Ask a Priest

5,433 Responses

Je, on November 18, 2024 at 11:42 pm said:

Hi Father Joe!

I had candles blessed and they fell near the altar table. The people usually receive by hand so my concern is, some particles or crumbs of the Eucharist might have stuck to the candles. The crumbs would be hard to see since the candles are white.

I am worried that there might indeed be particles of the Eucharist in the candles and I might commit sacrilege if I still continue to light them. May I ask for advice?

FATHER JOE: Given the minimal matter implied, you are being overly scrupulous. Stop being worried.
Lizethnunez, on November 5, 2024 at 9:50 pm said:

Father, I have a question regarding a matter. Considering the following factors:
1. I’ve confessed and received forgiveness for past actions.
2. There’s no ongoing harm.
3. My motivation is self-protection.
Would you agree that withholding this information from someone is likely a venial sin?”

FATHER JOE: Not sure what you are talking about. To whom are you withholding information? Absolution requires confession to a priest, not to others.
Lizeth Nunez, on November 5, 2024 at 7:57 pm said:

hello I have a question. Would you agree?

Does this

Hello,

considering: 1. Confessed and forgiven past actions
1. No ongoing harm
2. Self-protection motivation Withholding information is likely a venial sin.
FATHER JOE: Can you clarify? What you write makes no sense. There is no question.
J, on November 4, 2024 at 11:53 pm said:

Hi Father Joe,

If I soaked the altar linens which had direct contact with the Body and Blood of the Lord in the sacrarium and some of the water splashed on my clothes, should I also wash my clothes in the sacrarium because my clothes had been in contact with the water with dissolved particles of Our Lord?

Will it be sacrilegious if I do nothing with my clothes and just wash them as usual? Is this excommunicable as per Canon Law 1382— § 1. One who throws away the consecrated species or, for a sacrilegious purpose, takes them away or keeps them, incurs a latae sententiae excommunication reserved to the Apostolic See…?

FATHER JOE: No, you would not wash your clothes in the sacrarium. Any contamination is unlikely and insignificant. The principle is an old one regarding paucity of matter.
Debra Greszler, on October 27, 2024 at 4:43 pm said:

Hello Fr. Joe, I attended my normal Sunday Mass this weekend and included was a funeral. While proclaimed were the normal mass readings, included were parts of the funeral rite. The cremains were present along with the paschal candle. I know that there can be a funeral Mass held on most Sundays but that it is not normally so. My question is whether a regular Sunday Mass can be employed for a funeral and does this count toward my Sunday obligation?

FATHER JOE: It is a tad unusual for sure to hold a funeral on Sunday. However, any Mass of Sunday (which begins with the anticipatory on Saturday night) counts toward the obligation to attend Sunday Mass. This would include both wedding and funeral Masses. If the Mass is outside the regular schedule, even the readings and the propers of the liturgy need not be from Sunday. Such a change is not frivolous and would likely not be permitted for lesser votive celebrations. It would be best (though not required) during Ordinary Time to keep the assigned prayers and readings if it is a regularly assigned liturgy. However, during the Sundays of Advent, Lent, and Easter, no such ritual Masses are possible. A wedding or funeral Mass during these seasons would maintain the proper prayers and reading of the Sunday. Having said this, Church authorities will sometimes grant permission to change the second reading.

GIRM – They are prohibited on Sundays of Advent, Lent, and Easter, on Solemnities, on the days within the Octave of Easter, on the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls’ Day), on Ash Wednesday, and during Holy Week, and furthermore due regard is to be had for the norms set out in the ritual books or in the Masses themselves.

Specifically regarding funerals “may be celebrated on any day except for solemnities that are holy days of obligation, Thursday of Holy Week (Holy Thursday), the paschal triduum, and the Sundays of Advent, Lent and Easter” (No. 380).
Jeremy Kok, on October 22, 2024 at 2:49 pm said:

Hello, and peace be with you Father Joe, I would like to ask in this coming general election, what should Catholic voters do if they find both candidates to be unqualified to serve in office since one is not committed to adhere to the three non-negotiables whereas the other has an ulterior agenda against Ukraine?

