Ask a Franciscan

How did the Nicene Creed come about?  In AD 325, 12 years after Christianity had become a “tolerated religion” in the Roman Empire, Emperor Constantine convoked and presided over the First Council of Nicaea (modern-day Izmir, Turkey). The council addressed ...

Why is there an intermediary stage between Blessed and Saint if both titles assure someone of going to heaven? Are Blesseds waiting on the periphery to be admitted into heaven?

Why does Jesus refer to himself much more often as the “Son of Man” than as the “Son of God”?  You are right about his preferred self-description. Using the Concordance of the New American Bible, I count in the Gospel ...

Why do Catholics teach that purgatory exists? I can’t find it in my Bible. 

What is the origin of the tradition of burying a statue of Saint Joseph on property that someone wants to sell? I had never heard of this until a few years ago.

Most of my family are members of Scripture-alone groups. They say that praying to Mary is fruitless and that the Eucharist is not really Jesus' body and blood. How can I respond? For 800 years before Martin Luther, Christians had ...