Author: yuengerwv

Someone stated that there can be no hell because there is not a single thing they can do that God will not forgive, thus no Hell.

You appear to be making a common linguistic or grammatical error when you state: “that there is not a single thing I can do that God will not forgive.”  The problem is your choice of the word “will”.
Our faith is clear that there is no sin God “can” not forgive.  However, there are sins God “will” not forgive.  How so?  In in scripture it states:
Mark 3:29 But whoever blasphemes against the holy Spirit will never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an everlasting sin.”
Luke 12:10 “Everyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but the one who blasphemes against the holy Spirit will not be forgiven.”
Matthew 12:32 And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven; but whoever speaks against the holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
Matthew 6: “and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors”.  “If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions.”
 In addition, there can be sins we refuse to let God forgive.  Or we can have sins we “think” God cannot forgive, which is Idolatry… we are stronger than God.  In both cases we do not desire reconciliation.  God does not force his forgiveness upon us.  The words WILL and CAN are not interchangeable.
Thus it is possible we can remain not forgiven, and so Hell exists.

I was at a parish recently where the priest baptized twins that had been previously baptized when born due to danger of death. I thought a person could be baptized only once, am I wrong?

You are correct.  The Catechism of the Catholic Church states in paragraph 1246: “Every person not yet baptized and only such a person is able to be baptized.”  [Emphasis is mine.]  A person can only be validly baptized one time in their entire life.  If the twins were baptized, by any person using water and the Trinitarian formula they were validly baptized at birth.  If there is uncertainty regarding the baptism they could have been conditionally baptized, meaning there is an uncertainty as to the baptism at birth, “If you were not baptized, I now baptize you.”  Presuming the children were validly baptized at birth, their baptism should have been recorded in the local parish where the hospital is located.  That parish then remains the official location of baptism and is where the children would write for baptismal records, not the parish where you were attending.
The priest should have known better and lost the opportunity for a teaching moment.  Such would have been a perfect opportunity to educate the parents, and entire parish, regarding baptism in an emergency.  He could have explained that the Catechism of the Catholic Church in paragraph 1256 states: “In case of necessity, anyone, even a non-baptized person, with the required intention, can baptize, by using the Trinitarian baptismal formula.”
Based on what information you have given, the “baptism” by the priest was thus invalid and illicit.

Why do we have the mass intention for specific people and how are they selected?

Ancient cultures, including the Israelites, had priests who served as intermediaries between the ordinary folks and their gods.  They would offer sacrifices for the forgiveness of sin, for intercession, for good harvests, etc.  Thus I would argue that the earliest issue of intentions is connected with intercessory prayer.  In the Gospels it is not uncommon for one person to be asking Jesus to intercede for someone’s healing other than themselves.  One of those stories leads us to the prayer we still say at mass, “Lord I am not worthy…”  Thus the custom of mass intentions goes back almost to the beginning of the Church.  People would ask the priest to remember someone in their prayers at mass.  “Canons of Hippolytus (c. 235) explicitly mentions the offering of prayers for the dead during the Mass.”  In the Catholic Church people continue to request the priest to remember their specific needs or their deceased loved ones. 

A parish may accept only as many intentions as can be satisfied within a year.  Which leads to the second half of the question.  How the mass intentions are selected vary according to location and sometimes even the intention of the person requesting the masses.  Some are requested for certain dates, such as anniversaries.  Some are placed on the local calendar on a first come first served basis.  Some are shuffled in such a way to honor the intention without having an entire block of days or weeks for the same intention.  The latter allows for recently deceased members to be included in the rotation without undo delay.  Some locations have such a large number of requests that they cannot be satisfied within the year.  Such parishes will then send the mass intention to another parish where the mass intention can be satisfied appropriately.  In our Diocese the surplus intentions, along with any stipend, are sent to the Society for the Propagation of the Faith, which then distributes the masses most often to mission parishes that may be financially struggling.

Several people have made comments on the political environment of today and asked for my opinion.  I replied modern politicians were predicted in this song by Bricusse and Newley in the 1961 British play “Stop the World,” sung by the politician Littlechap. It is his political speech at his rallies.

Mumbo Jumbo, rhubarb rhubarb
Tickety bubarb yak yak yak,
Mumbo jum red white and bluebarb,
Poor Britannia’s on her back.

Mumbo Jumbo, rhubarb rhubarb
Nothing newbarb cha cha cha.
Mumbo Jumbo Castro’s Cubarb.
I think someone’s gone too far!

