Of course it is possible for nonCatholics to get into heaven. Catholics have always believed that it is God's will that all men be saved. That's why He sent His only Son to suffer and die to save us and, by His glorious Resurrection, to open the gates of heaven through this wondrous act of redemption. Accordingly, all men have...
The Church opposes abortion for the simple reason that it is the direct murder of an innocent human life, a clear violation of the revealed moral law of God, but also of the natural law. Abortion is wrong not because we Catholics say it is wrong, but because it's as wrong as any other form of murder. And we Catholics always will oppose it for that reason because it will always be murder.
Practically every argument in favor of abortion violates one of the basic principles of logic, usin...
Q: Where in the Bible is the account of the angels and St. Michael's conquest over Lucifer?
Catholic tradition speaks of angelic creatures who were created good by God but who radically rejected God and by their free choice were eternally separated from God.
Echoes of this mutiny against the creator may be seen in the temptation of Adam and Eve. As the Genesis story goes, the tempter assures them that, contrary to what God had told them, if they disobey...
A bit of history about the Church's attitude toward sin should help you understand the answer to your question.
In the beginning of Christianity, apart from those based mainly on the natural law (the Ten Commandments, for example), one sin was particularly identified as the big one: abandoning one's faith in Christ because of fear or pain or death.
That was the option often faced by Chr...
This ritual, performed during the singing or recitation of the Lamb of God, is called the commingling. The priest does it without drawing any attention to the action, and he recites the accompanying prayers inaudibly, so it's easy to miss if you're not paying attention.
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I believe your friend acted wisely. Sacraments are for the living, not the dead. Either or b...
Q: I recently received a New International Version New Testament Bible as a gift. When I stopped at a bookstore to exchange it for a Catholic Bible, I was assured this is a “universal” Bible. The clerk said there is no longer a difference in the New Testament, only in the Old. I was not aware there is a Bible approved by Catholics and Protestants. Please clarify this. I know there is a Catholic version of the NIV. Doesn’t it differ from the Protestant translation...
Q. On several recent occasions, I’ve witnessed priests pouring the Precious Blood into additional chalices after the consecration. In reading Redemptionis Sacramentum 105 and106, (“(T)he pouring of the blood of Christ after the consecration from one vessel to another is completely to be avoided, lest anything should happen that would be to the detriment of so great a mystery”), it seems clear that this is a liturgical abuse. I am seeing this more frequently and c...
Q. I was stunned to hear a talk-show person saying that someone is not going to heaven. I was taught that even a last-minute act of contrition or even a plea to God or an expression of remorse would assure us of a place in heaven. Could you clarify this?
A. I don’t know this individual’s religious beliefs, of course, but from the viewpoint of Catholic teaching and that of most other mainline Christian traditions, the statement was shamefully uninformed and shallow.
E...
Q. Could you explain what a sacrament is, how many sacraments are there, why they are necessary and what the difference is between a sacrament and a sacramental?
There are seven sacraments instituted by Christ which actually confer the grace they signify, namely Baptism, Confirmation, the Holy Eucharist, Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders and Matrimony. In each of these Christ himself meets us and ministers to us through the ministry of his body, the Church. T...
Archbishop Robert J. Carlson delivered his first homily as Archbishop of Saint Louis on June 10, 2009 at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis, after Saint Louis seminarian and...
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