Ask a Franciscan
Is Social Justice Marxism?
Q: I am a big supporter of Glenn Beck and all the work he is doing to save the country. On one of his programs, he was discussing social justice, which is Marxism, and how the government is trying to absorb the churches to run them as everything else—as the Communists do. He said there is a part of our Church that is tied into Marxism. What is it and how can we stop it?
Aren’t Martyrs Automatically Canonized?
Q: The feast of Saint Charles Lwanga and companion martyrs (June 3) recently raised a question for me. On July 17, 1794, 16 Carmelite nuns were guillotined in Compiègne, France, for their faith. As a secular Carmelite, I have always considered them ...
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Admitting Gross Historical Injustices
Call it tribalism, but I’ve always cast a skeptical eye on the Dominicans ever since I learned about their role in the Inquisition. Do you have any advice for thinking about historical misdeeds?
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Still a Leper?
In Matthew 26:6-13 and Mark 14:3-9, we read that Jesus was eating at the home of “Simon the leper” when Jesus was anointed with costly perfumed oil. Did Jesus heal Simon of his leprosy?
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One of Life's Great Losses
How do I understand and find peace in the death of a parent? Please accept my condolences on the death of your father or mother. Allow yourself to grieve properly but without being absolutely consumed or paralyzed by this death. ...
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Who Informed the Biblical Writers?
How did the gentlemen who gathered together to write the Bible do so? Where did their information come from? The holy Bible is beautifully written. When was it written? How did they know all the details? Ultimately, God inspired them ...
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St. Francis and His Time with the Sultan
How did St. Francis of Assisi and Sultan Malik al-Kamil become friends?
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