QUESTION CORNER Q: My husband was brought up a Catholic and has always been very committed to the church. I am a convert, and we are raising all of our kids in the Catholic faith. Two of my sons (who are now young adults) and my husband have watched the Netflix series “The Keepers,” and […]
Father Kenneth Doyle: Uses for cellphones in church?
QUESTION CORNER Q: Recently a reader complained about irreverent behavior in church prior to Mass, including cellphone use. As part of your response, you stated that cellphone use is always inappropriate. Judging behavior is also ugly behavior, at least as repugnant as irreverence. I use my cellphone prior to Mass while seated in church. I […]
Father Kenneth Doyle: No Roman reaction to resurrection?
QUESTION CORNER Q: I have always been puzzled by the lack of reaction to Christ’s resurrection from Jewish citizens and Roman officials. It is well-documented that Jesus suffered and died, and his execution was authorized by Roman leaders; but, even at a time of no media coverage, how could Christ’s return to life have gone […]
Father Kenneth Doyle: What’s the church’s position on the transgendered?
QUESTION CORNER Q: There has been a lot in the news lately about people who identify with the gender opposite the one listed on their birth certificate. Some take hormones of the opposite sex; some even have surgery to “change” their sex. What is the Catholic Church’s position on such transgender people? Is it OK […]
Father Kenneth Doyle: Did Jesus feel abandoned?
QUESTION CORNER Q: When Jesus was dying on the cross, according to the Gospel, he cried out, “My God, why have you abandoned me?” Why was he saying this? Did he really feel that his Father had abandoned him? (Coxs Creek, Kentucky) A: Half a century ago, when I first began to think about the […]
Father Kenneth Doyle: How’s a vegetarian to abstain?
QUESTION CORNER Q: I have always observed the fast and abstinence rules during Lent, but this year I find myself in a weird situation. Last summer, I decided no longer to eat any animal products — a decision I made for my health. So abstaining from meat on Fridays during Lent is no longer a […]
Father Kenneth Doyle: Why the name change when parishes merge?
QUESTION CORNER Q: Why do names of churches have to change when parishes merge? I understand that they might not want to have a St. Mary’s/St. Joseph’s, but the new names are nothing like what we were used to; they are more complicated and difficult to remember. (Latham, New York) A: Names of churches do […]
Father Kenneth Doyle: May I go shopping on Sunday?
QUESTION CORNER Q: Genesis 2:3 says that, after creating the universe, God “rested from all the work he had done.” Since the church has always viewed the seventh day (Sunday) as holy, a day of rest and worship, is it right to go shopping on Sunday (which means that store clerks have to work on […]
Father Kenneth Doyle: Is lying always sinful?
QUESTION CORNER Q: I am a caregiver for my elderly mother and also for another woman, who is 95. My goal in life, at this point, is to help my mother to be happy. (She was severely abused by my father, who later committed suicide.) Sometimes I buy little gifts for my mother, and she […]
Father Kenneth Doyle: When will we act on the priest shortage?
QUESTION CORNER Q: I am very saddened now whenever I read the obituary notice for a priest — even if I haven’t known him personally — because I feel that this continues the downward spiral for the Catholic Church which has meant so much to me. (I am now 73.) When is the church going […]