 MAY 2007 FATHER KEVIN BATES, SM FATHER CEDRIC PISEGNA, C.P. CATHOLICVIEW STAFF  FATHER KEVIN BATES, SM ”Does the
Penitential Rite clear one of a mortal sin before communion?” - Clara Father Kevin:
Gosh Clara, I suppose it comes back to what you think God is really like and whether God regards missing Mass once as sufficient to deny you His presence and His love. The Church's law says that we should confess every sin that is considered "mortal" in the sacrament of Reconciliation. The Church also teaches that that Penitential Rite in the Liturgy serves to clear our hearts from sin as we prepare for the Eucharist. The Church still teaches that to miss Mass deliberately on a Sunday is a serious sin and also teaches that some circumstances can mean that missing Mass might not be serious if there were good reasons for doing so, or there were circumstances beyond your control. Again, come back to your own personal relationship with God - Would God turn away completely from you for this one event even if there was some element of sin present? Or does this one event mean that you have turned your back on God completely? Then I think you will have your answer. The fact that you are even asking the question means that you are longing to be at peace with God is more than enough of an answer. Every good wish to you. – Father Kevin Father Kevin: Hi
Kelly: Thanks for your question. I guess it's a natural sort of thing for this to happen. We only call the doctor when we are sick, or the lawyer when we are in need of legal help. In the same way, I think it's possible for people to treat God as a service person that you only call on in times of need. I can understand how this happens in busy lives, or in lives where God is there on the edge of people's consciousness. Having said that, to treat our relationship with God in this way really misses the whole point of the presence of the sacred, the presence of God in our lives. I think the gospel makes it very clear, that our faith is a "boots and all" commitment, and the only way to make sense of a relationship with God is to be on intimate terms with God, to pray constantly and to be in touch with the sacredness of things if you like. This doesn't necessarily mean we become overly religious - something which often puts other people off! Rather it does mean that we are deeply in touch with what really matters in life, and of course if this is the case, then God is at the center of things for us and never far away from our awareness. Every good wish. - Father Kevin ”My wife had to have a sterilization procedure for her health. Am I guilty of mortal sin?” - Darrell Father Kevin:
Firstly,
this was your wife's decision, taken while you were absent, and taken on the best medical
and pastoral advice she could get at the time. So how can it be that you are sinning
in any way since you were not party to the decision? My guess is that your wife made
this decision sincerely and having sought the best advice she could, and so she is not in
sin either. Again, look to your personal relationship with God and ask yourself in
the depth of your heart what God would really think. God
understands the ambiguities and the complications of our lives much better than we
can and is quietly relaxed as we find our way forward. He's not sitting around
waiting to pounce on us because of some error of judgment or some moral failure. You say
you feel guilty that she has had this procedure, but again this was her choice, which it
seems she made in everyone's best interests and as generously as she could. Perhaps
you need to trust her judgment here and trust in God's goodness in it all. I hope
you can continue to enjoy and give thanks for your marriage and your life together, and
your intimacy which is still a wonderful sign of God's fruitful love, as you have been as
fruitful as you can possibly be, given all the circumstances, and I am sure your love is
still bearing fruit in your own hearts and the lives of others. Just a
final thought - in this instance, it's not a matter of playing fast and loose with the
law, but putting the law where it belongs according to our Catholic Tradition, and that is
at the service of our loving relationship with God.