FATHER JOE:

The Holy Father has suggested that we discern which is the lesser evil.

While one candidate gave us justices that repealed Roe v. Wade, the other is defiantly pro-abortion without qualification. One candidate wants to exploit natural resources and bring fuel prices down while the other has voiced concerns if not actual actions in favor of protecting the environment. One candidate wants to curtail illegal immigration while the other has done little to either sway the invasion or to provide suitable humanitarian care for the aliens that are among us. One believes that big government is the answer to ever ill while the other sees it as the problem, focusing upon cooperation between civic and business leaders. One wants to give enticements to the rich and big business to spur jobs, while the other would further tax the wealthy and make the poor dependent upon their party and administration for handouts instead of offering hand-ups. One damns Russia as an aggressor while arming Ukraine in a way that may lead to WW III. The other candidate points to the security fears of Putin and what some critics interpret as a surrogate war against Russia. One is concerned about the Palestinian human cost while the other emphasizes Israel’s need for self-defense and retaliation. I will not even try to figure in Taiwan, China and North Korea. One candidate promotes gender transitioning and the other slurs people with dysphoria.

If you can make sense of it all, you are a better person than me.
Sarah M, on October 16, 2024 at 3:51 am said:

Hello Father, I am a non-Catholic Christian looking for guidance as to the church’s position on interfaith marriages.

I found this site while looking online for how to talk to a priest if you’re not a Catholic and thought maybe you could help.

I am a Protestant, divorced woman who is dating a Catholic man. I am very respectful of his beliefs as a fellow Christian, and wish to honor him and do the right thing. He has expressed a general desire to marry in the Catholic Church. We are in the early stages of our relationship, but I see longevity potential. But I would not want to proceed with our relationship if it would just lead to a dead end and we could not marry with the Church’s blessing even if we wanted to. I feel it would be detrimental in the long run to continue and develop deeper feelings with him if it would in any way cause him to falter or reevaluate is own faith and walk with God. I’d hate to be the reason he could not marry in the church, since these are his wishes and he’s voiced how important it is to him. Although no proposal has been made and we are not yet at that point, I am curious as to the Church’s position regarding annulments for non-Catholic Christians. It is my understanding that my first marriage would have to be annulled by the tribunal in order to proceed with a Catholic ceremony.

Specifically, would I, as a non-Catholic Christian be judged/measured by the same rules/requirements as a person of Catholic faith seeking an annulment.
I’ve read a bit online, from various sources, what the grounds for annulment according to Canon Law are, but I’m curious if these same rules apply to non-Catholics, or if I would have different standards to meet.
Thank you for your time.

FATHER JOE: There are missing details that make it hard to answer. My assumption is that your Catholic friend has never been married. You are a Protestant but what sect? Were you baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit? Some churches do not and thus we would not recognize members as Christians. An unbaptized person who desires to convert can sometimes have a prior bond dissolved by lawful authority. What was the religion of your first spouse? If he were a Catholic and you married outside the Church, then a simple declaration of nullity would be in order. If he were a Protestant or non-believer, then you are probably looking at a formal case. A formal case would proceed the same for either a Catholic or Protestant. Non-Catholics are not bound by our laws and so the presumption is in favor of their marriage unions. Grounds would have to be found for an annulment. Not knowing why your marriage failed, I cannot speak about specific defects. They often include maladies like deception, addiction, coercion, a lack of mental capacity, impotency and a lack of consummation, sexual disorientation, immaturity and a lack of gravity given the bond, or anything that would have compromised consent. Talk to a local priest about the matter. Many marriages that fail suffer from one or more of these sorts of defects.
Mate Zakarić, on October 14, 2024 at 11:29 am said:

Hello, I have a question regarding the eucharistic wine. I know that in order for wine to be consecrated, it has to be pure grape wine. However in the place where I live, it is common to use a so called guardian of wine, it is actually Potassium metabisulphite that is added into the wine to preserve it. Does that violate the proper matter for wine? Also if it does and a priest during the mass attempts to consecrate both, but for obvious reasons he can only consecrate the bread since the wine is not pure, and can. 927 states that it is invalid if a priest attempts to consecrate only one matter without the other, does that also mean that the bread is not consecrated either? Thanks!

