Category: Learn & Live the Faith

God and Mammon?
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God and Mammon?

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by on Feb 28, 2014 in Columnists, Featured, Learn & Live the Faith, Sunday Reflections
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In the ancient world, most peoples believed in a universe populated by many gods. However, even without the help of biblical revelation, Greek philosophers figured something out. There could only be one Supreme Being, only one almighty and omnipotent Ruler of all, only one God. In the twelfth chapter of Luke, Jesus asks a question. […]

Stronger Than
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Stronger Than

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by on Feb 27, 2014 in Featured, Live in Christ
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This great quote from St Ambrose bears deeper reflection; “Stronger than the person who conquers the strongest fortresses, is the one who conquers himself; nor is there any greater height of virtue.” “Conquering self,” what is that all about? There is a great term often used in statements about chastity called, self-mastery. This word says […]

Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium, The Joy of the Gospel
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Front Row With Francis: Anointment of the Sick

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by on Feb 27, 2014 in Featured, Live in Christ
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At his Weekly General Audience on Wednesday, February 26, 2014, Pope Francis got to talk about one of his favorite topics: care of the sick and the infirmed, by reference to the Anointment of the Sick.  The Pope tackled the ‘taboo’ quality of the misunderstood Sacrament, acknowledging that “there is a bit of this idea […]

Reflections for Sunday, March 2nd, 2014
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Reflections for Sunday, March 2nd, 2014

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by on Feb 26, 2014 in Catechesis, Featured, Sunday Reflections
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Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Isaiah 49:14-15; Psalm 62:2-3,6-9; 1 Corinthians 4:1-5; Matthew 6:24-34) Rejoicing in God’s Love for Us I will never forget you. (Isaiah 49:15) Have you ever noticed how mothers have an unparalleled capacity to love? No matter how tough a job she has raising her children, a mother […]

Church Interior
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The Belief Gap: Secularism and Young Adults

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by on Feb 26, 2014 in Catechesis, Featured, Live in Christ
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The Pew Research Center recently released a report, Celebrating Christmas and the Holidays, Then and Now, that offers a revealing look at the growing secularism of America’s young adults. According to Pew, although nine out of ten Americans celebrate Christmas, barely half (51%) view Christmas as primarily a religious holiday. Nearly a third (32%) celebrate […]

Escaping the Catholic Church Through False Justification
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Escaping the Catholic Church Through False Justification

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by on Feb 25, 2014 in Apologetics, Featured, MyChurchParish.com
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Eve knew very well what God had commanded her and Adam, but the text tells us that she had found the tree of knowledge of good and evil good to be pleasing to the eyes and desirable for gaining wisdom (Cf. Gen 3:6). It doesn’t take a whole lot for us to find justification to […]

Is Traditionalism a Fad?
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Is Traditionalism a Fad?

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by on Feb 24, 2014 in Catechesis, Featured, Learn & Live the Faith
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In comments that became controversial the instant they were reported, the traditionalist weblog Rorate Caeli gave us the following translation from Vatican Radio: [Abp. Jan Graubner speaks:] When we were discussing those who are fond of the ancient liturgy and wish to return to it, it was evident that the Pope speaks with great affection, attention, and […]

We are the Light of the Word
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We are the Light of the Word

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by on Feb 23, 2014 in Apologetics, Catechesis, Featured, Sunday Reflections
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“Jesus is the greatest treasure in the universe. Jesus is better than anything—even the Super Bowl. If you have Jesus, it’s still awesome, whether you win or lose.” In a recent television interview, Rocky Seto, a coach for the Seattle Seahawks, the NFL champions of Super Bowl 48, expressed his belief that faith in Jesus […]

Turn the Other Cheek?
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Turn the Other Cheek?

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by on Feb 22, 2014 in Columnists, Featured, Learn & Live the Faith, Sunday Reflections
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7th Sunday in Ordinary Time “Love your enemies.” “Turn the other cheek.” (Mat 5:38-40). This sounds admirable to some, but preposterous to others. The 19th century philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche thought such talk promotes a society of weaklings. Karl Marx thought these words keep the oppressed under the thumbs of the capitalists.  Does Jesus want us […]

Commentary on the Epistle of St. James
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Commentary on the Epistle of St. James

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by on Feb 21, 2014 in Catechesis, Columnists, Featured, Learn & Live the Faith
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James “the brother of the Lord,” was a kinsman of Jesus.  James became the first bishop of Jerusalem, a post he held from AD 40 until 62 when he was martyred under the persecution wrought by Herod Agrippa.  The urgent work that James accomplished—he was a very productive leader—was to commission the Apostles to evangelize […]

Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium, The Joy of the Gospel
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Front Row With Francis: February 19, 2014

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by on Feb 21, 2014 in Catechesis, Featured, MyChurchParish.com, The Shepherd's Voice
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“Be courageous, and go to confession,” was the message Pope Francis delivered at his Weekly General Audience on Wednesday, February 19, 2014.  This was the seventh General Audience of the year, part of a cycle of weekly talks dedicated to the Church’s Sacraments. In his straightforward way, Francis called on those present to silently ask […]

Reject Pride, Return to Christ
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Reject Pride, Return to Christ

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by on Feb 20, 2014 in Featured, Live in Christ, MyChurchParish.com
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When I was young, it was fashionable to grow a beard and long hair, put on a tie-dyed t-shirt, faded jeans and head off to Europe to “find oneself.” Often I wondered what would happen if those searchers didn’t like the inner-self they found? At a personal level, I had already met my inner self, in […]

The Bad Evangelist Club: How NOT to Refute Sola Scriptura
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The Bad Evangelist Club: How NOT to Refute Sola Scriptura

