Call No Man Father?

St. Josemaria Escriva celebrating Mass.

In today's Gospel reading, Jesus admonishes his followers not to call any man on Earth father (Matt 23:9). How can this be?

Catholic Answers poses the question this way:

Many Protestants claim that when Catholics address priests as "father," they are engaging in an unbiblical practice that Jesus forbade: "Call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven" (Matt. 23:9).

In his tract 10 Reasons Why I Am Not a Roman Catholic, Fundamentalist anti-Catholic writer Donald Maconaghie quotes this passage as support for his charge that "the papacy is a hoax."

Bill Jackson, another Fundamentalist who runs a full-time anti-Catholic organization, says in his book Christian’s Guide To Roman Catholicism that a "study of Matthew 23:9 reveals that Jesus was talking about being called father as a title of religious superiority . . . [which is] the basis for the [Catholic] hierarchy" (53).
How should Catholics respond to such objections?

 Catholic Answers addresses this common question in this answer.

Here's Tim Staples answer:

Pentecost & the Role of the Holy Spirit

Pentecost, El Greco

Today we celebrate the Feast of Pentecost, in which Holy Spirit was poured out over the Church. Today also marks the birth of the Church. Sometimes I think the Holy Spirit is the most misunderstood and often forgotten person of the Holy Trinity.

The Catechism (688) gives a great summary of how we encounter (whether we know it or not) the Holy Spirit:

The Church, a communion living in the faith of the apostles which she transmits, is the place where we know the Holy Spirit:
- in the Scriptures he inspired;
- in the Tradition, to which the Church Fathers are always timely witnesses;
- in the Church's Magisterium, which he assists;
- in the sacramental liturgy, through its words and symbols, in which the Holy Spirit puts us into communion with Christ;
- in prayer, wherein he intercedes for us;
- in the charisms and ministries by which the Church is built up;
- in the signs of apostolic and missionary life;
- in the witness of saints through whom he manifests his holiness and continues the work of salvation.

We need to get in the habit of praying to the Holy Spirit because he is the one that sanctifies us. As we learn to trust him and ask for his help, we will be drawn closer to him. In this way we grow in our love for God and neighbor.

Prayer to the Holy Spirit by Josemaria Escriva (1934):

Come, O Holy Spirit!
Enlighten my mind to know your commands;
strengthen my heart against the snares of the enemy;
inflame my will…
I have heard your voice, and I don’t want to harden myself and resist, saying “Later…, tomorrow.”
Nunc coepi! Now I begin! In case there is no tomorrow for me.

O Spirit of truth and wisdom, Spirit of understanding and counsel, Spirit of joy and peace! I want whatever you want. I want because you want, I want however you want, I want whenever you want.

Here are a few videos to help with understanding the Third Person of the Holy Trinity better.

Father Robert Barron speaks about the Holy Spirit:

Jimmy Akin answers What is the Holy Spirit?

Jimmy Akin answers Who is the Holy Spirit?

Tuesday Tech Talk:Web Sites for Lent

There are a number of very good, authentic Catholic websites available. Unfortunately, if you are just returning to the Catholic Church (like I was eight years ago) or are a neophyte hungry to learn more, the Internet can be intimidating and even a dangerous place to find resources. We live in crazy times where so-called Catholic websites can be fronts for schismists who believe Vatican II was a heresy to progressives who think there's no contradiction between being Catholic and pro-choice. 

I hope this brief list (it is by no means exhaustive) is a good starting point for you to develop your own tool chest of resources. I would recommend visiting the links and blog lists posted on these sites. You will find that good sound teachers and writers on the faith have a tendency to cite each other.

I picked this list because they tend to be comprehensive and catechetical. Additionally, I think these sites would be appropriate tools for deepening your faith during Lent. You can use them to stock your Spiritual Toolbox with more spiritual tools and knowledge. You might use them to research a saint. Or you might use them to answer a FAQ of the Faith. 

Catholic Answers - one of the most comprehensive collection of Catholic apologetic and catechetical resources. The cite also has links to audio and video archives of their programming. On the low-tech side, they have a number of faith tracts that you can download for free.

Catholic Exchange - this site is structured like a news magazine containing topics that range from art to technology. The site contains a number of great columns and resources. It even posts recipes. For example, they recently posted a recipe for beer-battered fish fry.

EWTN - if you have not discovered EWTN, you need to just start watching the programming. Fortunately, if your cable or satellite provide does not carry Mother Angelica's network, you can follow most of the programming online. Additionally, the site has a huge library of documents and audio programming.

New Advent - in addition to having the complete copy of the 1917 Catholic Encyclopedia, this site includes the complete Summa, writings from the Church fathers, the Bible and a library of other Church documents. The site also captures a number of popular Catholic blogs.

USCCB - the shepherds of the US Catholic Church have organized a robust website which includes resources ranging from the Bible to liturgical norms. The site contains a complete copy of the New American Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Remember they also have great video reflections on the daily readings.

Tuesday Tech Talk: Catholic Podcasts

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Today's Tuesday Tech Talk will focus on finding and downloading Catholic podcasts. A podcast is defined as audio content created to be downloaded and heard on computers, mp3 players, tablets and other electronic devices. Think of them as radio shows you can listen to any time you want. Podcasts can vary in length from a few minutes to and hour or so. Most of them range from fifteen minutes to an hour.

