Hawaii Catholic Herald

Newspaper of the Diocese of Honolulu

Father Kenneth Doyle: Why are there only four Gospels?

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  QUESTION CORNER Q: Luke’s Gospel begins, “Several biographies of Christ have already been written.” Why, then, are there only four Gospels in the New Testament, and how were they chosen? (Charlottesville, Virginia) A: First, just a comment on your quote from the opening verse of Luke. The text you offer comes from an edition […]

Father Kenneth Doyle: I’m divorced, may I receive Communion?

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QUESTION CORNER Q: I am in my 50s and have now been divorced for three years. I was married in the Catholic Church and have always attended Sunday Mass regularly and received Communion. But I have begun to wonder whether I should still take Communion. I asked a priest recently in confession, and he said […]

Father Kenneth Doyle: Sacraments for those with dementia?

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QUESTION CORNER Q: I bring holy Communion to a local nursing home. Of the 66 Catholics there, many of them have no visitors. Those with dementia are asked whether they would like to receive the Eucharist, and if they say yes, I give them the host. It saddens me that Jesus suffered to give us […]

Father Kenneth Doyle: Is the death penalty out completely?

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  QUESTION CORNER Q: I have always been against the death penalty — since the prisoner is behind bars and removed from doing further harm to the public. But a recent piece in The Wall Street Journal included statements by criminals who said that they were not as aggressive with victims when they knew there […]

Father Kenneth Doyle: ‘Last rites’ for a comatose person?

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QUESTION CORNER Q: My daughter, who was 50 years of age, became deathly ill, spent six weeks in the intensive care unit, then entered hospice to die. When death was imminent, a nurse finally found a priest to administer last rites. (It was a Jewish hospice, and they weren’t used to calling a priest.) By […]

Father Kenneth Doyle: Why no prayers for Trump-Kim summit?

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QUESTION CORNER Q: How do we change those Catholic Church leaders who have political bias and anger toward our president? Mr. Trump needed our prayers and support for his dialogue with North Korean President Kim Jong Un. But neither at the Sunday Mass I attended nor in our diocesan paper was there any mention of […]

Father Kenneth Doyle: Who are the pope’s security detail?

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QUESTION CORNER Q: Who are the men protecting Pope Francis who are wearing suits and ties? Are they part of the Italian national police force, Swiss Guards or a private security firm? (They seem to protect the pope not only at the Vatican, but they travel with him on papal trips.) (Edison, New Jersey) A: […]

Father Kenneth Doyle: The pope’s answer ‘seemed shocking’

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QUESTION CORNER Q: In a recent issue of our diocesan paper, I read an article about a conversation that had occurred in Italy between Pope Francis and a young boy. The boy — who was both fearful and tearful, as he whispered his question to the pope — wanted to know whether his deceased father […]