Father Cedric:
Dear Tom, The Bible tells us that our deeds will follow us and that at the final judgment “books” will be opened. (Rev. 20:12) Those books reveal our life decisions and deeds. However, immediately following “another book is opened.” That is the book of life. Also, called the Lamb’s book of the living, this book reveals all who are “in Christ.” When it comes to the final judgment it will be revealed that all have sinned and none are worthy. What matters most is, Have we come to Christ, believed in him, accepted him as Lord and received his Holy Spirit? If you have, your sins are forgiven, you have been reborn and God lives within you. You should have no fear of judgment, but believe that God has good things in store for you. Jesus has died for our sins, was raised for our justification and has sent the Holy Spirit for our growth and assurance. You have indicated that you are trying to turn your life to God. I invite you to pray to be filled with the Holy Spirit and pray that you know Jesus in a personal way. You will receive Peace with God and the Blessed Assurance only Jesus can give. God has revealed much to me about the death experience and the judgment to come. I invite you to purchase my engaging book: Death: The Final Surrender. - Father Cedric:
"Why do very strong feelings of guilt still bother me even after going to confession?" - Eileen Father Cedric:
Eileen, First of all, I am
glad that you are going to confession! Many today don’t. You talk about
“very strong feelings of guilt.” Guilt is a natural heart response when we
do something against the will of God. Therefore it is a built in indicator that
something is wrong. Perhaps you still feel guilty because you love God and you
don’t want to sin in this way again. I have found that the torment of guilt can
actually prevent you from sinning in a habitual way again and again. Because you
feel the guilt, stemming from your love for God, you know not to go there again and
sin. In that way, guilt can actually be a good thing. In addition, many who
go to confession do not know how to trust in the blood of Jesus for their forgiveness. The
major foundation of the Christian message is that Jesus suffered and died so that we could
be forgiven. It is your responsibility to look on the cross and trust Jesus enough to give
him your guilt. Beating yourself up endlessly will not merit anything. Jesus wants you to
have Peace with him and within yourself. Father: I am happily married with four children. I have a compulsion to take unnecessary risks. About once a month I gamble and if I lose $200 I stop but I go the next month. Recently I visited a hooker for the first time. It was a risk and I felt a rush but afterward I felt very guilty. I want to stop but I don't want to tell anybody about this. I won't go to a hooker again but I want to stop the gambling or find another way to get that risk rush. What can I do? Jim
Jim, It sounds to me like you are addicted to
“excitement.” Many people have a
hard time being content unless they are entertained, but you have this to a deep degree. I remember seeing a movie once where the
characters (Patrick Swayzee and others) were all young, surfers, skydivers and bank
robbers. They thrived on the adrenaline rush
whenever they did something risky. I’m
not sure what the root of this is. I do know
that the sinful side of us is a “gambler” while the spiritual side of ourselves
is an “investor.” You need to
discover what the roots of your wanting to take unnecessary risks is. One way to do that is to go to counseling. Another way is to join a 12 Step program dedicated
to excitement or risk taking. Unless you
surrender yourself to God, your risk taking will probably escalate. But, if you deal with it now, surrender to God and
try to get to the roots, you can recover. Please
make a move and live in God’s will for your life. – Father Cedric
Dear Benjamin: Thank you for writing
to us with your concerns regarding the existence and complexities of the soul. Your questions were two-fold, yet simple,
for we ARE our souls.
Our souls contain everything that is immaterial that is ourselves. It
is our soul that is the basis of love, emotion, imagination, dreams,
fulfillment, all the things that are not tangible yet very real. Now, I don't
remember God saying that we should live by faith ALONE. There is nothing in
scripture that says that we live only by faith without using our intellect. And the
purpose of the human lives that do not see earthly life beyond their birth is beyond me
but not beyond God's plan. All I know is that
they are just as human as you and I. Even through the highest human intellect,
logic or faith, we can never understand the supreme and infinite plans of Almighty
God as to why things happen during this earthly lifetime.
We depend on trust in the Lord's wisdom.
He tells us in Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew
you, before you were born, I dedicated you!” And
this continuity to God is never broken, except by man turning away from His
goodness. But I must say this:
why does one presume that human earthly life is better than human heavenly life?
Life is life whether it is on earth or back with the Creator in heaven. There is no cheating or injustice in the death of
an unborn child and someone who lives to 100 years. Life on earth is wonderful but
life in heaven and with the angels and God is something that cannot be explained and is so
amazing that our afterlife is our hope and future joy. Ecclesiastes 11:5 tells us “Just as you
know not how the breath of life fashions the human frame in the mother's womb, so you know
not the work of God which He is accomplishing in the universe”.
This is the answer to both your questions.
