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Question: Was Mary born with original sin?

Catholics hold the belief that the Blessed Virgin Mary was born without original sin. This belief is referred to as the Immaculate Conception. The concept of the Immaculate Conception goes back to the early Church Fathers, but it was not officially defined by the Church until 1854.

When Jesus ascended into heaven, He promised to send us another Advocate. That Advocate is the Holy Spirit, which descended on the disciples at Pentecost and is sealed in each one of us at our Confirmation. The Holy Spirit does not give us magical powers or compel us to act in certain ways against our will. However, the Spirit does give us gifts that we can accept and nurture as we try to become more like Christ.

 Due to travel, I was not able to write my normal blog. However, I thought you might enjoy this blast from the past!

Throughout the liturgical year, a priest wears different colored vestments for Mass depending on the liturgical season and which Mass he is celebrating. The colors have symbolic meaning and mark the passage of time. The four most common colors for vestments are green, white, violet, and red.

"I am drowning!"

Question: Who was the first pope?

Today, we have a tendency to take the office of pope as a given. Pope Francis is the Holy Father, the Bishop of Rome, who leads Catholics as the “chief pastor of the whole Church, the Vicar of Christ upon earth.” But where does the office of pope come from, and who first held that title?

It cannot be denied that we live in a time of violence, persecution, and hardship for many people around the world, including our Christian brothers and sisters. In the face of trials like these, it may seem frivolous or even foolish to focus on the arts. Yet, for centuries, religious leaders in the Church as well as laypeople have agreed on the importance of valuing the arts. What keeps bringing us back to this idea, even in the face of great trials?

I am a failure! There is no other way to put it. Why am I such a failure? Let me explain. I wrote a blog recently, and in the comment section, Patrick asked the following:

“A topic of interest to me is how to be a good Catholic man in the secular 'guy' world. i.e. How to be relevant and have influence by being 'one of the guys' while still being true to your faith and evangelizing effectively.”