The Feast of the Visitation
Saturday May 31, 2008
May 31 is the Feast of the Visitation, the day on which the Blessed Virgin Mary, having been told at the Annunciation by the angel Gabriel that she had been ... Read More
Reader Question: Why Can't a Woman Be a Priest?
Friday May 30, 2008
A reader writes:
Pope John Paul has talked about the dignity of women, but what could be more disrespectful of women than total exclusion from jobs they could do very well—i.e., ... Read More
The Feast of the Sacred Heart
Friday May 30, 2008
Friday, May 30, 2008, is the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, one of the most common devotions in the Catholic Church today. That's why many people are ... Read More
Wordless Wednesday: The Sacred Heart of Jesus
Wednesday May 28, 2008
(Photo by Scott P. Richert)
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Breathing Life Into a "Dead Language"
Tuesday May 27, 2008
Even though today the Mass is usually said in the vernacular (the common language of the country in which it is celebrated), Latin remains the official language of worship in ... Read More
Remembering the Fallen
Monday May 26, 2008
During peacetime, it is perhaps not surprising that Americans lose sight of the meaning of Memorial Day. We treat it as if it is simply the start of summer ... Read More
World Day of Prayer for the Church in China
Saturday May 24, 2008
In May 2007, Pope Benedict XVI released a Letter to Chinese Catholics, in which he asked that May 24 each year be dedicated a World Day of Prayer for the ... Read More
Reader Question: Travel and Our Sunday Obligation
Friday May 23, 2008
A reader writes:
Do I really have to go to Mass if I'm out of town? What if I don't know where a Catholic church is where I'm on vacation?
This question ... Read More
This Is My Body
Thursday May 22, 2008
Thursday, May 22, 2008, is the Feast of Corpus Christi (and the traditional day to begin a Novena of Confidence to the Sacred Heart of Jesus). In the dioceses ... Read More
Wordless Wednesday: Corpus Christi
Wednesday May 21, 2008
(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
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The Last Acceptable Prejudice
Tuesday May 20, 2008
With over one billion adherents worldwide, the Catholic Church hardly seems like the most likely target for abuse, yet every day, a surprising number of news stories reveal that anti-Catholicism ... Read More
Trinity Sunday: The Core of Our Faith
Sunday May 18, 2008
With the descent of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost Sunday, the Church was born. Thus, it is appropriate that, on the very next Sunday, we celebrate one of the ... Read More
Reader Question: How Often Should We Go to Confession?
Friday May 16, 2008
A reader writes:
We've entered the season of First Communion, and it got me thinking. Every child who makes his or her First Communion will first go to Confession. ... Read More
Wordless Wednesday: Iraqi Christians Pray the Rosary
Wednesday May 14, 2008
(Photo by Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images)
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The 91st Anniversary of Fatima
Tuesday May 13, 2008
On May 13, 1917, on a hillside outside Fatima, Portugal, three shepherd children saw a lady "brighter than the sun, shedding rays of light clearer and stronger than a crystal ... Read More
Reader Question: What Makes a Baptism Valid?
Friday May 9, 2008
In the comments on my post "Baptism for the Dead: It's Not for Catholics Anymore," a reader writes:
Does the Catholic Church recognize other chuches' baptisms as valid and saving ordinances? ... Read More
Baptism for the Dead: It's Not for Catholics Anymore
Tuesday May 6, 2008
The About.com Guide to Genealogy, Kimberly Powell, has news of a very important directive issued by the Vatican Congregation for the Clergy on April 5, 2008. As the Catholic ... Read More
May: The Month of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Monday May 5, 2008
The Catholic practice of assigning a special devotion to each month goes back to the early 16th century. Since the best known of those devotions is probably the dedication ... Read More
Pray the Novena to the Holy Ghost
Friday May 2, 2008
When Pope Benedict XVI visited the United States in April, he told priests and religious assembled at St. Patrick's Cathedral that now is the time for "a new Pentecost for ... Read More
Is Ascension a Holy Day of Obligation?
Thursday May 1, 2008
Thursday, May 1, 2008, is the 40th day of Easter. In other words, it is Ascension Thursday, the day on which (the Bible tells us) Jesus Christ, having risen ... Read More