Gina's notes
1 March
- Sunday gospel: parable of the Fig Tree (Luke 13). God is a good gardener. He wants us to produce good fruit.
- Discussion of Reproductive Health Act with Kathleen Gallagher, director of pro-life activities for the New York State Catholic Conference.
22 February
- Sunday is the Second Sunday of Lent: the gospel is the Transfiguration.
- No meat on Fridays; both fast and abstinence required on Good Friday.
- Today is the Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter, Apostle: celebrates selection of Simon as "the Rock," the first liturgies celebrated by Peter in Rome, the ancient wooden cathedra preserved and venerated in Rome as the chair on which Peter sat to baptize catechumens, and the enduring role of the papacy in the Body of Christ.
- Prayers for the Pope.
- FACEBOOK NO. 1. Philip. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Please pray for my cousin Denis who has a drug addiction and is suffering with depression. Please also pray for his parents who are elderly and are hurting from his decisions.
- NOT ON THE LINE. Fran. Rochester. New York. How were all the words attributed to being spoken by Christ in the Bible verified as authentic?
- From a friend in Amherst: When was the shortest conclave before the election of a new pope? When was the longest? How long and short were they?
- Erika's Mom, Marie, who has recently had stage four cancer return after a time of remission.
- Scott from Rochester: in a weight loss program and wondered if eating meat on friday is okay for medical pruposes.
- Sennie from Jos (Joh-os), Nigeria: Please pray for God to soften my heart and that His will may be done in my life and that of my family.
- Yasmin: El Paso, Texas: If you have received the Eucharist during a morning mass, and attended mass later, is it required that we take communion again? Is it bad not to? Does it make a difference if we do, being that Christ is already inside us? Any reference readings or your answers on this would be great, thank you!
- Roberta: I have been having a debate with some fellow Catholics. We all believe the basic truth that God is in everyone and it is His action that causes us to seek Him. However, some say that the Holy Spirit is in everyone regardless of their actions. Some people believe that you cannot serve two masters and if someone is choosing evil then God cannot coexist in their heart. Can you clarify this for me?
- Anonymous from Williamsville:
- - If a person is aware of grave sin, should he decline serving as an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion?
- - If you are aware that someone presenting for Holy Communion is not a Catholic, should I, as an Extraordinary Minister, refuse to give him Communion?
- Mary from Buffalo: Can her non-practicing friend receive Communion?
- Dan from Akron, NY: where does the term "Son of Man" come from?
- Tom from Grand Island, NY: Is it a sin to error on the side of caution re giving Communion? (ie if you have reservations)?
Recent questions
Catholic vs. Christian
- Ryan from e-mail: I had a debate with somebody who thought there was a difference between a Catholic and a Christian. To me, that sounds like saying there is a difference between a Car and a Ford Vehicle. My feeling is that Christianity would have had to come before the Catholic Church since Catholicism is a denomination of Christianity. Am I right or wrong about this?
Protestant rejection of Tradition
- John Z. from Facebook: Why do so many of our protestant brothers and sisters reject tradition? It is as though they center their teaching on fragments from St. Paul's letters. I have listened to a lot of Pastors, and they never seem to preach on the Gospel passages that command us to express our faith in good works. In Matthew 25, for example, Jesus separates the sheep and the goats according to things they did or did not do for the least of His brethren.
Praying for ourselves
- From a Facebook friend:
- - Is it "right" to ask for a real miracle for oneself or is it the epitome of selfishness?
- - What is the best way to pray and how often? I've been locked in virtually the same words and number of times a day for decades. Will God understand, or forgive me, if I change the wording, or the frequency?
Catholic Children's Bible
- For parents: The Catholic Children's Bible by St. Mary's Press.
Calling the Pope "Father"
- From a friend of a friend via e-mail: "Is calling the Pope 'Holy Father' officially described in doctrine of the Church, or is it something which one could disagree with while remaining Catholic?"
Vegan Questions
- From Wake Up:
- I learned in Catholic church that God is called the most merciful being, so why would He create sentient beings who are intelligent, can feel pain, and become frightened, as humans do, only to have them tortured horribly by humans?
- Did God say that He created animals for humans to consume?
- How would we feel if we were forcibly and repeatedly impregnated - to be blunt, raped? If, the babies we carried for nine months were torn from us so that the milk meant for them would be sold? If we were hooked up to milking machines until we were "spent," then shipped off to slaughter when we became too sick or too weak to be financially valuable?
- The Catholic church teaches their followers to oppose abortion because it is a mortal sin to kill, yet they teach their followers to brutally kill animals to satisfy the followers' taste buds. I wonder, as they teach them to kill one living being (an animal), how Catholic leaders expect them not to kill another living being (a fetus)?
- Humans have been trying to explore other planets to find living beings. What would we think if one day powerful beings from another planet placed us in crates so small that we cannot turn around for our entire of lives in order to harvest our eggs, milked us, raped us, took our babies away from us for their own food, and treated us with all the same cruel methods with which we are treating animals today?
- I learned in Catholic church that arrogance is the most basic cause of every sin. I wonder if you consciously, ethically, morally, humanely think that we should continue to treat animals with no mercy, no compassion as we have been doing for so long?
- I wonder how the Catholic church can teach their followers to do the right things in this life in order to find peace in heaven in the next life, yet create a hell on earth for animals by teaching their followers to torture animals for the followers' greed?
Soteriology
- Zach from Amherst: How does the death of Jesus make reparation for our sins? Does God just want us to be content in not knowing exactly why He wills what He does, but just know that He wills it?