When I was commuting to the University of North Texas every other day - a commute that lasted more than an hour from work - I would listen to podcasts more frequently. Now, I listen to Catholic radio shows I was unable to complete, for scripture reflection or to prepare for a talk.

I couldn't find an appropriate video tutorial to show you how to subscribe to podcasts, but you can do a quick Internet search to learn how to download them to iTunes, etc. You can also use directories like PodcastAlley to search for podcasts based on content and topic.

Here's a list of a few of my favorite Catholic podcasts:

• Catholic Answers - archive of radio programming from Q & A show
• Catholic Underground - a collection of shows dealing with Catholic media and the Behold the Man series
• EWTN - archive of homilies and shows
• Kresta in the Afternoon - archive of radio shows from Ave Maria Radio
• St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology - Scott Hahn's Sunday Gospel Reflections
• SQPN - multiple shows including Father Roderick
• Verbum Dominum - daily readings (now also included on USCCB site)

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Father John McCloskey on Spiritual Direction

Father John McCloskey was a guest on Catholic Answers Live radio show last Friday afternoon.  He spoke on the subject of spiritual direction. If you missed the show I am including a link to the Mp3 file. This will actually take you to my 4shared location. I have to admit I was having technical difficulty with directly embedding the audio onto the blog. I am working to fix that for future posts.

I thought it was more important to get the link out then wait and figure out what has changed with the embedding codes. Thank you for your patience.

Father John McCloskey on Catholic Answers

Father John McCloskey, author of Good News, Bad News: Evangelization, Conversion and The Crisis of Faith, will be taking calls during the second hour of Catholic Answers Live on Catholic Radio. Father McCloskey is the former director of the Catholic Information Center in Washington, D.C. The National Catholic Register described McCloskey as "one of the Church's most accomplished 'fishers of men.'" In fact, his spiritual direction was instrumental in the conversions of Judge Robert Bork, Robert Novak and Bernard Nathanson, an atheist who oversaw over 70,000 abortions.

I mention his appearance on Catholic Answers because Bishop Vann recommended spiritual direction as an integral part of spiritual growth.  I anticipate, based on the title of the show - Spiritual Direction and You - that Father McCloskey will speak on that subject. He is a proponent of spiritual reading as evidenced by his Catholic Lifetime Reading Plan.

Catholic Answers may be heard on your local Catholic radio station, streamed through their website,  through their mobile application and on their podcast.

Tuesday Tech Talk: Catholic YouTube Channels

Joe Catholic recently launched its first YouTube video and we will be working on producing additional videos in the future. Therefore, today’s Tuesday Tech Talk will focus on using YouTube channels to learn more about Catholicism. YouTube is easily accessible on the Internet and even most smart phones come with a YouTube mobile app.

Catholic YouTube videos can be useful tools for adding emphasis to a talk you may be giving or for personal study. Additionally, you can follow some of your favorite Catholic programming through their YouTube channels. I subscribe to a few Catholic YouTube channels that automatically alert me when new content has been uploaded. I don’t spend hours watching all of them, but I will use the videos to enhance my study or even to include on this blog. For example, if Stacey and I are out shopping and I am sitting around waiting for her, I can watch a brief video to pass the time constructively.

You don’t have to have a YouTube account to watch the videos, but you will need one to subscribe to the channels. Here are the steps for setting up an account.

Here are some links to some of my favorite Catholic YouTube Channels:

Catholic Answers

EWTN

St. Josemaria Escrivá

Vatican

USCCB

Get Your Answer on Catholic Answers

Perhaps you have noticed the banner under the Joe Catholic logo from Catholic Answers. If you visit daily, you know that it changes each day. When you click on the banner you are taken to a page with questions that had previously been submitted to Catholic Answers. Before Catholic Answer existed as a radio program, it began as a series of written tracts created by Karl Keating in 1979. He wrote them in response to a Fundamentalist church that had left anti-Catholic leaflets on cars at a local San Diego parish during mass.

Eventually Keating wrote another series of tracts. Keating followed this up with a monthly newsletter in 1986. By 1988, Keating realized “real need for information on Catholic apologetics” and he quit his law practice and began work on a full-time apostolate. The apostolate grew quickly and the newsletter was soon replaced with This Rock, a 10-issue-a-year periodical. The magazine is arguably the best Catholic publication for the laity on the subject of apologetics and evangelization.

Catholic Answers also hosts one of the most comprehensive websites dedicated to providing solid catechesis. The site has a Library tab that contains a wealth of authentic Catholic material, including free tracts on frequent objections to Catholicism. The library also has Answer Guides, Special Reports, and online copies of some of their booklets. The site also contains an archive of This Rock back issues dating back to 1990 when the magazine was first published.

Catholic Answers also has an online store in which you can purchase books, CD’s and DVD’s of some of their speakers and writers. You can listen to Catholic Answers’ radio programming through the site. You can even schedule a Catholic cruise with members of the Catholic Answers team.

The one area that I think the site is lacking in is its forum where online discussions on various subjects take place. I don’t think the moderators are able to monitor well enough to respond to statements made by people who post who may not know what they are talking about. I would stay clear of this section if you are not firmly planted in your knowledge of Church teaching.

Overall the Catholic Answers website is a tremendous resource. I begin all of my research for presentations with a look at this site. I recommend you bookmark in your favorites.