CatholicAnswersLive

  Questions Covered: 28:53  - How do we deal with the popular scandal in the news regarding sexual immorality in the Church? How do I support a Church that seems to cover it up?   40:56  - I’m not Catholic yet, but it scares me to join because of the scandals and the effect they could have on my family in the future. Can you give some advice on how to get past it?    48:35  - Everyone points out how the Church has scandals, but priests are held to a higher standard than teachers who have a lot of scandals too. How do we explain to people that it’s not a Catholic Church problem but a human problem?  

  01:51  - With the translation of the Nicene Creed, what’s the difference between “confession” and “profession”? Like when we say, “I confess one baptism”. 04:48  - Thomas Aquinas had two arguments for the Filioque controversy. One of these is that the eternal origin is reflective of temporal mission. The other was that without it, we wouldn’t be able to distinguish between the son and the spirit. What are your thoughts on these arguments? 09:39  - How can I answer people that say the early church wasn’t the Catholic church? They believe Constantine put the Catholic church together. 16:09  - Why hasn’t the Catechism of the Catholic church been put in audio format if it’s such an important book? 20:30  - I recently went back to school for psychology and the topic of intersex people came up. It was argued that there should be more genders because having just two leaves out intersex people. Can you tell me how to approach this in a loving and non-judgmental w...

  16:53  - When did priests start wearing vestments? 19:17  - I’m a Catholic convert from 7th day Adventism. I wonder what the early church fathers were taught about the soul after death. Is the soul with God or is the soul asleep in what we call “soul sleep”? 23:10  - I was listening to a podcast called The History of the Early Church and the speaker kept saying that James was Jesus’ brother. Is this a known thing or is that not true? Did He have any brothers or sisters? 32:09  - When I talk to more educated Protestants, they will bring up the church fathers quite frequently but ignore questions about the papacy. How are they able to get away with that? Is that something they do on purpose? 35:50  - When did the early church become known as the “Catholic” church? 36:59  - If there are all these letters written by the apostles in jail, how come none of them survived? The Romans were known for how horrible they were, so were they letting enemies of the ...

  05:27  - I have the cremations of my relative. What are the Church’s teachings on keeping these? When did receiving the Eucharist on the hand start being permitted? Where can I find the Catholic church’s writings on this?   15:05  - In Mark 3:28-30, what does it mean to blaspheme against the holy spirit? Why is it unforgivable?   23:23  - Why are our Churches not teaching that if you are complicit in voting for something that supports abortion, you are an accomplice to an intrinsic evil? Why did 50% of Catholics vote for a candidate that supports abortion?   31:30  - My girlfriend died a few months ago. How do I know if she is in purgatory or heaven?   34:52  - In Genesis Ch 1, it often says that God “saw that it was good”. Is there a chance that God created without knowing if something was good?   37:20  - If someone has a near death experience, where does their soul go?   40:50  - Why does the Catholic church requ...

  05:04  - Were there any other people alive around Adam and Eve other than them and their children?   11:58  - How do we best understand the reality of Christ’s suffering and death on the cross?   18:15  - When someone says they’re baptized Catholic, how is that different from a Protestant baptism?   20:53  - Is it possible that God made other people before Adam and Eve and there are other descendants from them? In Genesis 4:14 Cain says “whoever finds me will slay me.” in 17 it says Cain met his wife.   23:17  - My wife and I are expecting our first child. What is expected of us in choosing the godparents and what is expected of the godparents we choose?   30:49  - Can demonic spirits from people that are praying over you come into you?   35:53  - Do you go to heaven if you’ve been cremated?   41:40  - I know that Jesus came to save us. If he’s half man and half divine, when he passes away as a man, is he ...

  17:15  - Deuteronomy 22:5 talks about how men that dress in women’s clothes are condemned and looked at in a negative manner. Is that talking about transgenderism, and can that be applied today? 21:26  - With the young adult peer group I have, how do I speak the truth to my friends about chastity and gender without being insensitive and hurting their feelings? 31:30  - How do you know if your child is going through a transition without you knowing about it? 37:11  - We are grandparents of a 15-year-old girl that we’ve heard is thinking about transitioning. She’s threatening to commit suicide if everyone doesn’t support her. How can we deal with and help this situation? 45:10  - How can we as Catholics provide outreach to people that are dealing with this gender situation and do so in a way that is non-judgmental? 52:26  - I saw a study that said transgender identity can be linked to brain activity. Is this true?

  15:12  - My 27-year-old daughter has come out. If God makes you who you are and being gay is a sin, then how can a child be born gay? How am I supposed to as a mom accept her lifestyle if it’s a sin to be gay? 24:37  - In the bible, God says marriage is between a man and woman and to cut off people that aren’t doing what’s right. In that context, how do we deal with the difficult relationships in which we know people that are same sex attracted? 33:34  - If the bible says it’s not right to be a homosexual, like in Sodom and Gomorrah, then why do some religions not take this into account? 46:32  - I’m 42 and grown up Catholic my entire life. I’m a gay man. We were always told that homosexuality is wrong but because I was being told that, I found myself hating myself. When I went to a private Methodist college, I branched out and spoke to many different priests. Isn’t it worse to lie to yourself?

