essay titled “Overcoming prejudices: The Catholic Church must change its view of homosexuality.” Although well-intentioned, this is incorrect. Let me respond in three parts: distinguishing homosexual inclination from homosexual acts, quoting the bishop, and pointing out why Church teaching cannot (and should not) change based on scripture and tradition. Distinction The Catholic Church does not condemn people for being inclined to any particular sin. We all have the inclination to sin. What sins predominate just… Read more

Sci-Fi from 1950 Foresaw Forced Euthanasia on Earth

February 1, 2019 By Fr. Matthew P. Schneider, LC

Isaac Asimov wrote a sci-fi book called Pebble in the Sky in 1950. This book foresaw a future earth where humans struggled to feed everyone, so by law at age 60 everyone is euthanized. The story revolves around an investigator coming to earth and discovering a plot to rebel against “the civilization of the galaxy spread across 200 million worlds.” As we value humans less and less in society, as we push different forms of medical death, mainly abortion and euthanasia, I was… Read more

Geocentrism Believed 2x as Much as Legal 3rd-Trimester Abortion

January 30, 2019 By Fr. Matthew P. Schneider, LC

The theory of democracy is that the government should do what the people want. A democratic government should reflect those governed. In the pro-life movement, we know that laws alone are insufficient: on top of our work to help people choose otherwise if it is legal or not; even if a ban on abortion is perfectly enforced, if popular opinion goes in the other direction, in a democracy, those laws will likely change. However, we see something completely different in the other… Read more

The Devastating Effect of Euthanasia on Dutch Culture (UPDATED)

January 29, 2019 By Fr. Matthew P. Schneider, LC

The Netherlands was one of the first countries to legalize euthanasia and doctor-assisted suicide. It has been legal there since 2002 so now we can see the effect it has had on Dutch culture. The Guardian did an excellent long-form piece on it called “Death on demand: has euthanasia gone too far?” I want to quote a few of the more poignant points in this 5,200-word article so you can grasp why we in other countries shouldn’t go down this path. In the Netherlands in… Read more

Pro-Life Tweet Gets 2 Million Views But Many Misunderstand It

January 26, 2019 By Fr. Matthew P. Schneider, LC

During the March for Life this year, I posted a tweet about a mom who chose life over abortion. This tweet blew every tweet I’ve posted ever out the water for most viewed. However, many – especially those contrary to the pro-life message – misunderstand it and the pro-life message. I want to set the stage, respond to this misunderstanding, and conclude with some lessons for us. 2 Million Saw This Tweet Here’s my most-viewed tweet ever. This mother almost… Read more

14 Mind-Blowing Signs at March for Life 2019

January 18, 2019 By Fr. Matthew P. Schneider, LC

On Friday, January 18, thousands in the pro-life movement marched in DC for an end to abortion. I took pictures of some of the best signs. Here you go (titles link to Tweets). 1. This woman is glad she walked out of an abortion clinic 2. The way we respect different forms of life should lead us to respect unborn heartbeats 3. Everyone deserves to live 4. I saw a bunch of signs pointing out the science in support of… Read more

Human Dignity for Vegetative Patients? Rape of a Vegetative Woman

January 7, 2019 By Fr. Matthew P. Schneider, LC

As Catholics, we understand every human has a unique dignity. Society denies dignity in many cases. We have made strides in the pro-life movement to see the dignity of the unborn; however, I think we can grow a lot in understanding the dignity of the disabled. A recent story illustrates this need. A female patient who’s been in a vegetative state a decade was pregnant. However, as someone told Arizona’s Family, “None of the staff were aware that she was pregnant until… Read more

Seminarian: Why I Want to Be a Priest Despite the Crisis

January 5, 2019 By Fr. Matthew P. Schneider, LC

As the clerical sex abuse crisis continues to unfold. Each of us in ordained ministry needs to confront it. Our answers might be slightly different but they all need to return to what really matters. The local paper in Sandusky, Ohio carried the testimony of a local young man, Tyler Boyd, in the Priestly Discernment Program at Franciscan University of Steubenville: One afternoon, after reading article after article about the extensive abuse, I asked myself why I was still studying to be a… Read more