March 19th 2021: happy solemnity of Saint Joseph. Since December 8th 2020 we have been celebrating a year of Saint Joseph. That date marked the 150th anniversary of the proclamation of patronage for the whole church ascribed to the spouse of the blessed Virgin Mary. Today begins a year marked by Pope Francis for the …
Ramblings: Catholic moral teaching, racism, and other sins.
Ramblings on Catholic moral teaching, racism, and other sins. I have always had a hard time being clear about the parameters of exactly what was included in the Church’s “Catholic Social Teaching.” Mainly, I mean I understood at least as much as the average seminarian all the principles articulated in the social teachings and the …
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Worship, and Religion in the Public Sphere
"My worship has found its most perfect expression, and fullness of power, when I come to hold the divine Body and Blood of God in my hands, and consume Him into my corporeal existence."
Technology, Human Existence, and the Gift of Life
A significant number of the Catholic bishops of the United States are confident in saying “The threat of abortion remains our preeminent priority because it directly attacks life itself, because it takes place within the sanctuary of the family, and because of the number of lives destroyed.” (A sufficient number affirmed this statement to insist …
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Catholic-by-initiation, vs. Catholic-in-morals
Who can call themselves a Catholic? A Catholic becomes a Catholic by Sacramental initiation. Were you baptized Catholic? Were you confirmed Catholic? Have you received the Holy Eucharist as your first communion in a licitly offered Catholic rite of the Holy Eucharist? If yes, you are a Catholic. The Church insists that your Catholic initiation …
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Homily for 23rd Sunday, Year A (My homily notes, with additions for publication)
Our Gospel passage for this Sunday is from Mathew Chapter 18. It is a beautiful and rich chapter, known as the Church Order Discourse. It happens to be the only other place, in all the Gospels, where Jesus uses the Greek word “church” (ekklesia), after Matthew 16 (“You are Peter, and on this rock I …
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On Catholic Morality, and Voting
Among events local and national, with the news cycles and social media going full bore, you may have heard, through some medium or other, various apocalyptic portents to the effect that the fate of the world relies upon your vote in the November U.S. elections. Yes. Here we are: morality and voting. I give this …
4th of July, 2020
The following reflection, although not delivered verbatim, formed the basis of my homily on the 4th of July Weekend. Fr. Timothy Naples J+MJ It’s a 4th of July Weekend. As we celebrate our annual Independence Day as a nation, let us look to our Lord, and the saints of the Church as the best guides …
Black Catholics and White Catholics and the Sexual Revolution
The following are "snapshots" of Black and White Catholicism, thinking about the Sexual Revolution in the United States First snapshot. Recent events led me to look for statistics about “fatherlessness” in black families. This data is not specific to Catholics, but it was the first set of statistics I started with in relation to the …
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Would I assert that black lives matter?
As a Catholic Pastor, I have thought it would be good to make my own statement about the protests and calls for justice in the wake of the killing of George Floyd. I have started this post with the question, "would I assert that black lives matter?" Firstly, I do not really support the organization …
