Category: Blog

From the Bulletin of June 21, 2020     Last week, I briefly highlighted some great saints to emphasize that God always sends more grace in times when we need it more. The list was woefully short and didn’t even address other well-known saints like John Fisher, Thomas More, John of Avila, Charles Borromeo, Aloysius Gonzaga, and Philip Neri. Towards the end of this tumultuous century, there is another saint named St. Robert Bellarmine, who plays a role what we’re looking at today: the Galileo Controversy.      Spend just a few minutes looking for atheists online and you’ll quickly come across...Read More

From the bulletin of June 7, 2020      Many of you have been asking about the re-opening of the adoration chapel in our parish hall. It has not been open during Phase I because 25% of that small chapel is too easily surpassed. That being said, as soon as phase II begins, the adoration chapel will re-open, but there are some adjustments you should know about.      The first thing is that I want to have regularly scheduled exposition every week. At this point, it looks like we’ll do Exposition every Wednesday afternoon with benediction later in the day. I’ll...Read More

Column from the bulletin of Ascension Sunday May 24, 2020           I’ve spoken of these several times now, but it’s time to actually explain what they are and how they work. An indulgence is not “buying your way into heaven” and anyone who thinks of that way is misunderstanding the whole structure. In short, an indulgence is a way to access and apply God’s grace and mercy to a specific persons’ life. Ultimately, Salvation comes through Christ and all grace comes from Christ. An indulgence is no exception, it is just a formal structure for understanding the many ways that...Read More

     Perhaps you’ve heard of the “Seven Precepts of the Church.” Maybe it was the “Five Precepts” when you learned about it. These are the basic things a Catholic should do to stay in  ‘Good Standing” with the Church. The reason for different numbers and lists is that the Catechism lists them in different places. In paragraph 2041, it lists five, but in other places it does include two more from the older, more traditional list. But that’s besides the point. The basic precepts are: - To attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation, and resting from servile...Read More