FATHER JOE:

The smallest fraction of sulfite is added to altar wine reserved for the Mass. Canon Law 924§3 stipulates what constitutes valid and licit matter: “The wine must be natural, made from grapes of the vine, and not corrupt.” GIRM #322 clarifies that “The wine for the celebration of the Eucharist must be made from the fruit of the vine (Luke 22:18), natural and unadulterated, that is, without admixture of extraneous substances.”

As you said, Can. 927 states: “It is absolutely forbidden, even in extreme urgent necessity, to consecrate one matter without the other or even both outside the eucharistic celebration.” But this was not in reference to the use of invalid and illicit matter. It was a corrective from an Anglican practice of attempting to consecrate extra hosts outside the liturgy (usually in a side room) when they ran out during Holy Communion. This canon makes it clear to Catholic priests not to follow this practice.

Questions remain however, as when priests have neither the liturgical books nor much in the way of the sacred elements in a setting like a gulag or prison camp. Further, there is a concern about intention if a priest should suffer dementia or senility. I recall an incident under Cardinal O’Boyle where the archdiocese was informed that a priest had entered a bakery and recited the Latin words of consecration. The local priests were called to converge upon the bakery (and given doubt about validity), everything in the shop was purchased and consumed. Most suspected that no consecration had occurred, but no one dared to take a chance of being wrong.
Jeremy Kok, on October 3, 2024 at 7:18 am said:

Hello, Father Joe, can we ask the angels and saints to bless us?

FATHER JOE: The blessing of a saint is not dissimilar from a blessing offered by a priest. He invokes the power of almighty God. We have nothing of our own. We ask Mary and the saints to intercede in praying WITH and FOR us. Beyond the supernatural, some ask for the blessings of older members or elders as a sign of favor. But this is different from requesting spiritual protection and grace.
Joey, on October 1, 2024 at 4:50 pm said:

Hello Father, I’ve been taught my entire life that God forgives anyone and everyone and that Jesus died for our sins. Father, how is it fair that people who have never been introduced to Christianity should go to hell? Why doesn’t God forgive them, if they have never learned about God or Christianity?

FATHER JOE:

There are several points we need to keep in mind:

• God saves whom he wills, and we are not privy to the identification of the chosen or elect.

• It is true that baptism and incorporation into the Church is the normative means by which a person is saved; but this does not mean that all Christians or Catholics are necessarily saved, since faith can sour.

• Who is to say that God does not take into consideration the element of ignorance about Christ and his dispensation when it comes to judgment?

• Most importantly, salvation is a gift and not an entitlement or reward that anyone can demand. None of us deserve to be saved.
PM, on September 20, 2024 at 1:07 pm said:

Hello Father,

Do priests understand or care why people sin? Most of my experiences with priests, especially during confession, tells me that they do not. We the laity tell our sins and then we are considered bad. I have seen very little understanding or compassion from the priest. It is as if he sees things on the surface and care nothing as to why.

There are many reasons why people sin, and with each sin the ignorance of and insensitivity to sin grows. This is why so many people see the Catholic as out of date. They, in their ignorance (from lack of formation and sin) think that they cannot follow the rules. And the clergy of the church wonder why people are leaving the Church.

By the way, the modernizing of the Church, and shutting the during the Covid scam was a massive mistake which tells people that the mass is not really that important.

