Free Republic

Second marriages The Church does not gauge the validity of a union by the happiness of the people who have entered it Msgr. Charles Pope 1/9/2019 Question: Jesus says if you divorce your wife and marry another, you commit adultery. But we see many seemingly happy people in their second marriage. What is your perspective on this? — Paul VanHoudt, Erie, Colorado Answer: The implied premise of your question is that happiness and joy are determining criteria for what is right and wrong. Such a premise is flawed. Doing what is right does not always bring immediate happiness. Sometimes what...

Throughout church history there have been many obscure, or less clear, passages in Scripture that have attracted a variety of strange—and wrong—interpretations. How do we avoid the error of drawing something from Scripture that is simply not there? What principle do we call upon to guide us in our efforts to understand God’s Word? Dr. Sproul will help us with that as he explains the difference between “The Explicit and the Implicit.” This is a poor quality video of about 30 minutes on how man can draw poor conclusions from scripture text. Normally I wouldn't post but it is very...

“‘On the other hand, it is written, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test”’” (Matthew 4:7). The Lord Jesus had two good reasons for not participating in a worldly spectacle such as jumping from the temple roof. First, such sensationalism is captive to the laws of diminishing returns. To generate and hold people’s allegiance to Him merely by stunning signs, Jesus would have needed to produce greater and greater signs. People would never have been satisfied and would always have demanded just one more miracle, one additional showy event. Real faith would not have been certain;...

Post by Franciscan Media Saint Charles from Sezze, Immaculate's church, Latina | Antonio Sicurezza Image: Saint Charles from Sezze, Immaculate’s church, Latina | Antonio Sicurezza Saint Charles of Sezze Saint of the Day for January 18 (October 19, 1613 – January 6, 1670) Audio Player Saint Charles of Sezze’s Story Charles thought that God was calling him to be a missionary in India, but he never got there. God had something better for this 17th-century successor to Brother Juniper. Born in Sezze, southeast of Rome, Charles was inspired by the lives of Salvator Horta and Paschal Baylon to become a...

Proverbs for Pro-Lifers Msgr. Charles Pope • January 17, 2019 • We who participate in the March for Life are always in need of the Lord’s strength and guidance, His grace and mercy, in order to see our goal of ending legalized abortion. To that end, I offer some lessons drawn from the 24th chapter of the Book of Proverbs: OUR SUMMONS TO TESTIMONY – If you remain indifferent in times of adversity, your strength will depart from you. Rescue those who are being dragged to death, and from those tottering to execution withdraw not. If you say, “I know...

“‘If You are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, “He will command His angels concerning You”’” (Matthew 4:6). Throughout history, sensationalism has often appealed to average people who are looking for dramatic events that titillate the senses and pander to fleshly curiosity. Toward the end of His ministry Jesus warned, “False Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect” (Matt. 24:24). Even when signs are from God, they usually do not bring unbelievers to faith, but only confirm the faith of...

Post by Franciscan Media Image: The Temptation of Saint Anthony | Hieronymus Bosch Saint Anthony of Egypt (Saint Anthony the Abbot) Saint of the Day for January 17 (251 – 356) Saint Anthony of Egypt’s Story The life of Anthony will remind many people of Saint Francis of Assisi. At 20, Anthony was so moved by the Gospel message, “Go, sell what you have, and give to [the] poor” (Mark 10:21b), that he actually did just that with his large inheritance. He is different from Francis in that most of Anthony’s life was spent in solitude. He saw the world...

Primary Purpose: To understand that Jesus has the power to raise us from the dead as he did Lazarus. We now come to one of the most amazing chapters in the gospel of John. It is one of the greatest miracles that Jesus ever did in his earthly ministry. It is also a foreshadowing of what he will do one day not only for Lazarus, but for all who believe in his name. Jesus reveals himself to the people as the “resurrection and the life”. We will divide this chapter into four sections. Then I want to go back and...

“Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple” (Matthew 4:5). In confronting our Lord Jesus Christ, Satan persisted in trying to undermine or destroy the Son’s relationship to His Father. This time he goaded Jesus with this statement: “If You are the Son of God, throw yourself down.” To fortify his challenge and make it more plausible, the adversary— with a subtle and clever twist—quoted Scripture: “For it is written, ‘He will command His angels concerning You’; and ‘On their hands they will bear You up, so that You...

Our Most Primal Fear and the Source of Our Bondage Msgr. Charles Pope • January 16, 2019 • At Mass for Wednesday of the first week of the year, we read a text from Hebrews that describes our most basic and primal fear. Our inordinate fear of what people think of us is rooted in an even deeper fear, one that is at the very core of our being. The Hebrews text both names it and describes it as being the source of our bondage. In order to unlock the secret of the text, I want to suggest to you...

