Should Catholics be offended by the term "Xmas?"

By Paul Dion, STL

First, allow me to present a statement: We are now gaining about 1.5 minutes of sunlight per day, on average, since December 21. It will take until March 21 for the amount of sunlight to equal the amount of night. So don't try to hold your breath. Now we can get a little bit serious, but not too much.

It is quite certain that most of you have seen the "abbreviated" form of Christmas, you know, XMAS. Some of you just accept it and don't pay any heed. Others look at it and are offended. Some of you are perhaps thinking that it is part of the "vast, left-wing conspiracy that is out there to demolish CHRISTMAS.

ParishWorld.net does not use this form of writing "Christmas" because of the confusion that it can cause.

Now, the question(s):

Are you offended when you see XMAS? If you are, why?

If you are one of those who are not offended by XMAS, why are you not offended by it?

I know that this can seem silly, but if you are indifferent about it, why is that so?

Wait until you see the answer. You will all see that this is not a "silly" question.

If you still need to get something off your chest, we await your sentiments with open arms and a sharpened pencil.

God bless you all.

How does Matthew let us know that Jesus is "Special?"

By Paul Dion, STL


We know a lot about the life of Jesus as an adult. We know that He gathered people around Himself and preached to them with authority. The story of Jesus' infancy in Matthew has a lot of indicators about where the source of this authority lies. I expect that many of you will point to the genealogy that is the hallmark of Matthew's gospel.

There are several other markers in the story that point to some of Yahweh's strongest "messiahs" (anointed ones) and to some of the Chosen People's most glorious, and notorious, adventures that are experienced by Jesus, Mary and Joseph in the first two chapters of Matthew.

These experiences are God's work fashioning the Son into the complete, authoritative incarnation of Himself, the fulfillment of His announcing that this child will be Emmanuel, Jesus (Joshua in Hebrew), the one who saves.

Here is this week's burning question: How does Matthew let us know that Jesus is "Special?"

Discuss the symbolism of the "Adventures of Jesus, Mary and Joseph" in the first two chapters of Matthew.

BIBLE SERIES: Why Don't you Read the Bible?

By Paul Dion, STL


Editor's Note: This is Part 2 of our series on the Bible. It is an offshoot of the Bishop's Synod being held at the Vatican from October 5-26, 2010. Please follow this blog series and be enlightened on why the Bible needs to be part of our ongoing Christian life and experience. Below are links to the rest of the series:

Part 1: What are your Personal Bible Habits?

After the Burning question from last week sent most of you scurrying into the corner, we have decided to push further and ask a less personal question, but a more directly probing one. In case you are wondering, we do have some interesting comments to share with you this time. As is our custom, we will provide you with some "answers". But, outside of our custom, we are going to start by enumerating some answers and then look for yours.

The question is, WHY DON'T YOU READ THE BIBLE?

Down through the ages and until this day there are many answers which have remained the same. Many of them have been told to me directly. Some of them came to light in the survey that the Church took over the last two years. They appear below. See if you can find yourself in them. After that, read the comments that we have posted here.

I don't read the Bible because I don't find it interesting.
I don't read the Bible because I find it difficult to understand what it is trying to say.
I don't read the Bible because it is for priests and nuns.
I don't read the Bible because I don't know where to start.
I don't read the Bible because I hear some of it every Sunday anyway.
I don't read the Bible because if I do and my Protestant friends find out, that's all they'll want to talk about.
I don't read the Bible because I don't have time with my family, job and children and everything.
I don't read the Bible because that's for old people.
I don't have to read the Bible because I have a Catechism.
I don't read the Bible because I thought that Catholics aren't supposed to read it.

You might think that these answers come from people who are not Catholic, or religious, or something. No, that's not it. Most people have a Bible in the house, but it just sits there and gathers dust. You might think that this comes from people who are in and of our times and you know how the people in our times have deteriorated since the "good old days!" Wrong again.

With this list of excuses, it is easy to see that the Church has an uphill effort ahead of it to bring its faithful people around to the reading of the Bible. If it is any consolation, I invite you to click here and see just how old a problem this really is.