FATHER JOE:

Confession is not the same as spiritual direction. Time is limited in the sacrament and often the most the confessor can do is to evaluate species and number (regarding sins) and offer a penance and give absolution. I am not sure what you mean by compassion. It is not the priest’s obligation to pamper you about your sins. You are guilty and he makes possible forgiveness. That mercy of the sacrament should be sufficient for you. I suspect the problem is not the priest but you. He knows by his ministrations both the tragedy of sin and the desperate need we have for forgiveness. He may not explore the various hidden sins but that is not his task. As the penitent, it is for you to bring what hides in the darkness to the light.

Human nature has not changed. The problem is not that modern men cannot follow the rules. Rather, the problem is that many refuse to do so. They become comfortable with their sins. They become obstinate and will not let anyone tell them what to do— not the priest, not even almighty God.

Yes, I would concur that the shut-down of churches during the pandemic was a mistake. But remember, there was legal intimidation and many clergy worried that exposure at services would lead to many deaths among congregants. Priests care more than you know. I buried a good number of old friends who died from COVID. Many of us were desperate to do whatever was necessary to save our people. Is this not compassion? A number of good clergy were chosen to give last rites to the infected. Some of them also died.
Jeremy Kok, on September 16, 2024 at 7:29 am said:

Hello and peace be with you Father Joe, I would like to ask what do you know about Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich and her divine visions?

FATHER JOE: Recommended.

http://annecatherineemmerich.com/
Jeremy Kok, on September 10, 2024 at 3:34 pm said:

Hello, and peace be with you Father Joe, I have someone who is asking can we ask Mary to bless us? And what do we meant when we ask the Holy Family to bless us (is the blessing done only by Jesus rather than Mary and Joseph or is there a deeper meaning?)

FATHER JOE: I am not entirely sure what you mean. One is essentially asking for blessing whenever intercessory prayer is made. We are beseeching that God bless us, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. We are actually beseeching God’s blessing.
Ryan, on September 9, 2024 at 8:20 pm said:

Hello Father Joe, I am a convert to the Catholic Church. I have a question about marriage . . . I got married “really” young and it only lasted two weeks before I filed for divorce. At the time I was a non-Catholic atheist. Afterwards, I met my wife, and we were married for seventeen years. Unfortunately, she passed away. I entered the Church last Easter vigil. I want to know . . . do I need to get my first marriage annulled?

FATHER JOE: If your second wife were alive, you would need an annulment of the first bond. However, if you do not attempt marriage again, then no annulment is required. Should you want to date and possibly get married again, then I would urge you to pursue an annulment. Although you were an atheist, and I presumed unbaptized, what was the religious persuasion of your first spouse? If she were a Catholic, then the bond could be declared void because of a lack of canonical form. Otherwise, it would be a formal case. Catholic law on this matter does not bind non-Catholics.
Jess, on September 6, 2024 at 6:08 am said:

Hi, I used to believe in mediums and fortune tellers. I did not know how bad and evil they were. I am now worried because I have spoken to mediums previously and now have caused to have evil inside me. How do I fix this? I believe in God almighty and I just want to protect myself.

FATHER JOE: Involvement with superstition does not always result in spiritual invasion. Often it is just a silly thing to do. However, if you fear having invited evil into your life, then do what the Gospel mandates, “Repent and believe!” A Catholic should bring the matter to confession, seek absolution, and faithfully receive the sacraments. A non-Catholic may not have recourse to the sacraments but should offer a prayer of contrition and make a firm amendment of life. Keep the commandment to worship God alone. Call upon the saving name of JESUS CHRIST. The Lord protects his own.
Luke, on September 2, 2024 at 1:58 am said:

hi,

I was wondering if God could (in heaven or on the new earth) create for me a daughter of mine that’s eternally a child that I can be her parent forever. I want to be a father very much but I can’t because of health issues and I feel hopeless.

