Ask a Franciscan
Why Gluten-Free Hosts?
Pat McCloskey, OFM
September 23, 2018
I understand the Church’s teaching on Eucharist. Transubstantiation means it changes completely from bread and wine to the flesh and blood of Jesus. I believe in the Eucharist, the source and summit of our faith. I also understand that our senses cannot tell the difference. Therefore, why are gluten-free hosts needed?
‘I Am Consumed with Guilt and Sorrow’
Pat McCloskey, OFM
September 4, 2018
Q. I am feeling very guilty. I was driving my car and accidentally hit a man with my side mirror. I never saw him, and I don’t know if he stepped in front of me or not. The only reason ...
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My Problem with the Rosary
Pat McCloskey, OFM
May 24, 2018
I was raised Catholic but drifted away in my early 20s. I came back in my late 20s, very much influenced by a man who prayed the rosary with great devotion. Unfortunately, he eventually betrayed me, lied to me, and ...
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Why Did God Change Names?
Pat McCloskey, OFM
January 24, 2018
In different parts of the Old Testament, God is called by different names for example, sometimes El and at other times Yahweh. Why is that? Why did God change names? God did not change names but is simply too great ...
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What Was That ‘Good News’?
Pat McCloskey, OFM
November 24, 2017
In Luke 9:6, we read that the 12 apostles "went from village to village proclaiming the good news and curing diseases everywhere. " What was that "good news "? The Gospels were not yet written. Similarly, what did St. Paul ...
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How Can I Forgive Him?
Pat McCloskey, OFM
October 25, 2017
My neighbor of many years was recently arrested for viewing child pornography. I've known him and his beautiful family since they moved into our neighborhood; I had considered him a pillar of the community.
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Wedding on an Airplane?
Pat McCloskey, OFM
September 8, 2017
During Pope Francis' visit to Chile and Peru last January, he married a couple during one of the flights. Does Church law permit that? Carlos Ciuffardi Elorriage, 41, and Paula Podest Reuiz, 39, had been civilly married for several years ...
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