Mumbo Jumbo, rhubarb rhubarb
Voulez-vousbarb avec moi?
Mumbo Jumbo entrez-nousbarb
Bridget Bardot ooh la la!

Mumbo Jumbo, rhubarb rhubarb
Has Red China got the bomb?
Velly soon now if it’s truebarb
We’ll be blown to kingdom come.

Mumbo Jumbo, rhubarb rhubarb
Give the Democrats more cash.
Helps the nation, stops inflation.
How’s your father?  Wall Street crash.

Mumbo Jumbo, rhubarb rhubarb
Prostitubarb off the streets.
We will fight them on the beaches
But we’ll lose between the sheets.

Mumbo Jumbo, rhubarb rhubarb
Common Market can’t go wrong.
Washday Mondays?  Send your undies
Chinese laundry in Hong Kong.

Mumbo Jumbo, rhubarb rhubarb
Give the Africans their rights.
Colored people are free toobarb
Though not quite as free as whites!

Mumbo Jumbo, rhubarb rhubarb
Up your flubarb, Liberty Hall.
And, dear friends, if I’m elected,
I’m all right, Jack–screw you all!

In the play Littlechap wins the election with an overwhelming majority of votes.

So much for my answer. Since this was written in 1961 I am not making any explicit reference to any of the political candidates of today. But, if the shoe fits…

We have issues in our marriage that I think needs help, but we can’t turn to anyone locally. I will take a moment to mention a common problem: Marriage difficulties.

Most people experience difficulties in their marriage.
•            Do you feel lost, alone or bored in your marriage?
•            Are you frustrated, hurt or angry with your spouse?
•            Are you constantly fighting? Or, do you simply shut down?
•            Have you thought about separation or divorce?
•            Does talking about it only make it worse?
Divorce is not always the best answer. In addition to speaking with your priest, who in most cases has never been married, or a professional family counselor, consider a program that helps couples in trouble.

There is a program called Retrouvaille.  The word Retrouvaille™ (pronounced re-tro-vi with a long i.) is a French word meaning rediscovery. The program offers tools needed to rediscover a loving marriage relationship. Thousands of couples headed for cold, unloving relationships or divorce have successfully overcome their marriage problems by attending the program.

The Retrouvaille Program consists of a weekend experience combined with a series of 6-12 post-weekend sessions over 3 months. It provides the tools to help put your marriage in order again. The main emphasis of the program is on communication in marriage between husband and wife. It will give you the opportunity to rediscover each other and examine your lives together in a new and positive way.
As a seminarian I had the opportunity to attend a Retrouvaille weekend and found it to be an excellent resource for hurting couples.  For more information you are free to speak with me or check out their website: http://www.retrouvaille.org/

I received a solicitation for support from a group that calls itself an equestrian order of the Vatican.  Is this a legitimate group?

With all the groups out there asking for money, including fraudulent ones, a person cannot be too cautious.  According to a recent notification by the Vatican, because of fraud, stipulates the official equestrian organizations affiliated with the Vatican City or with the Roman Pontiff.  Here is the memo:

Vatican City, 16 October 2012 (VIS) – In response to frequent requests for information concerning the recognition by the Holy See of Equestrian Orders dedicated to the saints or to holy places, the Secretariat of State considers it opportune to reiterate what has already been published, namely that, other than its own Equestrian Orders (the Supreme Order of Christ, the Order of the Golden Spur, the Pian Order, the Order of Saint Gregory the Great, and the Order of Pope Saint Sylvester), the Holy See recognizes and supports only the Sovereign Military Order of Malta – also known as the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta – and the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. The Holy See foresees no additions or innovations in this regard.

All other orders, whether of recent origin or mediaeval foundation, are not recognized by the Holy See. Furthermore, the Holy See does not guarantee their historical or juridical legitimacy, their ends or organizational structures.

If the request came from a group not named, consider it to be fraudulent.

What does the Church say about tattoos?

The Catechism of the Catholic Church has no official position that I am aware of regarding tattoos. 

Some will point to the bible for an answer — Leviticus Leviticus 19:28: “Do not lacerate your bodies for the dead, and do not tattoo yourselves.”  However those same people it would seem have no problem violating verse 27 which states: “Do not clip your hair at the temples, nor spoil the edges of your beard.” How many men shave their face or trim their beards and cut their hair?  Leviticus mentions many things not considered binding in today’s world, such as hairstyles, diet, and many other behaviors.