FATHER JOE: Sorry, but that is not how it works. At the final consummation the number of glorified human beings will be fixed. Further, your desire is inherently selfish and wrong. Good fathers and mothers love their children and aid them in growing up. Real love must be willing to let them go. Instead, you want a forever child, created outside of the mutual love of spouses, to appease your emotional longing. Such a wish would reduce a person to a commodity or slave for your wants. While you might judge this desire as benign, at best it reflects mental illness and at worst, betrays the presence of iniquity. Seek the healing and mercy of God. Stop wishing for such things.
Jeremy Kok, on August 28, 2024 at 9:42 pm said:

Hello, Father Joe, I would like to ask what do you know about the trifurcation of the devil after his defeat? Because I was listening to Father Chad Ripperger’s talk about how God split the devil into three distinctive personalities: Satan, Lucifer and Beelzelbub yet it is the same person. Father Chad say that is like a Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde kind of condition which is a perversion of the Holy Trinity. So I would like to know your opinion on this topic.

Thank you

FATHER JOE:

I must admit, in all honesty, that I do not really follow Fr. Ripperger. His notion of the devil making himself into a demonic parody of the Trinity would not surprise me, but I cannot say whether it is systemic to the demon or just a ploy to mock God. I would judge as suspect any concurrence from Satan that his personality suffered trifurcation due to his fall. I would merely emphasize the definitions of words. The word, “Satan” means the “accuser or adversary.” He is the chief enemy of God. “Lucifer” means “bearer of light” or “morning star.” It speaks to the tremendous lost glory of this once great angel. He is the false light. “Beelzelbub” means “the master of the house” or the chief of demons. Legend or folklore has it that he steals away a third of heaven.

The devil can take all sorts of names to himself. Indeed, the early fathers claimed that the devils masqueraded as the pagan gods of old. The Trinity is three divine Persons in one God. Despite his lies, the devil is no deity at all and only one person. One might be tempted to speak about him as a schizophrenic, but given that he is not human, I would refrain from positing him with the mental ailments of mortals. I suspect he is a good actor and likes playing games or toying with men. The devil as a fallen angel is known by many names: Satan, Lucifer, Beelzebub, Ash-Shaytān (Muslim), Iblis (Muslim), Prince of Darkness, the Serpent, Old Nick, Belial, Apollyon, Baphomet, Mammon, Legion (grouped with others), Azazel, Mephistopheles, Lord of the Flies, Moloch, the Tempter, and the Demon.
It is possible that these are various demons or that the devil has taken to himself many such names. What seems to be the dark flipside to the communion of the saints is only a parasitical association where the big-fish demons devour the small. There is no true unity among the hell-spirits. This is due to their alienation from God. The Lord is the source of the oneness of the Church with the saints and angels that worship at the eternal banquet of heaven. The devil and all lesser demons have forfeited this union and are only affiliated with others through a common spite. They might be likened to a mob that vandalizes and robs a department store. What seems to be a common action is only a batch of individuals acting together toward their own selfish ends. They will literally victimize one another to get what they want. Even “Legion” might speak with one voice, not because the demons work in voluntary harmony, but because there is a dominant demon who can assert his will and manipulate the lesser devils.
Jeremy Kok, on August 28, 2024 at 9:21 pm said:

Hello Father Joe, I would like to ask about the procedures of the Last Rites and the Apostolic Pardon or Blessing?

Thank you

FATHER JOE: The Apostolic Pardon is a concession given the dying. The Last Rites are as follows: Anointing of the Sick (Extreme Unction), Absolution, and Viaticum (Holy Communion).
Austin, on August 24, 2024 at 5:41 am said:

I have a YouTube channel where I have used a pirated video editor to edit the videos for years. I no longer use the pirated video editor, but the videos are still up. Is it a sin to leave those video public even though they were edited using a pirated video editor?

