QUESTION CORNER Q: I understand that, as Catholics, if we choose to be cremated our cremains are to be treated with dignity and must be buried or entombed. My husband and I have two family members who have asked us to arrange to have their ashes “scattered.” One is a Catholic, one is not. Does […]

QUESTION CORNER Q: If a Catholic gets married by a priest, later gets divorced, then gets married by a judge, can that person still receive the holy Eucharist? A: The short answer is “no,” but there is so much more to it than that. First, to explain the rule: The church is a communion of […]

QUESTION CORNER Q: I was given a prayer folder that tells me that I will suffer no purgatory and be taken directly to heaven when I die, provided that I say these prayers daily for 12 years. (Missed days can be made up.) I am about ready to start the third year, but a dear […]

QUESTION CORNER Q: I love children, and I know that babies will cry at inopportune times. That said, I am puzzled at the young parents in our parish who allow their children to cry loudly in church for extended periods of time. I tend to believe that it might be part of our American culture […]

QUESTION CORNER Q: Who is a better person? Someone who attends Mass every Sunday and receives Communion but is not nice to people (rude, insulting, doesn’t help the poor)? Or someone who attends Mass sporadically but is a kind, considerate and helping individual? (Gahanna, Ohio) A: Is it better to walk on your right leg […]

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 […]

QUESTION CORNER Q: Often, I have been at a Mass where the deacon reads the Gospel, which is fine. But then, sometimes, the deacon goes on to give the homily while the priest watches. This disappoints me and makes me feel that the deacon is overstepping his bounds. Why should a deacon, rather than the […]

  QUESTION CORNER Q: I am having a hard time understanding why a Catholic church closed by a bishop can no longer be used for Masses, weddings and funerals. For more than 100 years, this particular church — built by my great-great-grandparents — was considered sacred ground. Now my grandson wants to get married in […]

QUESTION CORNER Q: Every summer, my husband and I go on a cruise. Only one cruise line (Holland America) continues to have a priest on board to say Mass. When we travel on other cruise lines, frequently we have missed Sunday Mass because there was no priest on board and we could not get to […]