Is My Phylactery Showing?: December 2009

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Fr. V shared this link to a site where you can see a 360-degree view of the the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Good stuff. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like there are any vertical views, so you don't get to see the beautiful Christ Pantocrator over the Greek Orthodox chapel. I've included a shot of it in this post, and you can view my other photos of Israel from here.

UPDATE: My mistake! If you click the Details tag on the right side, you can get directional controls to view the ceiling. I'm still searching to find images of Calvary. You can see the stairs up to the site of crucifixion, but so far, no Calvary.

Dec

Merry Christmas

To my eight followers, and to those who are following me through RSS feed, and to those who just happen to drop by in the next few days, merry Christmas. I'm humbled that anyone takes the time to read anything I write and happy that you find it worth reading. God bless you in the coming new year.

Dec

Holy Orders and Matrimony

Explain the doctrine of Catholic priestly celibacy and its limits.

Priests in the Latin Rite are normatively bound by obligatory celibacy. This obligation is frequently mistaken for a vow of chastity, which is taken by religious and some lay people, or continence, which is obligatory for all Christians who are not married. In contradistinction to these, a priest in the Roman rite is obligated to permanent continence, which practically speaking necessitates celibacy (CIC 277).

Dec

Sacraments of Healing

Why do we call penance and unction of sick sacraments of healing?

Christ came to heal the sick and wounded, both physically and spiritually. Likewise, He gave to the Church two sacraments so that His Church could continue to heal physically and spiritually in His name. The two actions are connected by Christ Himself in scripture in Matthew 9, when He tells the paralytic, brought to Him for physical healing, that his sins are forgiven (Matthew 9:2).

Dec

Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist

What is understood by “Baptism by immersion?” What are the different meanings of water? What is necessary for the validity of the Baptism? Is Baptism necessary for Salvation? What is the effect of the Baptism?

The word “baptism” comes from the Greek word βάπτισμα, which means “to dip” or “to immerse.” While the Church has always accepted baptism by affusion or by pouring water over the head of the baptized, immersion, or the plunging of catechumens into water, is a fuller sign of the sacrament

Dec

Sacraments and Sacramentals

This is my first assignment from the course I took on sacraments this semester. While we didn't have regular papers, I wound up writing about the same or more relatively speaking. I had this course in parallel with the sacramental theology course we had for Servant School (diaconal and lay ministry formation).

Explain the differences between Sacraments and Sacramentals.

Dec

The Prisoner (1955)

This review is yet another for the Korrektiv's 52 Movies for the Year of the Priest. I have yet to receive the original movie I offered to review, The Massacre in Rome, both attempts resulting in damaged DVDs. We'll see if number three proves to be more successful.

The Prisoner takes place in a nameless totalitarian country following World War II. Alec Guinness plays a cardinal in the Roman Catholic Church, much beloved by the people of his flock.

Dec

Another week of Advent

This song never fails to get to me.

Dec

Thesis Topic - Matthew in Aramaic?

I'm beginning the process of determining a topic for my master's thesis. While a thesis isn't required for my degree program, it's recommended for those who place to go beyond the master's degree. One of the topics I find interesting is the synoptic problem—the question of which gospel acount came for first and which borrowed from it.

Dec

MA in Theology - Progress So Far

Okay, so I think I've made it clear that I'm on the perpetual student plan for this degree. I've made it a rule that I don't take two sequential semesters and only take one class each time. I've decided that I need to pick up the pace a bit if I want to wrap up my thesis in time for diaconal ordination. It's either that or skip the thesis (which isn't a requirement but helps if you seek a terminal degree).

Is My Phylactery Showing?

Faithful Catholic or modern-day pharisee? Sometimes I might be a bit of both.