Simple. Not complicated because God
is simple: He is life and love. - CatholicView
Staff
”Can I marry in an Islamic wedding without being
excommunicated?” - Michelle CatholicView Staff: Michelle: Your marriage will not be valid in the eyes of
the Church if you marry your fiancé in an Islamic wedding. You will not be able to partake of the Sacrament
of Communion unless you have had the Sacrament of Marriage within the Catholic Church.. You say you are concerned about this and
rightfully so as there are many factors you have not spoken of such as how you plan to
raise your children. This is a lifetime partnership. Your husband does not have to become Catholic in
order to marry you in the Church. But
in the case of mixed marriages such as you are contemplating, where one party is Catholic
and the other is not, further instructions and preparation is required. The Catholic purpose is to find helpful ways in
which the couple can fully express their love and faith with spiritual unity. Neither partner in a mixed marriage (between a
Catholic and a baptized person of another Christian denomination) is required to sign a
promise that all children will be baptized and raised Catholic. The Catholic partner signs
two statements. (1) "I reaffirm my faith in Jesus Christ and intend to continue
living that faith in the Catholic Church." And, (2) "I promise to do all in my
power to share my faith with our children by having them baptized and raised as
Catholics" - a significantly different kind of promise than the old one generally
thought of years ago. Understandably, stability in a marriage is as a
rule more easily assured when both partners share the same faith. Toward this end, the
prospective bride and groom are encouraged to establish contacts with each other's
ministers and learn as much as possible about their partner's religious convictions and
practices. Since both partners may feel serious
commitments to their respective religious denominations, they are encouraged to
"discuss the Catholic baptism and education of the children they will have, and where
possible come to a decision on this question before the marriage." (All these norms
are found in the Official Catholic Directory on Ecumenism, 1993, Nos. 143-15 1.) Please see your priest immediately to clarify
these issues. I am sure you will find an
answer that will be satisfactory to both of you. - CatholicView Staff ”Can
my priest deny me confirmation because I use Marijuana?” - Kobus CatholicView Staff: Do you feel that a priest is justified
Kobus: Thank you for your question. I am so sorry to hear about your addiction to
Marijuana and that you are unable to give it up, even for your confirmation. Marijuana is illegal and to obtain it means
that you are breaking the law by buying it. You
are also aiding a dealer to stay in a business that is punishable by law. Both you and the drug dealer could face serious
consequences. Any addiction that takes away normalcy is
wrong. Marijuana is psychologically and physically
habit-forming, and produces a high in the user.
It affects the brain and causes
perception to be distorted, signaling other actions to take place. With this distortion a
person is not truly seeing reality. And so
Marijuana is something the Christian avoids for it is a seduction that leads us away from
virtue and reality. We are abandoning ourselves and opening doors that can lead to sinful
actions. We might say that God created wine and Christ
drank it so why is it wrong for us to drink it? But when one becomes a drunkard or addicted
to it, it becomes contrary to what the Lord teaches and that is moderation in all things,
and the avoidance of things that may endanger us. Those
who use marijuana and alcohol for its mind-altering benefits dishonor God’s purpose. It detracts from our witness of God in our lives
and is a sin, plain and simple. Because God created something, it does not give
us the liberty to use it as we please. Altering
one’s state of mind, entering into an unnatural high, escaping the issues that are in
front of us is morally wrong. 1 Corinthians
6:19-20 states: “Do you
not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, Who is in you, Whom you have
received from God? You are not your own. You
were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.” If we were to list all of the things that God
has created that we humans have misused, the list would be endless. Marijuana is something that leads us away from God. Our lives and our bodies are a gift to us
and we must use them to bring honor and glory to God as we pursue the life Christ wants. – CatholicView Staff “I had four
abortions 15 years ago. Am I
excommunicated?” - Renate CatholicView Staff: Renate: Your confession of past sins will not excommunicate you. But, I must tell you frankly: the fact that you participated and procured four abortions for yourself has already put you in the state of excommunication. Abortion is the taking of human life, even though that human life is unborn, it is contrary to God’s Plan and Will. Abortion is a clear renunciation of God’s creative power and love and is a deadly (mortal) sin that destroys a person’s relationship with God (and everyone else around you). The Church has said openly and clearly: anyone who has procured an abortion, and anyone who participated in the act of abortion by helping the person to go, advising the person to have an abortion, or taking part in the surgical procedure, is automatically excommunicated and cannot receive the sacraments or participate in the sacred liturgy. Your act automatically excommunicated you from God. So, your participation in the Church’s ministries is compromised. You need and must go to confession immediately and renounce your past sins, repent of the abortions you procured for yourself, and heal your relationship with God who is the Creator of life and not of death and with your Church. Then, in the secret of your heart and in a quiet place, give your entire self and your past to Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord. – CatholicView Staff
CatholicView Staff:
Dear Debby: God can forgive anything! He will forgive you when you ask Him to do so. Put your faith in the mercy of God. Regrets of past sinful actions is a sign of
spiritual maturity and the first step in healing your emotional self and your soul. Abortion is mortally sinful because it takes
a human life, yet unborn, and snuffs out that life even before it had the ability to
fulfill God’s mission and plan for that life. Even
though you suggest that your decision to have an abortion may have been the right thing at
the time, you do not know that. The baby
could have been a blessing at the time and God would have provided for the needs of the
child. You must confess this sin to a
priest so that your excommunication from the church can be lifted and you can be truly
healed. Remember, procuring an abortion (and
anyone involved in that decision) is an automatic excommunication from the church. The excommunication can only be lifted by going to
confession and repenting of your sin. I
suggest you go to another church away from your parish and talk to the priest there. Tell him everything that is on your heart. Then accept with a grateful heart the
affirmation of God’s forgiveness for you through the Sacrament of Penance. Then talk to your husband. It may be time to adopt a child that needs a
loving home that only you can provide (you are not obligated to do this, but it is a
suggestion). May the Lord fill your soul with
the peace that comes from His mercy given freely to all who ask Him. – CatholicView Staff
CatholicView Staff: ”I remarried civilly after my husband deserted me. Please, can I receive Holy Communion?” - Fran CatholicView Staff: Dear Fran: I am so happy to hear that you found your
soulmate in your present husband despite what happened to you in your first marriage. You
certainly have a case for an annulment from the church.