When doing an internet search, one can find many pros and con’s regarding the use of tattoos.  Body art and mutilations are an ancient practice.  I personally see no value to piercing, cutting, staining my skin or other to the creature God created.  In my opinion I am a creature of God who loves me just as I am, he made me “just right”.  I do not need to make myself “prettier”.  Having said that, I do buy “nice clothes,” get my hair cut; trim my beard, etc. for the purpose of making myself “culturally appropriate.”  If we were not seeking to make ourselves “different” the entire fashion industry, grooming industry and many others would go down the tubes.  Some bishops will not ordain a man with a beard or mustache, which involves scraping off with a blade the God given beard thereby making themselves look more like military soldiers.  In our U.S. culture most women do the same with their legs.

I recognize true beauty is internal, yet each culture in history has had its various concepts of external beauty, for both males and females.  My concern for the tattoo, as with any body modification, is its permanence and the potential for “undesirable” consequences down the road.  Again, unless one takes it to the extreme of damaging one’s body there is no official position that I am aware of regarding tattoos. 

When I was young, there was a sacrament of Last Rites before someone died.  I have not heard of it for years and wonder if the Catholic Church has changed the 7 sacraments?

Your question is a common one and one which shows the shifts of Vatican II to reform some items that had fallen into disuse or had lost their initial meanings.  Extreme Unction (commonly called last rites) and the Anointing of the Sick are the same sacrament.  The scriptural references for the sacrament are found in Mark 6:13, “They drove out many demons, and they anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.”  And in James 5:14-15 “Is anyone among you sick?  He should summon the presbyters of the church, and they should pray over him and anoint [him] with oil in the name of the lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up.  If he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven.”

The church councils at Florence, Trent and Vatican II have all reaffirmed the sacrament.  The only thing that changed in recent years was the timing for administration for the sacrament.  Vatican II Fathers wrote that “anointing of the sick is not a sacrament for those only who are at the point of death.  Hence as soon as any one of the faithful begins to be in danger of death from sickness or old age, the fitting time for that person to receive this sacrament has certainly already arrived.” 
What this means is that one should not wait for someone to be drawing their last breath before asking the priest to anoint them.  When one becomes ill or enters into danger of death the priest should be called as soon as possible.  Waiting until the loved one is at death’s door can be too late.

Recipients of the sacrament include:
–Those of the faithful whose health is seriously impaired by sickness or old age
–A sick person may be anointed before surgery whenever a serious illness is the reason for the surgery
–Elderly people may be anointed if they have become notably weakened, even though no serious illness is present
–Sick children may be anointed if they have sufficient use of reason to be strengthened by the Sacrament

If in danger of death any Christian, who cannot approach a minister of their own community may receive the sacraments of penance, the Eucharist and anointing of the sick, provided they spontaneously ask for them, they demonstrate the catholic faith in respect of these sacraments, (i.e., the real and not symbolic presence of Christ in the Eucharist), and are properly disposed.

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To answer that question it is important to remember several things.  The primary shepherd and pastor in and of the diocese is the Bishop.  Because of geographic realities the bishop cannot be everywhere meeting the needs of the people. 
For this reason priests (presbyters) are ordained and assigned exclusively to assist the bishop in his ministry.  As a bishop looks over his diocese he looks at the needs of the individual communities and tries to find a priest for them whom he feels can best lead them in his place.  The process is similar to that of a coach who sees the gifts of his/her players and moves them around to the positions that will best serve the team.
While the assignment as a pastor is seen as a more or less permanent designation there are the realities that creep in to make them less than permanent.  For example as one priest retires, dies, or withdraws from active ministry, other priests must be shuffled to serve all the communities.  All priests may receive a similar theological education, but as you may have noticed not all priests have the same personal gifts: some are better at preaching, some have a better bedside manner with the ill, some are better teachers, some are better counselors, some are better finance managers, some work best with older people and some work better with the youth.
As the person who is responsible for 100,000+ souls the bishop aided by his staff do his best to ensure that everyone in the diocese is served by a priest who can help them on their journey to heaven.  The reason there are so many different kinds of priests is because there are so many different kinds of people to shepherd.  One size does not fit all.  Thus we could suspect that the periodic movement of priest is God’s way of making sure each of the members of a given parish have a pastor at some time who can connect with them and lead them to heaven.

When I was young, there was a phrase about the role of laity in the Church. “Pray, Pay, and Obey! The Church has always emphasized the obligations of the lay faithful. The reality was that, in many cases even then, the Laity had rights they were never informed of or worse, were denied. This document is an attempt to address some of both areas.

Hopefully it will be helpful.