Consolation and Desolation
- Patricia from Facebook: Father my friend would like a definition of what a consolation would be, or an experience of such.
Fr. Walter Ciszek, SJ
- Suellen Ann from Facebook: I just saw a beautiful documentary on EWTN about Fr. Walter Ciszek, a Jesuit who was held captive in Siberia for 15 years. Could you talk a little bit about his life and works?
Jewish roots of Catholic liturgy
- John from Facebook: Is the tradition of having a sequence of annual feasts rooted in the Church's Jewish heritage?
Catholic understanding of marriage
- Nicole from e-mail: I spoke w/a 20-something co-worker regarding male/female complementarity one day when she mentioned that people who don't accept "same-sex marriage" are bigots. She listened to me kindly but did not accept the idea that opposite genders go together because of procreation. Her immediate answer was, "well, the couple can use IVF." I find that many younger people have a utilitarian point of view - the end justifies the means. How can I present the Church's teaching on marriage and the natural law in the most effective fashion?
Ordination of Women and Priestly Celibacy
Amy from e-mail: I recently spoke with some women friends about the ordination of women and allowing priests to marry. They claimed that these two issues are founded on human law rather than divine law, and then argued that because some day there will not be enough priests to serve the people, other options must be discussed. Are these issues open to discussion?
Year of Faith Website
- David M. from Rochester: Here is the Vatican’s website for the year of faith: www.annusfidei.va.
Common Bible includes "Apocrypha"
John W. from e-mail: I was very surprised this afternoon when you quoted Tobit 4:8 on giving. You said, "The Protestants don’t have Tobit in their Bible." Here in Canada, or at least Toronto, we DO! We also have Judith, Wisdom, Baruch, 1&2 Maccabees, and the other Deuterocanonical Books in the pew Bibles of at least our local Anglican and Presbyterian churches, and probably in the local United Church too. The pew Bibles are the “New Revised Standard Version (with Apocrypha).†These are logical developments based on Vatican II, which began fifty years ago, and the first Anglican-Roman Catholic Common Declaration and the establishment of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission forty-six years ago. Most Protestant churches are also using the Revised Common Lectionary. Is this just a Canadian thing?
Lives of Saints for Young Children
Veronica from Ithaca made some extra suggestions: Good books for God's children.
Psychology and Catholicism
- John from Facebook: At the school I work, they are doing workshops on motivation and learning. They presented a workshop on William Glasser's "choice theory," which seems to me to advocate faith but no God. When the Church provides counsel through Catholic Charities or even through a priest, how does it merge psychology and faith?
The Gospel of Jesus' Wife
What does the Church think about the Coptic fragment that people are calling "The Gospel of Jesus' Wife"?
Godly Gynecology; Pregnancy Support Services
- Melissa from Kenmore, New York: "A friend of a friend of mine was told for decades that she had a thyroid problem that would prevent her from becoming pregnant. The doctors were wrong. When she began to gain weight because of a pregnancy, her doctor just adjusted her medication, thinking that her weight gain was due to thyroid problems, not a pregnancy. This was a devastating situation for her, as she ended up having an abortion. Many women who opt for abortion are not FOR abortion in and of itself. Many just do not have the support of the father or their family, and do not know who would help them cope with an unplanned child at the time of birth. Could you list some resources women in such a situation can turn to?"
Pacifism required?
- Anonymous: Why do some candidates who are pro life still support violence via wars, detainment, and the like? Why can't being pro life mean being more vigilant in ending wars through diplomatic talks rather than continuing what seems an endless fight in another country? Our military wants to come home. Does war ever make any sense?"
Feeling guilty after Confession
- Anonymous: "I have a hard time forgiving myself, even after I confess a sin in confession. Is that also a sin?"
Prayer request
- "Just wanted to say thanks for the prayers. I know that you prayed that I can get back with my wife. It really isn't possible. I don't know what is going on with her. She has started a lot of problems, and she is hanging around with violent people. I don't want to keep her from seeing her daughter. Yet at the same time I fear what she may do. I am fearful for my daughter as well as my own as well as my family's lives. Please pray for me. I am so scared."
Interceding for Sinners
- Anonymous: "What is the consequence if someone who is not Catholic receives the Eucharist in ignorance. Besides educating them, is there a penance one can do for them?"
Spiritual Warfare
- John Z. from Facebook re: spiritual warfare.
- Can people be used by demons to try and fight and create turmoil and strife?
- Are there angels and demons duking it out fighting for our souls?
- Also, I saw on a blog where a guy said to look in the Old Testament as to how many people Satan killed vs God. He claims that Satan only killed ten and God killed thousands. So, in his view, the whole Christian idea of God is false, and Satan got a raw deal.
How to Create Extra Pages
There are two ways to make more pages for yourself. Well, three, I guess. The first two require being logged in.
1. Search for the title of the page you want to create. When the search fails, click on the red link to create the page.
2. Put the name of the new page you want to create in double square brackets on a current page. When you save the page, the name of the page you are about to create will appear in red.
- Here is a red link; if you click on it, you may choose to create the page: Gina's test page.
3. Ask me to create the page(s) for you.
After you have created a page, putting the name of the page in double square brackets makes a blue link to the page. So, for example, I have been working on the book of Jonah for a few days.
To create an external link, use just one pair of square brackets:
This does depend on a space between the URL and the text that is shown to the reader.
You can link to an existing page using double square brackets and a pipe: This is an active link to my old show preparation page. None of the words you see here in blue are the name of the page. The real name of the page is hidden from view.