Once you have reflected on this question, we at ParishWorld.net request that you make the good resolution to open your Bible. If you don't know how to attack it, ask around and you're sure to find someone who can help you discover the treasure that you have on your coffee table.

"Why do Catholics have a "crucifix" and Protestant have plain crosses?"

By Paul Dion, STL

Here is a question that a young person asked me two weeks ago that I have decided to present to you. This is a thought provoking question that has more than one correct answer. So you should have no shyness about submitting what you think it should be.

I will even give you a hint... All the answers that I will propose to you will be based on Scripture stories. The easiest one might be the story about a problem that the Israelites had as they were walking through the desert after escaping from Egypt. God gave Moses the cure for the problem.

Some of you have noticed that there are crosses that have a small statue of the body of Jesus attached to them and there are crosses that are plain and have no representation of a human attached to the front. The crosses which have the statue attached to the front will be seen in Catholic Churches and never in Protestant churches.

The burning question is: Why do Catholics have a "crucifix" and Protestant Christians have plain cross?

Share your thoughts with us. The comment box is below.

CLICK HERE to see the answer to this Burning Question.

What is the "Real Presence of Christ" that Catholics talk about?

By Paul Dion, STL

Here is the Burning Question of the Week: When Catholics talk about the Real Presence of Christ, what are they talking about? How many other forms of Christ's presence in our midst can you think of?

Catholics among you should be able to answer the first one without difficulty. With a little thought and some prayer you should be able to answer the second question and come up with two or three other forms of presence.

Those of you who are not Catholic may have a little trouble with this one.

Try your thoughts out on it. If you don't come up with anything, hit the Bible first and then Google and wait for the response to see how the Catholics did.

We would like to hear your thoughts. Share them with our readers from all over the world so that they too may be encouraged to look into their hearts and reflect upon our burning question of the week.

(Click here to view the many wonderful articles that await you in www.ParishWorld.net, America's Catholic Lifestyle Magazine. Be informed, be inspired, be blessed. )

What does "pray without ceasing" mean to you?

By Paul Dion, STL


The title line of this blog post is the source of the burning question for the week.

This sentence comes from Saint Paul's first letter to the Thessalonians, Chapter 5, verse 17: "Pray without ceasing." The Catechism of the Catholic Church has 350 paragraphs on the topic of prayer.

What does "pray without ceasing" mean to you?

Let us know what you think. Give us your comment. We will meditate on your answers and post your answers to this blog.

(Click here to view the rest of the many wonderful articles that await you in www.ParishWorld.net, America's Catholic Lifestyle Magazine)

"Why did the lepers have to follow simple directions before being cured?"

By Paul Dion, STL

This week - the 28th Sunday in ordinary time - we are going to hear two impressive stories about lepers who get cured. One story comes from the Old Testament, the Second Book of Kings and the other is in the Gospel according to Saint Luke. Click here to view the Sunday Readings.

As it turns out, the one in the Old Testament was Persian and of the the ten in the gospel story, the one who came back to express his gratitude was a Samaritan. One of those nasty people from the West Bank.

The Burning Question is not about gratitude and it is not about reaching out to strangers and those who are "different" than we. The Burning question is more demanding than that, this week. I am going to give you the Bible references here so that you can read both stories in their full context.

Naaman the Leper; 2 Kings, Chapter 5, verses 1 to 19.
The Ten Lepers: Luke, chapter 17, verses 11 to 19.

Notice that in both stories, both the prophet of the Old Testament and Jesus of the Gospel give the persons about to be healed something to do. In both situations, the action is not difficult, but it has great meaning.

Think about it a while and when the light goes on, send us your opinion about the answer to the question:

"Why did the lepers have to follow simple directions before being cured?"

Yes, there is a reason. Yes, it is connected to a question about Catholics that all of you have heard at least once, if not once a month. Go on, give it a try and we'll swap ideas along the way.

You can leave your comment on the burning question or to see what others are saying below.

CLICK HERE to see the answer to this Burning Question.

Would you leave a job for moral reasons?