Even though you said that you could not afford the suggested donation for
the annulment procedure, each diocese usually dispenses the annulment “cost” for
someone in great need. Ask your pastor about
this and show him my answer to you. He will
understand and ask your local marriage tribunal to dispense from the administrative costs
of the annulment. I praise God for the love
you now have. Keep going forward. As you know, until the annulment is completed, you
cannot receive communion yet. But the time
will come. Give thanks to God each day for
your blessings and spiritually receive Jesus in your heart at Mass. At communion time, close your eyes, picture Jesus
reaching out to you and holding you in His loving arms, and tell Him to live within you. He understands your situation and accepts it. He knows when it is time, you will come back to
the communion altar with your family by your side. –
CatholicView Staff CatholicView Staff: Dear Cheryl: We are so sorry that you are facing such a
serious situation. Not only with the guilt of
not reporting this criminal information to the authorities, but also with your conscience
as a Christian. To remain silent makes you an accessory to
felonious action, and in the eyes of the law will be considered a very grave issue should
they find out you knew what was happening within your family and kept quiet. You cannot withhold vital criminal information
that may save lives and put an end to such activity.
You must alert the police to everything you mention in your letter. You are obligated to report this immediately and
let the police deal with it. You must not
close your eyes and pretend you cannot see these horrific things that are occurring. When you talk to the police, tell them of
your fears and ask them for their protection. Yes,
it is a scary situation that you are facing but as a Christian, you must do the right
thing. Be strong. Be brave. God
demands it of us. If death is one of the
consequences, so be it. Better to die a saint and be with God forever than live
an entire lifetime in the sin of lying and cover-up. CatholicView will keep you in prayer. We are so sorry that you are innocently
caught up in this. Family or not:
crime must be reported. When things come to us such as this, we must deal with them
in a Christian and honest way. Yes, it is
unfair that you face this frightening and dangerous circumstance you find yourself in, but
you must be strong. Pray hard and ask the
Lord to give you the strength to do what is right. Report
those who do wrong and endanger others. Ask
the Lord for His protection as you do what He would have you do in this situation. CatholicView is hoping you can find the peace that
can only come when these matters are straightened out.
God go with you always as you go forward with what you know in your heart is the
right thing. – CatholicView Staff
CatholicView Staff:
Dear Dawn: Be at peace!
The Lord understands you better than yourself and he understands your
anxiety disorder. You have a wonderful priest
who understood your situation by changing the required penance as a sign of your
repentance. If you couldn’t fulfill the
original penance, you had the right and obligation to say so. You did everything correctly! Be at peace!
The Lord loves you and knows what you are going through. –
CatholicView Staff CatholicView Staff: Dear
Karen: It is
certainly an honor to God that you are serving the Lord by being an Extraordinary Minister
of the Holy Eucharist. As to consuming the
remaining communion (the blood of Christ) during your pregnancy, why not ask your doctor
if it is wise to do so? Certainly there are
other ministers who can take care of this in the Sacristy. I do not think a small sip during regular serving of the blood would endanger you. Then again, you should check with your doctor. You can always accept the body of Christ comfortably; God will not fault you for refusing the blood of Christ. Remember, Christ is completely present under either form of bread and wine. You receive the TOTALITY of Christ either way. Be at peace. – CatholicView Staff CatholicView Staff: More and
more I see people wearing rosaries as jewelry. I was curious how the Church felt about
this. Even though I am not a Roman Catholic, this practice seems disrespectful to me
nonetheless.
