We hear much discussion of late about church teaching, especially with regard to marital issues, and whether statements of the Pope violate classical norms. Cardinals issue their doubts; sixty theologians inaugurate what they call … [Read more...]
Further Dubia for the Confused
September 27, 2017 by Rev. Basil Cole, OP
The Holy Father is given very special graces to guide the Catholic Church, being the successor of Peter. He is the vicar of Christ to which I adhere. Yet, when reading his latest exhortation, Amoris laetitia, I feel confused. In 1998, … [Read more...]
The Stability of the Cross
May 1, 2017 by David Vincent Meconi
The movements of Holy Week and Eastertide are enacted to bring the Christian people to the stability of a pierced love that cannot be shaken. Year after year, the Cross beckons and asks if we are faithful in our love, if we can stand with … [Read more...]
Munus Docendi
March 9, 2017 by David Vincent Meconi
Fr. Karl Rahner (1904-1984) began as a faith-filled and imaginative theologian, someone who, even now, still provides unmatchable insights into the nature of divinity, and into the searching soul who longs to cleave to God. Rahner worked … [Read more...]
How the Synod of 2015 Ignored the Real Problem, 50 Years in the Making
January 15, 2016 by Fr. Regis Scanlon, OFMCap
It’s hard to believe now, but at the beginning of the year, Synod 2015 was predicted to be a possible game changer for the Church. According to various media reports, the Synod promised to be: “stormy,” “intense,” a time of “great expectatio … [Read more...]
“We Will Be Judged by Love”—and Other Insights of Jorge Bergoglio
February 24, 2015 by Eduardo Echeverria
We are still trying to figure out the thought of Pope Francis. Examining several insights in his collection of writings and talks, entitled, Only Love Can Save Us, will help. Embedded in letters, homilies, and talks he wrote between 2005 … [Read more...]
What Does Authority Have to Do with Religion?
February 24, 2015 by Fr. John M. McDermott, SJ
“Authority” is generally used as a derogatory term in our world. Nazism gave the word a bad name as German officials, one after another, at the Nuremburg war trials sought to excuse themselves by claiming that they were just obeying a hig … [Read more...]
Religious Freedom, Slavery, and Usury
Three Challenges to the Hermeneutic of Continuity
January 12, 2015 by Dr. William Newton
Early on in his pontificate, Benedict XVI laid down the challenge of reading the Church’s teaching according to a hermeneutic of continuity, rather than according to what he characterized as a hermeneutic of rupture.[1. Benedict XVI, A … [Read more...]
Past and Present Conceptions of Tradition: Looking at the Synod on the Family
October 13, 2014 by Joshua Brotherton
“Tradition” is one of the most important concepts in Christianity, and yet, it is a term very often misunderstood among Catholics, let alone other Christians. I propose that this is precisely why the Extraordinary Synod on the Family, which … [Read more...]
Questions Answered
August 11, 2014 by Fr. Brian Mullady, OP
Does the Church state that there is an ideal form of government? What Magisterial status does the teaching of the popes on contraception enjoy? Can it be changed? Must we believe it? Plato, St. Thomas Aquinas, and A … [Read more...]
Questions Answered
July 2014
July 10, 2014 by Fr. Brian Mullady, OP
Is socialized medicine ethical? When the Pope recently washed the feet of women on Holy Thursday, does that mean that the liturgical law is changed which prescribes that only men should have their feet washed? Question: Is so … [Read more...]
An Essay on Natural Family Planning
February 8, 2014 by Dr. Charles W. Norris, M.D.
The Catholic Church has never opposed family planning, but she teaches through her Magisterium, or teaching authority, that man may not, of his own volition, separate the two meanings of the conjugal act, the unitive and the procreative, … [Read more...]
Observations on “Ex Corde Ecclesiae” and Its Fitful Implementation
February 5, 2014 by Dr. Eric Cunningham, PhD
Ex Corde was promulgated in 1990, and its purpose was to lay out the general place and function of Catholic universities in the modern Church ... {providing} a useful starting point for dialogues on Catholic identity. I suppose the … [Read more...]
Questions Answered
October 6, 2013 by Fr. Brian Mullady, OP
What are the conditions for informed consent regarding rejection of medical treatment? Can you explain the limitations of law? Do unjust laws oblige us to obedience? Question: What are the conditions for informed consent regarding … [Read more...]
The Role of Doctrine in Inspiring Believers to Moral Greatness
July 23, 2013 by Fr. Daniel Richards
In order to demonstrate this essential coexistence of nature and grace in the life of the Church, and the life of the believer, it must be shown that doctrine is necessary for salvation, not superfluous, but essential to the Church’s m … [Read more...]
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