Sacrament Restricted

A person, who wishes to remain nameless, showed me an email yesterday that a parish priest had sent to them in response to an enquiry about Confession times.  The response was that there were no Confessions being heard in his parish until after Easter Sunday. 

Dolanism: Modern Equivalent of Relativism?

Cardinal Dolan

I came across this video wherein Michael Voris expresses his opinion about Cardinal Dolan giving Holy Communion to US Vice President Joe Biden on Palm Sunday, 2013.  This is the same Vice President who has publicly supported abortion, contraception and gay marriage.  Voris does not pull any punches.

Debilitating Church Moral Teaching?

Cape Robin-Chat

I became extremely ill some years ago from a severe rare incurable lung disease.  This disease imposed restrictions on me and these restrictions have now led to me spending a fair amount of time in the quiet of the garden at my home. 

Is Pope Francis Causing A Headache?

Pope Francis arrives in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican on Sunday
Photo: Alessandra Tarantino / AP

I couldn’t help but wonder today whether Pope Francis is giving somebody in the Vatican a really big fat unpleasant headache.  I thought about this during Pope Francis’ homily for today, Palm Sunday. 

Joy, Cross and Youth

The following is the whole text of Pope Francis' homily during the Palm Sunday Mass that begins the Holy Week celebrations. This homily comes courtesy of the Vatican Information Service.

Pope Francis Official Photograph

This is the official photograph of His Holiness Pope Francis.  Accompanying the release of the photograph was this note:

Official Statement By Cardinal Napier On Stephen Nolan Show

Cardinal Napier

I post below this statement which I received via email today, Monday 18 March 2013 at 10:06 SAST, directly from Cardinal Napier. I publish it here, unaltered, exactly as I received it from Cardinal Napier.

Cardinal Napier Sacrificed

Cardinal Napier

Cardinal Napier’s recent interview with Stephen Nolan, which was broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live on Friday, 15 March 2013, has caused a great deal of controversy.  Why?  Well, exactly what other kind of reaction would one honestly expect to this: “Cardinal Napier Says Paedophilia Is Not Criminal”.  

Transcript: ‘Controversial’ Cardinal Napier Interview

Cardinal Napier

This interview has created a great deal of controversy.  Why?  Well because personally I believe that Stephen Nolan and other media used a byline that did not in anyway reflect what Cardinal Napier said, but was guaranteed to attract attention.  I write more on this in this other post - "Cardinal Napier Sacrificed".  The entire purpose of this interview was for Stephen Nolan, from BBC Radio 5, to discuss the election of Pope Francis with Cardinal Napier.  As seems to be par for the course with journalists today, this clearly was not the true reason for the interview.

Supernatural Power

A recent article in a Catholic newspaper, whose name I will not mention for fear of leading others astray, contained a few erroneous statements about the Sacrament of Penance - Confession.  This spurred me into action to respond by writing a brief response to specifically address the errors contained in the newspaper.

Cardinals Seating And Procession Order

The procession of the Cardinals into the Sistine Chapel, as well as the actual places where each Cardinal will sit during the Conclave is not determined on a first come first serve basis.  As Catholics have come to expect of Holy Mother Church, there is always order to all that she does and no detail seems to escape her attention.  So how are the Cardinals seated and what determines their order in a procession?

Police Brutality - An Appropriate Reaction

The recent news of Mido Macia who was dragged handcuffed behind a South African police vehicle for about 500 metres, before later dying in police custody from brutal injuries, has left South Africans and the whole world shocked. 

Conclave Date Now Set (Updated)

Earlier today Fr. Federico Lombardi announced that the College of Cardinals would vote today as to when the Conclave would begin.  Fr. Lombardi said in a statement that he anticipated that the Conclave would begin next week, either on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, but not before then.

Atheist Tells 'Catholic' How It Really Is

Piers Morgan quite proudly proclaims that he is a Catholic.  Yet he seems, like many cultural Catholics today, to lack any real understanding of our Catholic Faith.  He also seems to be a selective Catholic.  This is obvious from this video clip of Piers Morgan interviewing Penn Jillette.

What Do We Want In The New Pope?

Attention is now clearly on the College of Cardinals and who they will elect to be the 266^th successor of St Peter.  The media is in an absolute frenzy as they speculate about who the successor of St Peter will be.