"STAY WITH US, LORD" (Luke 24:29)

The Church teaches that the Mass is the re-presentation or  reenactment of the sacrifice of Calvary. The Catholic Church does  not  teach that the Mass is a re-crucifixion of Christ, who does  not  suffer and die again in the Mass. John A. O’Brien, writing in  The Faith of Millions , said, "The manner in which the sacrifices are offered is alone different: On the cross Christ really shed his blood and was really slain; in the Mass, however, there is no real shedding of blood, no real death; but the separate consecration of the bread and of the wine symbolizes the separation of the body and blood of Christ and thus symbolizes his death upon the cross. The Mass is the renewal and perpetuation of the sacrifice of the cross in the sense that it offers [Jesus] anew to God . . . and thus commemorates the sacrifice of the cross, reenacts it symbolically and mystically, and applies the fruits of Christ’s death upon the cross to individual human souls. All the e...

1 Tim 2:5 reads as follows: "For there is one God, and there is  one mediator  between God and men,  the man Christ Jesus ..." "You see," we Catholics are told, "there is only one mediator between God and men, Jesus Christ. Therefore, praying to the saints goes against the Bible because you are making them mediators between God and man, you are diminishing Jesus' role as the sole mediator!" Is that an appropriate interpretation of that passage? No, it's not and let's see why not. In the O.T. we see that Moses, Abraham, and Job interceded on behalf of others... that's mediating between God and man. We know that it is okay to ask others here on earth to pray and intercede for us.... that's mediating between God and man. So, I think, once again, we have a situation where a passage of the Bible is being  misinterpreted  and  misunderstood . There is only  one mediator  between God and man, the man Jesus Christ, but as members of the...

The Immaculate Conception means that Mary, whose conception was brought about the normal way, was conceived without original sin or its stain—that’s what "immaculate" means: without stain. Mary was preserved from these defects by God’s grace; from the first instant of her existence she was in the state of sanctifying grace and was free from the corrupt nature original sin brings. IMPORTANT NOTE - Mary required a Savior. Like all other descendants of Adam, she was subject to the necessity of contracting original sin. But by a special intervention of God, undertaken at the instant she was conceived, she was preserved from the stain of original sin and its consequences. She was therefore redeemed by the grace of Christ, but in a special way—by anticipation. Example - If you fall down a large hole in the ground while walking and you ask to be saved from perishing in the hole and I pull you out of the hole -  you been saved. But if while walking you almost fall into the...

Rev 12:1-2  – A great portent appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pangs, in the agony of giving birth. (NRSV) APOLOGETIC  -  Here’s a woman in heaven about to give birth to a son who will rule all nations (Rev 12:5). The woman fled into the desert after she gave birth (Rev 12:6), as did Joseph, Mary, and Jesus when they fled to Egypt to escape Herod. Revelation 12 unmistakably reveals Mary in heaven. Keep in mind that God is not limited by time. Even though these events happened 2000 years ago, God sees all things in one instant (and He revealed some of these event to John) beca use in heaven time doesn’t exist. On Pain, Mary did not experience literal pain when bringing forth the Messiah, but she suffered figuratively (the prophecy that a sword would pierce her heart at the Crucifixion). The agony of giving Birth to Christ can be s...