Consider now the way of light; any man who is bent on reaching his appointed goal must be very careful in all he does. Now these are the directions that have been given to us for this journey: love your Creator; reverence your Maker; give glory to him who redeemed you when you were dead; be single-minded but rich in spiritual treasure; avoid those who travel down death’s highway; hate whatever is displeasing to God; detest all hypocritical pretense; do not abandon God’s commandments. Do not put on airs, but be modest whatever you do; claim no credit for yourself. Plot no evil against your neighbor, and do not give pride an entrance into your heart.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I will summarize these Pastor’s Notes on the question of kneeling vs. standing by saying that the norm in the United States is to receive standing, but those who wish to receive kneeling may freely do so. To refuse those who kneel Holy Communion is a grave violation, and no one may impose upon them nor accuse them of disobedience simply because they chose to kneel. Therefore, no one distributing Holy Communion may prohibit or deter any member of the faithful from receiving on his or her knees if he or she so chooses.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Can a priest or Extra Ordinary Minister of Holy Communion refuse Holy Communion to those who kneel? Absolutely not. A parishioner whose pastor had instituted a policy of refusing Communion to those who presented themselves kneeling presented this question to the magisterium in 2002.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Does everyone have to kneel or everyone have to stand when it comes to receiving Our Lord in Holy Communion as a sign of greater unity? Thankfully, the magisterium (teaching authority of the Church) addresses this question in their official journal Notitiae to help clarify this question. Their conclusion was that there could be some “variance” when it comes to the faithful deciding to stand or to kneel when receiving Our Lord in Holy Communion.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I wanted to spend some time on this topic of kneeling versus standing when receiving Our Lord in Holy Communion. Some parishioners have brought this question to my attention in recent months and I thought some clarification would be helpful.

You may have noticed that some people stand while others kneel when receiving Our Lord in Holy Communion. Is one way better than the other? Is receiving Our Lord in Holy Communion in the kneeling or standing position a matter of personal preference? The Church actually does address these questions in great detail.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,
This is the conclusion of a two-part series that addresses this issue of receiving Our Lord in Holy Communion on the tongue versus receiving Him in our hand. If you would like to see more about this subject, please see the article written by Paul M. Matenaer for the Catholic Harold called “What is the Correct Posture for Receiving Communion”. I believe he does a nice job of addressing this topic.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Parents and grandparents are irreplaceable apostles. This is a concise way of saying that adults have a vital role in preserving the faith and handing it on to future generations. I found a few tips to help Catholic parents and grandparents pass on the faith and I added a few from my own experience.

Hearing you pray out loud for them will move your children and grandchildren. Pray specifically about their future, their education and their faith. Pray about your desire to see them someday in heaven. Also, read stories to them about the saints and tailor those stories to match their interests (There is a saint for everything!).

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I have had a few people ask me about the correct way of receiving Our Lord in Holy Communion. So I have decided to present a two-part series that addresses this issue of receiving Our Lord in Holy Communion on the tongue versus receiving Him in our hand. If you would like to see more about this subject, please see the article written by Paul M. Matenaer for the Catholic Herold called “What is the Correct Posture for Receiving Communion”. I believe it does a nice job of addressing this topic.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Since the time of Christ, Christians and, specifically, Catholics have been under attack. You may have heard about the child being barred from performing a Christian song at a school for a talent show. Other examples of these attacks on Christian freedom include public spaces that have forbidden prayer. Our government has told pastors what they can and cannot say from the pulpit.

Students are expelled for publicly expressing their views on abortion. Now our government has passed a law that “redefines” marriage apart from God’s plan for marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Who knows, I may be arrested for writing this column since it could be seen by some people as “hate speech”?!?! These are just a few examples of how Catholics are under attack by those who wish to silence us.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Our readings beg the question: Why are you here? I don't mean why are you here at St. Joan of Arc or Phoenix or the United States. I mean something much deeper. Why are you here on earth? To put it another way: Why do you exist at all? Wow, that is deep but there is a correct answer and it comes from Our Lord. We are here to love God and love our neighbor now and always and forever. This answer is expressed in the readings as a calling to be intentional disciples of Our Lord Jesus.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Last week we heard Jesus say, "Young man, I tell you, arise!" Jesus wants to lift us up from the messes we create in our lives. We see that clearly in the readings this Sunday. We are sinners. Because we choose to sin, we hurt our relationshipwith Our Lord Jesus. Sin can mess up your life but it doesn’t have to remain that way. Our Lord Jesus is there to help and to heal you. You might ask, “How can I get the healing that I need from Our Lord?” The answer should not be a surprise. Call out to Our Lord in daily prayer. Make Our Lord the center of your life. When you begin your day with prayer, speaking and listening Our Lord Jesus, He changes things and He changes them always for the better.

Abortion is not about "a woman making a decision about her own body". The child in the mother's womb is a separate human being with its own heartbeat, DNA, blood type and finger prints. About 50% of the time; the child is not even the same gender!

The vast majority of abortions are done as a form of birth control because the baby is "inconvenient", "too expensive" or a "burden". Very few abortions have anything to do with the health of the mother and less than 1 % are performed as a result of rape or incest.