The need for Irish Catholics to pray for our bishops grows more urgent by the day. One could be forgiven for thinking that our Irish bishops have lost their way. Irish Catholics will once again be officially denied access to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass on Easter Sunday and the Irish bishops, by their actions, fully support the unjust penal restrictions that have been forced on lay Catholics. The bishops and the priests will get to attend the Holy … Read More
There are three “parts” of the sacrament of penance, three things that are required of those receiving the sacrament of penance: contrition, confession and satisfaction. These three conditions are known as the acts of the penitent. (Incidentally, the “penitent” is the person going to confession; the “confessor” is the priest administering the sacrament.) This sacrament exists to set us free from the sins we have committed. “Whoever commits sin is the slave of sin” (John 8:34). That explains the three … Read More
By Dr. Doyen Nguyen and Dr. Joseph M. Eble This article was first published in the American Homiletic & Pastoral Review on March 12th 2021. It is written in the hope of helping Catholics to understand the dangerous nature of ‘brain-death’ definitions which seek to make it easier to harvest organs for transplant. Brain death (BD), the declaration of death by neurological criteria, is an established medicolegal practice in the USA and many countries worldwide. In 1968, the Harvard Medical … Read More
We must pray for our governments. Though the International Health Regulations require notification of any new pathogen to the international community within 24 hours, China’s concealment of its virus’ person-to-person transmission for three fatal months from mid-October 2019 to 20 January 2020 prevented most governments from taking the initial precautions that could have spared very nearly all of the half million and counting who have died in consequence of the pandemic. That said, it is time for the Church to … Read More
‘The ban on Communion in the mouth is unfounded compared to the great health risks of Communion in the hand in the time of a pandemic. Such a ban constitutes an abuse of authority.’ Risk of Fragments:Nobody can force us to receive the Body of Christ in a way that constitutes a risk of the loss of the fragments, and a decrease in reverence, as is the way of receiving Communion in the hand. Although it is true that one … Read More
The Lumen Fidei Institute started off the new year with a conference on The Catholic Family focusing on the duties and responsibilities of Catholic parents. The conference washeld in The Glenroyal Hotel, Maynooth on the feast of St Brigid, 1st February 2020. Defensive Strategy:For far too long Catholics in Ireland and elsewhere have been operating a defensive strategy where we spend more time defending ourselves against the slurs of those who oppose our Catholic faith and lifestyle and less time … Read More
No More Sacremental Preparation in Catholic Schools!On the 3rd of December 2019, the Archbishop of Dublin, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin, released a statement to the press which indicated that a “significant change is proposed in sacramental preparation” for the Dublin Archdiocese. The press release is very interesting to read and is available on the Dublin diocesan website. We are told that an online survey was conducted to which there were 1800 respondents and that this “reflected the views of parents, parishioners, … Read More
The Catholic Family Crusade:The Lumen Fidei Institute is starting off the new year with a conference on The Catholic Family which focuses on the duties and responsibilities of Catholic parents. The conference is scheduled for The Glenroyal Hotel, Maynooth on the feast of St Brigid, 1st February 2020, starting at 9.00am. Admission is free, but we recommend that you book a place to help us with our planning. We are hoping to do things a little differently for this conference. … Read More
One of the things I have noticed as I live my life and observe what is going on in the world is that so many Catholics seem to have lost or do not give enough emphasis to, the supernatural life. We are created to live eternally with our Father in Heaven. This supernatural outlook should influence how we live our lives and how we view this sad world we live in with all its troubles and complications. I was reminded … Read More
“Know also this, that, in the last days, shall come dangerous times. Men shall be lovers of themselves, covetous, haughty, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, wicked, Without affection, without peace, slanderers, incontinent, unmerciful, without kindness, Traitors, stubborn, puffed up, and lovers of pleasures more than of God: Having an appearance indeed of godliness, but denying the power thereof. Now these avoid. For of these sort are they who creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, … Read More
