Archives for 2011

The sacrament of baptism as a participation in the death of Christ

To be baptized in Christ is to be baptized into his death as well as his Resurrection.

The Easter season is ultimately a time for rebirth, expressed most dramatically at the Easter Vigil by the life-giving waters of baptism. To impart new life, however, baptism must destroy the old life of sin and our fallen aversions to … [Read more...]

How to be a good confessor

Editorial, April 2011

God became man in Jesus Christ to save us from our sins. To accomplish that until his Second Coming, he established his Church with the power of the keys and animated her with the gift of the Holy Spirit. The new life of grace that he … [Read more...]

Questions Answered

March 2011

Priest altering the text of the Mass Question: I am a priest and very troubled by some of the mistranslations in the English edition of the Sacramentary, for example, “When he humbled himself to come among us as a man” in Advent Preface I. … [Read more...]

Letters from our readers

March 2011

The two hearts of Mary and Jesus, and Lectio Divina Editor: Blessings galore! Fr. Dwight Cam­pbell’s meditation (“Jesus living in Mary and the union of their two hearts,” Dec­ember 2010) is marvelous. I’ve a friend with whom I have … [Read more...]

Why vocation programs don’t work

Living examples of discipleship are the only things that will increase vocations.

For some time now we as a Church have been scrambling in an earnest attempt to remedy our vocation problem. The vocation of marriage has taken the worst beating, as over half of the marriages in our country end up in divorce, Catholic … [Read more...]

Dust thou art

Editorial, February 2011

Ash Wednesday usually occurs in February, but this year it comes later, on March 9. “Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return.” The Church offers this prayer for each one of us as the priest traces a black cross on our foreheads with the … [Read more...]

“And unto dust you shall return”

Ash Wednesday is more than an empty ritual—it is a reminder of our mortality and frailty.

Rosary beads, holy water, incense, ashes, et cetera—the “sacramentals” used in prayer and liturgy give Catholicism much of its distinctive flavor. As we are physical creatures in love with a God-made-flesh, the Church encourages the use of m … [Read more...]

Heart of the Mass: Transubstantiation

Editorial, January 2011

The heart of Catholic worship of God is located in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. The one thing Catholics are commanded to do each week is to attend Mass on Sunday and to take part in the divine worship. The main event in salvation history … [Read more...]