I agree with you. It is disrespectful. The rosary is an instrument to be used in meditative prayer. It is not a piece of jewelry. – CatholicView Staff
CatholicView Staff: Dear Terry: The physical and sexual intimacy shared by a husband and wife in the bonds of marriage are acceptable if it is a sign of mutual love and respect. Hope this helps. – CatholicView Staff CatholicView Staff:
Frank: The work to perform could simply be a prayer, or Stations of the Cross, or saying the rosary with others in a public forum (like a rosary group). The work is usually a prayer and it is described in regards to the plenary indulgence. – CatholicView Staff
CatholicView Staff:
Dear Rhonda: I don’t understand why you want to baptize (as you say, christening) your granddaughter in your home -- outside of the church. This is not acceptable unless it is a matter of your granddaughter near immediate death. Your granddaughter must be baptized in a church by a deacon or priest. – CatholicView Staff Catholic View Staff: Just recently I was praying and a blasphemous thought just popped into my head. I knew it in my heart and soul to be utterly false and disgusting. It was nothing I had control over, but I felt absolutely horrible about it. I went to confession for it, where I was told it was not a sin since I could not fully control it. I'm constantly trying not to think about it, but the more I try, the more I think about it, thus causing more thoughts of the same type to uncontrollably pop into my head. I feel absolutely horrible about this. How can I get past these feelings and move on? –Maureen Maureen: Intrusive thoughts are very bothersome and cause much confusion. We all have had at one time or another an intrusive thought that comes and goes. Thought in itself is not sinful. Actions are sinful. So, when the thoughts come and disturb your peace of mind, say, “Lord, I give you this intrusive thought. Give me your Spirit of peace.” Soon, your intrusive thoughts will be gone and you will be able to go on with what you were doing. There is no sin involved in having intrusive thoughts. Be at peace. – CatholicView Staff
CatholicView Staff:: Liz: God loves all his creation. He loves the animals! He made them for us! In the Book of Jonah, Chapter 4, Verse 11, God states that He values animals very much in this ending verse (and therefore the moral of the story of Jonah), “And I am I not to feel sorry for Nineveh, the great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand who cannot tell their right hand from their left, TO SAY NOTHING OF ALL THE ANIMALS.” All life will be returned to God, and our pets will be returned to God because life itself cannot be destroyed, only changed. Though the scriptures itself does not specifically say what happens to animals after death (because the scriptures were more concerned about human interaction with God), I personally agree with you that in heaven, our pets who were our support in this life will be there too. The Church has no official teaching on this subject. Once again, the Church is more concerned to bring the salvation of Christ to human beings. Animals don’t need saving since they cannot chose to sin nor are they completely self-aware like humans are. – CatholicView Staff CatholicView Staff: Dear
Ann: First,
the rapture is not a biblical concept.
Purgatory, on the other hand, is a concept that has biblical roots. Simply, purgatory is the condition of
the human soul who at the time of death has not completely repented for their own sins. Before we can go before God, the Holy Spirit
cleanses us of everything that stands between complete union with God and us. That is purgatory.
It is not a place. Only heaven
and hell are places, but purgatory is a process, a state of being purified and saved, so
that we can take our place in heaven. This
is made reference to in the Book of Revelation, Chapter 7, Verse 14, “These are the
people who have been through the great persecution, and because they have washed
their robes white again in the blood of the Lamb, and they now stand in
front of God’s throne and serve him day and night in the sanctuary.” That’s what purgatory is: washing AGAIN our “robes”
in the blood of Christ after our earthly death (we washed our “robes” white the
first time in our baptism and acceptance of Christ as our Lord and Savior but these robes
got stained through our human sin throughout our earthly lives). CatholicView Staff: I have a
dilemma. I previously worked for my
local diocese. While there, my
department head did something which I believe was contrary to the Bishop's policy. I did not say anything, but it bothered me
to the point that I left. Now that I no
longer work there, should I say anything to anyone at the diocese about what happened and
might still be happening? Thanks. Steve
Dear
Steve: Honesty and "transparency" are the hallmarks of good administration of a diocese these days. After having the leadership of the church torn apart by recent sexual scandals and how those scandals were handled should be a warning and reminder to be clear and honest in all things. That is what the Lord demands of all of us. The sin of omission (meaning not saying anything or leaving out a mention of wrongdoing) is something that cannot be condoned or tolerated in the administration of a diocese. The bishop of your diocese is trusting you and others with the administration of God's work and the faith of people which is more precious than anything. You must report any wrongdoing to the bishop immediately. You should have done that when you were there. But now that you are separated from the department that you were working for, you are in a "safer" position to talk or write a letter to the bishop. Report now. Then, let the bishop and his investigators figure out the details and the veracity of your impressions of your former boss. May the Spirit of truth guide you in all you do. – CatholicView Staff