By Paul Dion, STL

Most of the adults who read ParishWorld.net have jobs. Most of you pehaps have jobs in companies or enterprises that are generally quite moral. We all have heard of the immoral activities of certain companies and we tell ourselves how happy we are to be working for a "good" company.

Every now and then, though, along our career path we find ourselves working in a company where it rapidly becomes clear that lying, cheating and stealing are the rule of the day. Without painting a detailed picture of what can be immoral, let us just ennumerate a few behaviors that could be practiced in any given enterprise.

One of the most common immoral behaviors is the underpaying of employees, such as cheating on overtime laws, withholding bonuses and other abuses visited upon the lowest tier of employees. Another common practice is to have a middle manager sign contracts or agreements in place of the senior management when the executives have no intention of abiding by the agreement.

The burning question for the week is, Should a person leave this work environment for a more moral one? If leaving would seem to be the worst possible alternative, does the moral person (good Catholic) have an obligation to bring the immoral practices to the attention of upper management?

Would you have the courage of the Syro-Phoenician woman related in the Gospel story of the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)? Click here to read this Gospel passage.

Since there is no black and white answer to this question, give us your answers and we will respond with our opinion. I promise that I will not tell you what I did in circumstances like those described above. I'll leave that up to my wife!!!

"Is it appropriate to hold hands during the 'Our Father' at Holy Mass?"

By Paul Dion, STL

We received the following "Burning Question" from a regular reader, Laurence Gonzaga. He is someone whom we respect and this question of his is quite challenging. It is therefore good for all of us to toss it around in our minds.

Laurence wrote:

"I don't know if this 'burning question' ever crossed your mind, but here goes: "Is it appropriate for the congregation to hold hands during the 'Our Father' at Holy Mass? "When I go to daily Mass, I notice most people do not have this practice. I guess it depends on the place. I try to sit in a pew that is vacant. Ever since I was young, I always hated this part of the Mass. I would always 'go to the bathroom' to avoid it. When I am at Sunday Mass, I do it, because my Dad does it, and the people give you a funny look when you don't want to hold their hand. But when my dad is not with me, I close my eyes and keep my hands to my side. It's not that I am trying to be anti-social, it's just that, I don't want to be forced to do it when it is not really called for in the Mass. It is not even rooted in tradition."

What do you say, Dear Reader? Chime in.

CLICK HERE to view the answer to this Burning Question

"What is Virtue?"

By Paul Dion, STL

This one will take us down a rather interesting theological and philosophical road.

"What is Virtue?"

Tell us what you feel about this question from deep in your heart. Share your thoughts with us. If you feel too shy to post your name, you can sign it Anonymous.

(Click here to view the many wonderful articles that await you in http://www.parishworld.net/, America's Catholic Lifestyle Magazine. Be informed, be inspired, be blessed. )

"Is Passion Good or Bad"

By Paul Dion, STL


I am presenting you with an introductory topic that is directly connected to what is known as moral theology.

What is passion? Is it good or bad?

Tell us what you feel about this question from deep in your heart. Share it with us. If you feel too shy to post your name, you can sign it anonymous.


(Click here to view the many wonderful articles that await you in http://www.parishworld.net/, America's Catholic Lifestyle Magazine. Be informed, be inspired, be blessed. )

What are the four essential components of conjugal life in the sacrament of Matrimony?

By Paul Dion, STL

We are going to change the pace here a little bit. We are going to ask a question that comes straight out of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The reason why this is an important question because one of our charter parishes in Southern California was the site of a grand celebration of marriage validations on Saturday, December 29, 2007.

There were fifteen couples who prepared for their church wedding for several months. They attended catechism sessions, sacramental preparation sessions and participated in a one day retreat along the way. This process has cost them a lot of sacrifice. It is our desire to present this event to you all because it is important to the church that the sacrament of Matrimony be prized as an important road to heaven.

It is our desire to present this event to you all because it is important to the church that the sacrament of Matrimony be prized as an important road to heaven. Most of you are aware that the sacrament of Matrimony is intended to be a life-long covenant between two people.

What we are asking today is this:

What are the four essential components of conjugal life in the sacrament of Matrimony?