Theology

27 11, 2015

Reparation Appeal

By Father David Nix|2015-11-27T01:35:53+00:00November 27th, 2015|Theology|

This Spanish "artist," named Abel Azcona, stole 242 consecrated Eucharistic hosts from various Masses, and has put the body and blood of Jesus in a blasphemous art display in Pamplona. The full story is here, but I would ask anyone who reads about this to offer your meatless-Friday or a Holy Hour before the Tabernacle in reparation for such unspeakable crimes against Jesus. The bishop in Spain denounced it, but once again we see that Holy Communion in the Hand (and/or without kneeling) leads to yet more and more blasphemies and sacrileges in the Mass. Of course, the Traditional Latin Mass has no such option, but bishops and pastors in the Novus [...]

24 11, 2015

St. John of the Cross and The Buddha

By Father David Nix|2015-11-24T23:00:26+00:00November 24th, 2015|Theology|

The above picture is a remake of the spiritual life as drawn and described by the greatest ascetical theologian of the past millennium, St. John of the Cross. St. John of the Cross was a 16th century Carmelite whose feast day we celebrate today in the TLM (a couple weeks out in the new calendar.) If you look at that picture (which is hard to see but phenomenal if you can expand it) you will see that the man or woman who sets out to seek God is called to a narrow path that not only despises any earthly attachments that prevent union with God, but also despises any self-centered [...]

20 11, 2015

St. Joseph’s Education

By Father David Nix|2015-11-18T09:23:11+00:00November 20th, 2015|Theology|

St. Joseph, late one night is talking to Mary, amazed at something that Jesus, their five year old, now asleep, said during the day. Over candlelight at table, Joseph shares his bewilderment. “Who is this child?” he asks… “a soon to be prophet?” Mary's eyes well up at what she's known for some time now. “Yes, and greater,” she gently replies. “Greater? You mean like the Messiah, God's chosen one?” Joseph trembles. Mary smiles with tears coming down her face. “Yes.” She replies quietly but strongly. “And more.” “Greater still?” asks Joseph. “Who could be except Adonai, the Almighty One Himself?” Mary lets out a half-cry, half-laugh lasting only a [...]

14 11, 2015

Paris Attacks

By Father David Nix|2015-11-15T17:15:05+00:00November 14th, 2015|Theology|

I'm about to go offer Mass for the 150+ victims of the Paris terror attack that has been claimed by ISIS. The last time France has seen this much violence (besides abortion) was the French Revolution. How unbelievably insensitive, then, of President Obama to quote the three key words of the French Revolution as the common source of resistance against terrorism: "We are reminded in this time of tragedy that the bonds of liberté, egalité, fraternité are not just the values French people share, but we share."—President Obama, 13 November 2015 So, if it's true that the last time France saw this many murders was the French Revolution, then why has Obama quoted [...]

11 11, 2015

Should We Sell Vatican Art for the Poor?

By Father David Nix|2015-11-21T00:06:51+00:00November 11th, 2015|Theology|

This actually isn't a debate coming out of Rome these days (thankfully) but I write about it because most of you have heard this question from some family member or a person on a plane at one point. Should we sell Vatican Art for the Poor? Of course, my answer is "No," but I want to give you some new answers for your friends. 1) The first great commandment comes before the second great commandment. Jesus said: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: [...]

5 11, 2015

Colbert vs. Mother Teresa

By Father David Nix|2015-11-06T10:06:27+00:00November 5th, 2015|Theology|

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5weP79J7bM In this short video, Stephen Colbert (comedian-turned-theologian) says “Faith ultimately can’t be argued; faith has to be felt." Let's cut through his poor philosophy and consider reality: 1) Feelings are often no different from biochemical pleasures. God uses feelings in all stages of prayer, but it is not central to the substance of the soul where the Blessed Trinity resides. If faith must be "felt" as Colbert said, then where does that leave Mother Teresa who couldn't feel anything for 60 years of prayer? But false-positives abound, too: If I drink an enormous Chemex hipster coffee and feel like a saint who could take on the world, did I just "feel" an increase in [...]

2 11, 2015

All Souls Day and Syria

By Father David Nix|2015-11-02T16:07:25+00:00November 2nd, 2015|Theology|

I have no intention of making this blog page a news source (much less a newsletter of personal prayer intentions) but I thought that today, All Souls, would be an important day to highlight the civil war in Syria. Today, I write a very short post to simply beg for your prayers on the behalf of 250,000 who have died. St. Thomas Aquinas said that the greatest work we can do on earth is to pray for the dead, as I blogged about here. It is good to visit the cemeteries and to pray for the repose of the souls of our loved ones, but our family is bigger than [...]

2 11, 2015

Repost: The Greatest Work

By Father David Nix|2015-11-02T16:42:27+00:00November 2nd, 2015|Theology|

All Souls Day and all of November is the month to pray for the dead, so I decided to run my first "re-post" on this very topic. (Don't worry. I have a new blog post coming out Friday called "Stephen Colbert vs. Mother Teresa," and also don't miss my recent commentary on New York Times' Ross Douthat.) Every Christian is called to do the "Works of Mercy," upon which our final judgment will be based, as seen in Matthew 25: The Final Judgment “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered [...]

29 10, 2015

How Long Is Eternity?

By Father David Nix|2015-10-29T21:04:57+00:00October 29th, 2015|Theology|

Welcome to Virginia Beach, home of America's friendliest people and worst drivers. (Well, that's my assessment, but it's a great place to be, all things considered.) This is a military area known as the "Redneck Riviera." The entire metropolitan area is a waterland of fresh and salty rivers containing about ten 100,000-person-cities collectively known as Tidewater or Hampton Roads. It's home to the Atlantic Fleet of the Navy, countless other military bases and real-life heroes they make movies about (literally.) But not every soldier comes back home to Hampton Roads... So, where do all the dead soldiers and normal civilians go? 100% of them ultimately go to heaven or hell. Do they all go to heaven? No. "Small is the gate and [...]

8 10, 2015

Marriage Prep and “Annulments”

By Father David Nix|2015-11-02T02:19:05+00:00October 8th, 2015|Theology|

The basics of annulments can teach us a lot about the beauty of marriage. The first thing to realize about an annulment is that it is not a Catholic divorce. The starting point for why divorce does not exist in the Catholic Church is simple: Jesus said: But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female. ’ ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. ’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.—Mark 10:6-9. No man (not even a priest or bishop [...]