FATHER JOE: Honestly, I am not savvy as to what is and is not pirated video editing software. I suspect the videos are okay. But, as a rule, we should not steal. As to what editors are sold or given away, I have no clue.
KD, on August 22, 2024 at 1:19 am said:

Father, I am trying to figure out if I have a vocation to priesthood or religious life, but I am distrustful of vocation directors as they seem too pushy. One religious order vocation director, whom I met by chance, told me I “definitely” had a calling to his order. The diocesan vocation director encouraged me to continue, after the physiological exam suggested I not go into the seminary. My now married sister had the same experience where the vocation director told her she had a vocation. Others with whom I have talked (having discerned out) have also felt their director was pushy. I want to believe that directors are more experienced than me and can guide me, but I just can’t. How can I overcome this? I don’t currently have a spiritual director since the one I had left the area.

FATHER JOE: Maybe the trouble is that you do not have a religious calling? A man from ministry should be in good health and be psychologically sound. He should also trust and take seriously the guidance of vocations directors who work for the Church. I suspect that your problem is that you doubt the Church and yourself. Such reservations would not fare well for the eight to ten years of religious formation for priesthood. Men discern out for many reasons— a lack of prayerfulness and spiritual devotion, insignificant intellectual ability, a deficit in personal responsibility and discipline, and a failure to commit oneself to a lifetime of celibate love and aloneness. You tend to target the “pushiness” of the directors. I suspect the real problem is that you do not want to make the leap. Directors tell many men that they are unsuited, and they are refused entry into the seminary. However, if candidates are judged as promising, then they naturally recommend them. The director saw something in you. A man who enters the seminary will not immediately be ordained. All that the directors are doing is pushing you and men like you to make the effort and to see where the grace of God takes you. You really cannot know for sure if you have a clerical vocation unless you make the effort. The man who enters seminary should know that he is where God currently wants him. Tomorrow that might change. There is no shame or failure in studying, praying and making a regular discernment. You might drop out or be thrown out. However, those who do not try will never know for sure if they could have been a priest.
Jeremy Kok, on August 21, 2024 at 11:56 pm said:

Hello, Father Joe, who were the Church Fathers who fell into heresy and what were these errors?

FATHER JOE: Origen held views deem incompatible with the faith. Tertullian and Novatian are great teachers who took problematical positions.
Jeremy Kok, on August 21, 2024 at 10:31 pm said:

Hello, Father Joe, I would like to ask why and what is the motive of Protestants adopting radical feminism? And is it just to attack the Catholic Church or is there a darker agenda?

FATHER JOE: Not all Protestants have done so.
Jeremy Kok, on August 21, 2024 at 10:27 pm said:

Hello, Father Joe, I would like to ask about this issue regarding the baptism of Constantine by Eusebius of Nicomedia who was an Arian and is his baptism valid? Because a Catholic friend of mine is curious about it.

FATHER JOE: There has been a general presumption by the Church that Constantine became a Christian. The details about the baptism are largely lost to time. A denial of the divinity of Christ would ordinarily make a baptism invalid.
Jeremy Kok, on August 21, 2024 at 3:09 pm said:

Hello, Father Joe, I would like ask recently why is there so many of these cases of women self-proclaiming to be priestesses of counterfeit churches and what could we as Catholics do to advise our fellow brothers and sisters so as not to be confused and fall for this devious charlatanism?

FATHER JOE: There are many reasons for what is going on. A radical feminism distorts the roles of men and women. The eclipse of a corporate faith as understood by Catholicism by the Protestant notion of an individualized faith is also a factor. Catholics need to know their faith in truth and have a real relationship with Jesus.
Mike Zias, on August 19, 2024 at 1:33 am said:

Hello Fr. Joe,

Does the Church believe / teach that when Jesus invited sinners to the table that he would have told them to change their sinful ways? I ask because it seems the Church today does not do so, especially in regards to receiving communion.

FATHER JOE: There is ample biblical evidence that Jesus both admonished repentance and forgave sins.