CATHOLIC NEWS: Good Friday... PLUS 25 MORE

CATHOLIC NEWS: Good Friday... PLUS 25 MORE

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Good Friday

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 05:24 AM PDT

"The simple fact is: this can't be a day like any other. Scripture tells us that on the day Christ died, the world - literally - cracked open. The earth quaked. To this day, we cannot help but remember what was done for us. As the old spiritual tells us, it causes us to tremble. But in the midst of all this...

Tonight on 20/20: Another possible miracle attributed to Pope John Paul II

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 09:28 AM PDT

At the St. Anthony of Padua Catholic church in New Bedford, Mass., parishioners believe the late Pope John Paul II is truly a miracle worker. Joe Amaral believes Pope John Paul II interceded to allow him to walk again. More Photos Joe Amaral is one of those faithful parishioners.

Jesus Christ, the First Apostle of Suffering

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 08:50 AM PDT

When did Christ redeem the world? When He died on Good Friday. How did Christ redeem the world? By His Passion and Death on Calvary. Why do we make the Sign of the Cross? To remind ourselves we have been redeemed by the Cross.

Why Blood and Water from the Side of Christ? (from St John Chrysostom)

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 08:39 AM PDT

From Saint John Chrysostom's Catecheses 3:13 19 SC 50, 174-177 I especially like this passage because Chrysostom relates the Passover lamb's blood over the doorposts to the blood on the lips of the believer who receives the Holy Eucharist. It gives a whole new meaning to the prayer: "Lord I am not worthy that thou shouldst come under my roof." As you'll see...

Is middle ground possible on the Pope?

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 04:47 AM PDT

More and more, I'm wondering if Karl Rove was right. Rove, of course, famously argued that the "independent voter" is a myth. Whatever they may tell pollsters, most Americans in their heart of hearts are clearly aligned with one side or the other, so the trick to winning elections is to turn out more of your base than the other side does of theirs.

Water, Bread, Wine, Oil. The Four Elements of the New World

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 09:00 PM PDT

The pope explains Christian cosmology using the symbols of the sacraments. The oil of peace, but also of combat. Against the old and new empires that lift up injustice as law.

American Street Preacher Arrested in Britain for Declaring Homosexual Behavior a Sin

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 10:00 PM PDT

An American street preacher has been arrested and fined £1000 in Glasgow for telling passersby, in answer to a direct question, that homosexual activity is a sin. Shawn Holes was kept in jail overnight on March 18, and in the morning pled guilty to charges that he had made "homophobic remarks…aggravated by religious prejudice." Holes...

The Rabbi's Lesson

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 10:00 PM PDT

Why does God allow suffering? Twenty five years ago I often asked that question. I was a new mother but my baby daughter was seriously ill. Not only did she have Downs syndrome but the doctors had discovered a life-threatening heart defect. Just months after Sarah's birth, she had surgery and for days...

Dreadful Worship

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 10:00 PM PDT

Recently, a man in Pakistan's Sindh province took a bath, met with his family, and then killed his three daughters and himself. This was not your run-of-the-mill murder-suicide. It was human sacrifice to a god who couldn't be more different from the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. That god was the Hindu deity Kali...

Good Friday

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 01:00 PM PDT

The Breviary for Good Friday cites Hebrews 9: "Christ was offered up once to take away the sins of many; He will appear a second time not to take away sin but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await Him." These words express a finality. Christ was offered up once. He was not offered up twice or thrice. Offered up to whom? To His Father. Why?

Evil Monster Update: The Inside Story

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 05:24 AM PDT

By Jimmy Akin | I'd like to thank The Anchoress and Andrew Sullivan for linking my previous piece on Cardinal Ratzinger and the Murphy case, and for the kind things they said about it. There is more to say about the story. Quite a bit, actually. In particular, I'll be responding to Sullivan...

Pope John Paul the Great died five years ago today

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 08:26 AM PDT

John Paul II, "Santo Subito" (Sainthood Now)!

Because this Prophecy of David Is Fulfilled

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 08:08 AM PDT

The Psalms were a book in the Bible that I pretty much ignored my whole life. I was baptized when I was 10 years old and thought I knew a lot about my faith. I have known Psalm 23 by heart probably since I was 7 or 8. But it wasn't until I began exploring the idea of becoming a Catholic Christian...