Dear
Mark: Aristotle
was a Greek philosopher (384 BC - 322 BC), a student of Plato. He taught and wrote
on a number of topics. I was particularly fond of his teaching on thinking
logically. Thomas Aquinas (1225 AD - 1274 AD) took Aristotle's teachings and tried
to place them within the Christian faith experience. Thomas Aquinas had his
distracters who disliked him using Aristotle's Greek (and therefore pagan) philosophy
as a starting point to discuss the mysteries of God and faith. I must say that I
have the opinion that Thomas Aquinas came quite close to explaining the truth of an
infinite God in finite philosophical terms. Aristotle's and Thomas Aquinas' great
contribution to the world is the philosophical notion of "natural law" which is
still being taught today in civil law, ethics, and theology. So, even though Thomas
Aquinas' theological teachings were informed by Aristotle's philosophy, to say that the
Church holds Aristotle's teaching in high esteem would be untrue. The Bible and the
oral tradition of the Church (Magisterium) are the ONLY philosophy and theology
of Catholicism. Aquinas was just another theologian, although a fantastic and
unique one, trying to understand God and His mysteries, and finding the meaning of
life. In your question, you asked what is the essence of "man" within the
Catholic faith. The answer is simple and it is contained in the Book of
Genesis, Chapter 1, Verse 27: "God created man in His image; in the divine
image He created them; male and female he created them." The human person's
essence is the image of God and that is what makes us different from the animal world.
Aristotle does call the human person a rational animal. Yes, I would
concur that we are a "rational animal" but we are more.
With self-awareness, intelligence, the ability to create and destroy (changing our
environment), we are more like God Himself. The essence of the human person is the
image of the divine, yes, to go so far as to say that we are the spirit, image,
and life of the divine. Aristotle did not even acknowledge that God's image is part
of a human being. So, the aspect of the human person that needs to flourish is
the divine and the human spirit, not the animal and physical nature. Our
spirituality makes us radically different from animals. That divine essence in
all of us makes us yearn and search for our Creator who is God, the great intelligence of
the universe, the great mover of all things (both Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas wrote about
this). That is why the Church has always taught that through our
spirituality (practice of the faith of Jesus Christ), we are able to have the tools to
control our physical passions and desires and live for God. The Church
emphasizes the spiritual passions of searching for God and His Will (our part in God's
eternal plan). The other essence of the human person is also explained in Genesis,
Chapter 1, Verse 31: "God looked at everything He created and He found it very
good." We are good by nature, very good as a matter of fact. This is what
really separates us from those of the Protestant Christian theology that sees humankind as
very bad and evil by nature. The Catholic Church sees the essence of the human
person as very good since we are made in the image of God. We did not lose our
innate goodness because of "original sin." Original sin blinds us to
this eternal truth (and explains why there is evil in the world.) The Catholic
faith and teachings stem from this thought: we are very good, made in the
image of God. Forgiveness is the ability to move on and learn from our mistakes.
If we are evil and bad by nature (as the Protestant Christian would have it), then
forgiveness would be an empty act since nothing could be done for an "evil by
nature" creation. But forgiveness is the acknowledgment that humankind is good
and forgiveness can take the blinders of sin away so that we can see our divine innate
potential (Jesus died for all sinners so that sinners could see the divine life
within them). That's the whole Catholic faith in a nutshell. Theologians
throughout the ages since the beginning of Christianity have written so much about this
subject of the nature of humankind. The answer here is a disservice to the work
of many writers who have tried to explain God and His Plan and Will to us who question.
But I hope that this simple summary can give you a direction in regards to
your question. –
CatholicView Staff CatholicView Staff: Dear Tresa: There is no problem with going to another church for any service, especially a funeral or wedding. There was a concern in the past that by going to another church of another denomination or religious faith that it would cause a Catholic to leave the church for some “false” teaching. There is not that kind of insecurity now (Vatican II Council relaxed this past restriction in 1964). Remember, you are a Catholic and your first allegiance is to the Church! – CatholicView Staff Please use the link at the top left
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