Post by Franciscan Media Saint Berard and Companions Saint of the Day for January 16 (d. January 16, 1220) Audio Player Saint Berard and Companions’ Story Preaching the gospel is often dangerous work. Leaving one’s homeland and adjusting to new cultures, governments and languages is difficult enough; but martyrdom caps all the other sacrifices. In 1219, with the blessing of Saint Francis, Berard left Italy with Peter, Adjute, Accurs, Odo and Vitalis to preach in Morocco. En route in Spain, Vitalis became sick and commanded the other friars to continue their mission without him. They tried preaching in Seville, then...

“He answered and said, ‘It is written, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God”’” (Matthew 4:4). James, the Lord’s earthly half-brother, reminds us that this life is very temporary and uncertain—it is not even guaranteed that we will have an earthly future. James’s practical letter teaches us: “Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and also...

Christ’s Victory Is Total, but Often in Surprising Ways Msgr. Charles Pope • January 15, 2019 • The first reading from Mass for Tuesday of the First Week of the Year is from the Letter to the Hebrews. It sets forth the total victory of Christ and that the Father has subjected all things to Christ. Yet the text also shows how the outworking of this subjugation is paradoxical. Note first the declaration of all things being subject to Jesus Christ: In “subjecting” all things to him, he left nothing not “subject to him” (Hebrews 2:8b). “All things” is a...

Post by Franciscan Media Image: Saint Paul the Hermit | Jusepe de Ribera Saint Paul the Hermit Saint of the Day for January 15 (c. 233 – c. 345) Saint Paul the Hermit’s Story It is unclear what we really know of Paul’s life, how much is fable, how much is fact. Paul was reportedly born in Egypt, where he was orphaned by age 15. He was also a learned and devout young man. During the persecution of Decius in Egypt in the year 250, Paul was forced to hide in the home of a friend. Fearing a brother-in-law would...

This teaching survey's the book of Hebrews gathering data about typology (foreshadowing) of Christ in the Old Testament. It turns out that the book of Hebrews is chock full of examples of types. Not only that, it gives us cause to look for very specific kinds of types when we are reading the Old Testament. This book unlocks the Old Testament in a wonderful way.

The Message of the Letter to the Hebrews Msgr. Charles Pope • January 14, 2019 • This week in daily Mass, we are reading from The Letter to the Hebrews, one of the most underappreciated books of the New Testament. It has long been one of my favorites from which to teach; in it we are summoned to faith in Jesus, our Savior and Great High Priest. The opening lines in the Latin Vulgate are exquisite, particularly to those who can read and recite Latin well. Multifáriam, multísque modis, olim Deus lóquens pátribus in prophétis. Novíssime, diébus istis locútus est...

“He answered and said, ‘It is written, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God”’” (Matthew 4:4). Christians are never justified in trusting solely in themselves to meet their basic needs. No matter how worried we might become, if we turn to God in faith and obedience, He will meet all our essential needs in His own way, according to His sovereign schedule. Implicit in this understanding is that God will meet every need, both physical and spiritual, as Paul promises us, “My God will supply all your needs...

Post by Franciscan Media Image: Stained glass of St. Gregory Nazianzen | Saint Leonard Faith Community, Centerville, Ohio | photo by Nheyob Saint Gregory Nazianzen Saint of the Day for January 14 (c. 325 – c. 390) Saint Gregory Nazianzen’s Story After his baptism at 30, Gregory gladly accepted his friend Basil’s invitation to join him in a newly founded monastery. The solitude was broken when Gregory’s father, a bishop, needed help in his diocese and estate. It seems that Gregory was ordained a priest practically by force, and only reluctantly accepted the responsibility. He skillfully avoided a schism that...

God in Winter: Pondering the Gift of Snow Msgr. Charles Pope • January 13, 2019 • It snowed yesterday in Washington, D.C. It wasn’t anything epic, just a decent six-incher. There were drawbacks, of course: Mass attendance was poor, and I had to get up early to shovel a path to the doors. (Thank you, Lord, for the helpers you sent!) Despite the inconvenience, snow incites wonder and awe in me. I realize that not everyone likes snow, but it is an amazing work of God. He takes a barren winter landscape and creates it anew. I can almost hear...

“He answered and said, ‘It is written, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God”’” (Matthew 4:4). Above all, Satan’s temptations of Jesus Christ solicited His rebellion against the Father. But Jesus had come to earth to do the Father’s will and nothing else. In fact, His will and the Father’s were precisely the same (John 5:30; cf. 10:30; Heb. 10:9). Case in point: In the ultimate test of obedience, just prior to His arrest and betrayal, Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, “My Father, if it is...