Was Jesus Really Crucified with the Passover Lambs?

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 08:48 AM PDT

It's rather commonplace to hear these days, both in the pulpit and on the page, that Jesus was sentenced to death at the "very hour" the Passover lambs were being offered in the Temple. Above all, Raymond Brown made this idea popular in his commentary on the Gospel of John...

Sky Show This Weekend: Venus to Meet Elusive Mercury

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 10:13 AM PDT

Normally elusive, Mercury will be shining brightly near Venus for most of this month—with a close conjunction on April 3 and...

The Catholic Church's Catastrophe

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 06:19 AM PDT

There are three great groups of victims in this story. The first and most obvious, the children who were abused, who trusted, were preyed upon and bear the burden through life. The second group is the good priests and good nuns, the great leaders of the church in the day to day, who save the poor, teach the immigrant...

What is Scandal?

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 04:19 PM PDT

Scandal is not a happy topic. It is fodder for gossip and fuel for rumors. It is a favorite of modern media and a weapon in decadent politics. But scandal, even if enticing to the curious mind, cannot make the heart sing. It weighs down the human spirit. It leads a person toward hell.

School-homing

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 01:58 PM PDT

Okay, time for a quick humor break, courtesy of The Onion : Increasing Number Of Parents Opting To Have Children School-Homed WASHINGTON—According to a report released Monday by the U.S. Department of Education, an increasing number of American parents are choosing to have their children raised at school rather than at home.

Church teaching on sexuality could be wrong, says English Catholic bishop

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 01:56 PM PDT

The über-liberal Bishop of Arundel and Brighton, Kieran Conry, has given an astonishingly frank interview to Andrew M Brown of The Catholic Herald. One well-known priest's reaction: "I'm still picking up my jaw off the floor." Me too. Here's a list of the things Bishop Conry says in the interview.

Benedict XVI finds solace in Haydn

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 01:41 PM PDT

Michael White takes us behind the scenes of a papal concert and hails the Pope's efforts to raise musical standards at the Vatican.

Cosmic Remembrance

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 01:22 PM PDT

"Do this in remembrance of me" means more than "this meal is a memory prompt". It means more than the sort of trip down memory lane we enjoy with the family photograph album. Instead the word 'remembrance' means 'anamnesis'--a special kind of active and dynamic remembrance in which the event from the past comes alive in the present.

Maundy Thursday

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 03:44 PM PDT

From the Catholic Encyclopedia: The feast of Maundy (or Holy) Thursday solemnly commemorates the institution of the Eucharist and is the oldest of the observances peculiar to Holy Week. In Rome various accessory ceremonies were early added to this commemoration, namely the consecration of the holy oils and the reconciliation of penitents...

Seven Reasons Why Christ Died on a Wooden Cross (from the Church Fathers and Thomas Aquinas)

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 09:21 AM PDT

First, Augustine observed that crucifixion is not only painful, it is painful and public. The public nature of Christ's death inspires us to face death heroically. Second, Augustine observed that since Adam brought death through a tree, it was fitting that the New Adam destroy death by hanging on a tree. Third...

A Catholic Actor Who Won't Compromise on Sex Scenes

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 10:12 AM PDT

Media pundit Nikki Finke points out an admirable and rare trait among modern-day Catholic actors: Courage to not abandon one's convictions in the face of worldly emoluments. Neal McDonough is the actor in question. I very much enjoyed his portrayal of heroic WWII G.I. Buck Compton in Band of Brothers and, more recently...

Pope has immunity in abuse trials: Vatican

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 11:11 AM PDT

Pope Benedict, accused by victims' lawyers of being ultimately responsible for an alleged cover-up of sexual abuse of children by priests, cannot be called to testify at any trial because he has immunity as a head of state, a top Vatican legal official said on Thursday.

CIA veterans break silence about Area 51's secrets

Posted: 01 Apr 2010 01:01 PM PDT

After nearly five decades, guys like James Noce finally get to tell their stories about Area 51. Yes, that Area 51. The one that gets brought up when people talk about secret Air Force projects, crashed UFOs, alien bodies and, of course, conspiracies. The secrets, some of them, have been declassified.