The Pater Noster is a prayer and… a bead, a string, a measure of time, an architectural feature, a fishing line, an intransitive verb, and a lake. As readers should know, Pater noster is the beginning of the Our Father … Continue reading
Author Archives: Catholicism.org
Kneeling and Genuflecting
Two Catholic traditions dealing with knees come to us from two kings, one in the Old Testament, and one in the New. We receive the tradition of praying on our knees from King Solomon: “…he rose from before the altar … Continue reading
The Sudarium
The Sacred Sudarium of our Lord resides in Oviedo, Spain. Most people have heard of the Holy Shroud of Turin, our Lord’s burial cloth. In relation to our Lord’s entombment, the Gospel of St. John mentions also “the napkin that … Continue reading
The Bible can now be read in 1577 Languages!
The Bible can now be read in 1577 Languages!
The Holy Name
The Holy Name of Jesus occurs in the New Testament nine hundred and sixty-eight times and once explicitly in the Old Testament in Habacuc 3:18. That makes a total of nine hundred and sixty nine times that the Savior’s Name … Continue reading
Seventy Two
Our Lady was seventy-two years old when she died. There are seventy-two Books in the Bible. Our Lord chose seventy-two disciples. The Septuagint (that is, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament) was the work of seventy-two Jewish scholars. … Continue reading
St. Brendan the Navigator
The first Europeans to set foot on American soil were actually St. Brendan the Navigator and his band of Irish monks. These fearless missionaries arrived here to plant the Cross of Christ for the first time nine hundred years before … Continue reading
Leif Ericson
Leif Ericson was a Catholic. The son of Eric the Red, of Viking fame, he was converted to Christianity around the year 1000 by St. Olaf, the king of Norway. This saintly monarch sent Ericson to spread the Faith among … Continue reading
Christopher Columbus’ Ship
The full name of Christopher Columbus’ ship was Santa Maria de la Inmaculada Concepcion (Holy Mary of the Immaculate Conception). The great Discoverer had a devotion to Our Lady under this title long before the dogma of Our Lady’s Immaculate … Continue reading
George Washington Died a Catholic
[There is more on this subject here: Slaves Held Washington Became a Catholic on His Deathbed.] Our first President, George Washington, died a Catholic. While he lay on his deathbed he sent his slaves across the Potomac to bring back his … Continue reading
The Campos Profession of Faith
Editor Introduction: We borrow from a supplement to #78 of Approaches , the following translation of a profession of faith by twenty-five priests from the diocese of Campos, Brazil, issued on Easter of this year, 1982. We bless these courageous … Continue reading
The Novena of Grace
This is the powerful novena to Saint Francis Xavier which, in times past, was solemnly celebrated on the above dates throughout the entire Church. This great Jesuit Saint is the Exemplar of our Crusade, and in March of every year … Continue reading
Novena to the Immaculate Heart of Mary
Holy Mother Church dedicates the month of August to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. On August 15 we celebrate the Feast of the Assumption, and on August 22, the Feast of the Immaculate Heart. Our novena begins on the 14th, … Continue reading
The Fathers of the Church on Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus
Let us examine how “the Church over the centuries” has explained the dogma, Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus. This study will not only give us the “context of the entire teaching of the Church on this matter,” but will also enable … Continue reading
The Infallibility of the Pope — Basic Facts About an Essential Dogma
Infallibility: What does it mean? The word itself means exactly what the dictionary tells us, “incapability of error or deception.” Interestingly enough, no person on the face of the earth, except the Vicar of Christ, would dare insist on such … Continue reading