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by on Feb 19, 2014 in Apologetics, Featured, Learn & Live the Faith, MyChurchParish.com
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When discussing the arguments against Sola Scriptura, we Catholics have a lot of strong arguments.  Here at The Bad Evangelist Club, we help you to avoid bad arguments like the one below so the good ones have more credibility. The Argument Any debate around Sola Scriptura will focus on 2 Timothy 3:14-17, which goes as […]

Reflections for Sunday, February 23, 2014
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Reflections for Sunday, February 23, 2014

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by on Feb 19, 2014 in Catechesis, Featured, Sunday Reflections
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Meditation and Questions for Reflection and Group Discussion (Leviticus 19:1-2,17-18; Psalm 103:1-4,8,10,12-13; 1 Corinthians 3:16-23; Matthew 5:38-48) Godly Perfection, Loving and Forgiving our Enemies Be perfect. (Matthew 5:48) Perfect? Isn’t that impossible? Let’s take a look.                   Before Jesus spoke these words, a workable system was already in place: “eye for eye, tooth for tooth” (Deuteronomy 19:21). […]

Central African Republic: Saying "No" to Hatred and Revenge
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Central African Republic: Saying “No” to Hatred and Revenge

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by on Feb 18, 2014 in Featured, Those in Need
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A local Catholic has expressed a resounding “No” to hatred and revenge in the Central African Republic in that face of hatred and conflict. Archbishop Dieudonnè Nzapalainga of Bangui made his commented while speaking recently with international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). In the interview, the archbishop lamented that the Central […]

Five Christian Ways to Celebrate Valentine's Day
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Five Christian Ways to Celebrate Valentine’s Day

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by on Feb 14, 2014 in Featured, Live in Christ, MyChurchParish.com
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I am not a fan of Valentine’s Day. I’m not the most sentimental person around so I have always found the day to be not much more than a trite, commercialized excuse to sell greeting cards.  But like most things in life, there are always deeper Gospel connections than what we see on the surface. […]

Prelude to a Persecution?
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Prelude to a Persecution?

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by on Feb 13, 2014 in Contraception & Abortion, Featured, Live in Christ, The Homosexual Agenda
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Last Wednesday morning the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child published its Concluding Observations concerning the Catholic Church’s treatment of children. In this widely-denounced document (see HLI’s statement here), the Committee chastises the Church for supposedly ignoring or refusing the rights of children. It called for the Church to amend Canon Law, […]

Coming Out of Our Caves
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Coming Out of Our Caves

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by on Feb 13, 2014 in Evangelization, Featured, Learn & Live the Faith
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When I speak with someone who is curious about the faith, I realize my revelations about the spiritual life in the Mystical Body of Christ are completely foreign. I might as well be a fantasy character explaining life in an alternate reality outside of their own personal cave. The worst possible fate for me would […]

Reflections for Sunday, February 16, 2014
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Reflections for Sunday, February 16, 2014

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by on Feb 12, 2014 in Featured, Learn & Live the Faith, Sunday Reflections
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Meditation and Questions for Reflection and Group Discussion (Sirach 15:15-20; Psalm 119:1-2,4-5,17-18,33-34; 1 Corinthians 2:6-10; Matthew 5:17-37) The Paradox of the Cross What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard … (1 Corinthians 2:9)  The cross of Christ was the last thing anyone expected. The Messiah was supposed to come in triumph and […]

Critiquing Moderation: Does Centrism Befit Our Times?
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Critiquing Moderation: Does Centrism Befit Our Times?

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by on Feb 11, 2014 in Featured, Government & Politics, History, The Social Order
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The postmodern revolution has been transmutating America since JFK’s assassination, with cultural precursors dating back to the Korean War or earlier.  Our responsibilities as Americans oblige us to respond.  As stewards invested with some power of citizenship, a civic response to the Gospel is among our religious duties as Christians. In the process of responding […]

How Shepherds Smell Like Their Sheep
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How Shepherds Smell Like Their Sheep

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by on Feb 10, 2014 in Catechesis, Featured, Learn & Live the Faith, MyChurchParish.com
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One of the phrases people quote about Pope Francis is his exhortation that “shepherds must smell like their sheep.”  If you ask ten people what this means, you will likely get ten different answers.  Nobody can agree upon what it means, but everyone can agree it is something important.  I believe that as always, the […]

Patron of Compulsive Shopping Disorders
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Patron of Compulsive Shopping Disorders

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by on Feb 08, 2014 in Featured, Live in Christ, Personal Finance, Tips, Tools, Tech
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As a cradle Catholic, I’ve had the privilege of learning about and praying for the intercession of many saints for all my life.   Lose my keys again?  Calling on Saint Anthony.  Test coming up?  St. Joseph of Cupertino to the rescue. Pregnancy issues?  Alternate between St. Gerard Magella and St. Raymond Nonatus. Husband unemployed?  […]

The Great Family of the Heavy-Hearted
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The Great Family of the Heavy-Hearted

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by on Feb 07, 2014 in Disability, Sickness & Suffering, Featured, Live in Christ
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I read about a young man paralyzed in a freak accident. The story gave a glimpse of his grief and sorrow. It’s been just a year since his accident. The terrible prospect of permanent disability is beginning to sink in and it’s breaking his heart. He told the reporter, “It’s really, really hard.” And so […]

I'm In The Olympics
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I’m In The Olympics

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by on Feb 07, 2014 in Featured, Live in Christ
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Of course I’m not, really.  I’m probably one of the least athletic people I know.  But I love the Olympics, in a love-hate kind of way.  The hate part isn’t really “hate,” but I do end up feeling like there is a risk of an over-emphasis on one’s body, and that the soul can be […]