Can children commit mortal sins? A reflection on first confessions

During the season of Lent, many Catholic grade school children will be making their first confession. We are most certainly in the midst of a great season of grace – there is cause for much rejoicing here! At the same time, there exists a certain degree of frivolity with which many people think of first confessions for children – “After all,” they say, “what sins can a seven year old commit?” Thus, first confession is often presented merely as a moral lesson in growing up, or perhaps merely as a hoop to jump through on the way to first communion.

However, if first confession is not really about forgiving sin, and if these children do not really need to be reconciled to God; then we ought to say (in the style of Flannery O’Connor), “The heck with it.” Thus, it will be good to consider not merely whether a child of the age of reason can sin, but even whether such a child can commit a mortal sin. Do such children really have the ability to direct their heart and mind either for or against God?

An introduction on how to pray the Stations of the Cross with St. Alphonsus

St.  Alphonsus’ Way of the Cross could well be the most popular form of the Stations of the Cross currently in use. It may be that the Stations written by St. Alphonsus are nearly as popular as every other set of Stations taken together!

Nevertheless, though The Way of the Cross which St. Alphonsus wrote is extremely popular, it may be the case that many would like to learn how better to pray these Stations with St. Alponsus. To this end, we will consider the Stations of St. Alphonsus in several successive posts over the next two weeks. In this first article, we will take a more general look at the structure and characteristics of St. Alphonsus’ Way of the Cross, pointing out the elements which are most essential to St. Alphonsus’ understanding of prayer and the spiritual life. In subsequent articles, we will consider the particular Stations themselves.

The Most Holy Trinity as a spring of water, a poem of St. John of the Cross

The water that I will give him, shall become in him a fountain of water, springing up into life everlasting. (John 4:14)

With these words, Christ our Savior promises the gift of the indwelling of the Most Holy Trinity. The Holy Spirit is often compared to fire (as on Pentacost), but he may likewise be indented through the metaphor of water (especially under the form of rain). Here, the Good Lord declares that the gift of grace is not merely a separated gift – a gift separated or distinct from the Holy Trinity – but, rather, this grace is a participation in the very life of the Almighty.

St. John of the Cross wrote a poem in which he meditated upon the mystery of the Trinity under the metaphor of a spring of water.

Did Christ hunger and thirst as God, or only as Man?, On the Gospel for the 3rd Sunday of Lent

3^rd Sunday of Lent, John 4:5-42

The disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat.” But he said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.” So the disciples said to one another, “Could someone have brought him something to eat?” Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of the one who sent me and to finish his work.”

Our Savior was truly tired, hungry, and thirsty as he sat upon the well of Jacob. The Gospel narrative makes it clear that this exhaustion resulted from bodily weakness – for Christ truly did suffer in his body. However, we may question whether, beyond this bodily hunger and thirst, there may have also been a spiritual hunger in Christ. Did the Lord “thirst” spiritually? And, if he did suffer this spiritual hunger and thirst, to what was it directed? For what was our Lord thirsting when he said to the Samaritan woman, Give me to drink?

Moreover, we must carefully consider (maintaining all piety and reverence), if there be any sense in which Christ our God suffers thirst and hunger according to his divine nature. Is the Eternal Word thirsting? Does the Son of the Father hunger? And, if so, what is his food and drink?

What confused Mary about the Annunciation

March 25^th, Feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

But Mary said to the angel, “How can this be?”

When we examine honestly the text of the Annunciation (Luke 1:26-38), it is clear that the Blessed Virgin Mary is not merely hesitant or cautious when receiving the Angelic Salutation, but indeed she is truly confused and even perplexed. Something of the words of St. Gabriel did not seem to make sense to our Lady. We ought not to be so impious as to claim that the Mother of God actually doubted the Angel’s words, but intellectual honesty requires us to admit that there was some degree of puzzlement and even bewilderment in the Immaculate Heart. This confusion witnesses to the purity of the Blessed Virgin.

If this is fasting, bring on almsgiving!

March 21^st, The 1468^th anniversary of the death of St. Benedict of Nursia

At Monte Cassino, the birthday [i.e. day of birth to eternal life] of St. Benedict, Abbot, who restored and in a marvelous way propagated monastic discipline, which had almost perished, in the West. Blessed Pope Gregory wrote his Life, glorious for virtues and miracles. [from the Roman Martyrology]

There is a popular story about a Benedictine postulant who, shortly after entering religious life, was seated at the common table in the refectory. As he looked about himself, he marveled at the elegance of the monastic dining room – the oak tables and chairs, the marvelous windows and priceless paintings. He thought that the furnishings of the monastery must be worth vast sums of money. In his stupor and amazement, the young monk could not help but break the meal-time silence as he spoke to the others exclaiming, “If this is poverty, bring on chastity!”

Reflecting upon this little bit of humor, a group of seminarians – who, at the time were enjoying a relatively nice egg breakfast on a Friday morning in Lent – were inspired to adapt the final line to their own circumstances and say, “If this is fasting, bring on almsgiving!”

While it was meant only as a simple joke at the time, this little jab does seem to pierce to the heart of a relatively serious problem in the modern Church – What is the connection between fasting and almsgiving? And, If we fail to fast with true zeal, will we likewise lose sight of the radical demands of generous giving? On the feast of St. Benedict, who both promoted fasting and also wisely adapted it to fit the needs of his time and place, it will be good for us to consider how a return to a more zealous form of fasting may bring the Christian faithful to a renewed commitment to the giving of alms.

St. Joseph teaches priests how to offer the Mass

The Just Man is often presented as a model for fathers – indeed, he is a patron for all fathers. He is a model husband and the protector of virgins. St. Joseph is the Worker, indicating the dignity of human labor (a dignity which is threatened by socialism in all its forms).

Perhaps we may take a moment today to consider how St. Joseph is a model for priests – in particular, the Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary shows priests how to celebrate the Sacrifice of the Mass with dignity, reverence, and a manly devotion.

The need for manly devotion in the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy

The feminization of the Holy Mass is a serious problem in the modern Church. It is not that the Liturgy must be utterly masculine, especially if this be understood in such a way as to exclude women from participating (remembering, of course, that the truest and most active participation is spiritual and internal). Nevertheless, there is a growing recognition of the fact that the sanctuary is becoming a place where men (and boys) are losing their manhood and becoming more like women – this may then have the odd counter-effect of making some women act like men, but that is a problem for another article.