  18:25  - I have a 2 year old now but my husband and I have always wanted to adopt. If I’m already overwhelmed, how do I know if we’re ready to adopt?   24:34  - Could you give some information on how to get started in the adoption process?   32:31  - What is the oldest age of a couple/individual that you would recommend to adopt a child?   43:18  - I’m 45 years old, single, and with no kids. What are your thoughts on single people adopting?   46:04  - I think it’s wonderful the way you are about your adoptive kids. How could I start a resource to find more people like you? There’s so many kids taken away by CPS so I wish more could be placed with people like you.   51:02  - How does it work if you were in a situation where you opted to adopt a child from a woman that was looking to give away her child? Do you have to go through an agency?

  39:18  - You talking about kicking your son to the curb brought up some old wounds about my parents. It didn’t strike me quite right. Can you talk through why you ultimately did it?   42:26  - Can I spiritually adopt my daughter and granddaughter who are atheists?   45:57  - As an older single adult, I’ve found it difficult to be alone. I just wanted to comment that there is a whole group of people that I feel people should remember.   49:18  - Could you go into more detail about the exorcism prayers you were talking about? Do you have to be in a state of grace to say them?   51:10  - Can you talk about adopting/praying for your own siblings? How do you reach out to them and help them get back to faith when they don’t want to listen to you?

  03:30  - How can an infinite God be three persons if three is a limit? 06:30  - Does Canon 1248 of the 1984 Code of Canon Law prohibit attending an SSPX Mass to fulfill your Sunday obligation? 18:10  - Is drunkenness a venial or mortal sin? If it depends on the context, when does it move from venial to mortal? 24:05  - I’ve heard people talk about “the four things that call down the wrath of God.” What are those and where are they written? 24:50  - Is it possible that the six other sacraments besides the Eucharist are aspects of what Christ does, such as the water of baptism being the water from Christ’s side? 32:50  - Was Joseph young or old when he married Mary? 35:20  - How do we properly dispose of devotional materials in a respectful way? 39:20  - I heard that our prayers for our loved ones are only efficacious if we’re in a state of grace. I think that might cause despair since so few people are in a state of grace. 43:15  - How ...

  17:35  - I’m in the Navy. What can I be doing now to prepare for fatherhood when I get out?   29:45  - My wife and I just bought our first home but we don’t feel at home there. What small things can we begin to do to make it?   31:50  - What would Noelle say to young college women who are more focused on a career than being a homemaker?   34:30  - How do I create a home if I’m living by myself?   46:10  - (Does the book suggest that you need to be a parent instead of having a career? I want to get it for my kids but I don’t want them to think I’m telling them that.  

  Questions Covered: 04:53  - Why do Catholics believe they can pray to saints? 14:31  - Are there any sources other than in scripture that explains why Christians believe in God? 24:49  - I’m a non-Catholic. Why do Catholics believe in the perpetual virginity of Mary? 36:53  - Why do we believe that the early church was the Catholic church? How can we then prove it to protestants? 44:41  - Why do we believe in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist? How can I explain it to my husband who doesn’t believe?

  04:07  - Did Adam and Eve have belly buttons?   10:41  - I’m a new Catholic convert. The argument I get from others that say they don’t need to be Catholic is that according to Luke 9:50, Jesus authorizes people that aren’t Catholic to be followers. Why do we believe that you should be a part of the Catholic church as a follower of Him?    18:20  - Why is it important that Mary remains a perpetual virgin?   29:07  - My 6 year old son asks, “Why do we believe that the bible is true?”    35:44  - Why do Catholics believe that people are supposed to be baptized as infants?   44:50  - How can Peter have a teaching authority guided by the holy spirit when St Paul had to correct him because he gave a bad example?   48:54  - Why don’t we do what Peter commanded?

  02:28  - Why didn’t the pope and the Catholics take more of a hard stance against Germany in WWII? 08:00  - Where is the Trinity in the Bible? 14:20  - One of my friends has a hard time with confession. He wants to know if he’s still forgiven if he doesn’t feel sorry for his sins, but he wants to feel sorry. 21:20  - How do we distinguish between sinners and righteous people, like the Bible talks about in the story of Sodom? Isn’t there a lot of gray area? 29:40  - Why isn’t there an official Church teaching on the existence of aliens, or at least a clarification on whether they might be angels or demons? 41:58  - Why would God create the dinosaurs if he knew they would be killed? 48:20  - Whenever I talk to my friend about Catholic teaching, he says “I’ll pray about it and God will tell me if it’s right.” Is there anything fallacious about this thinking?

  06:58  - Is the legal doctrine of adverse possession immoral? 14:03  - Do we have proof that Jesus walked on earth? 18:42  - Is Elijah the same person as John the Baptist? If so, how is that different from reincarnation? 21:02  - We were talking about baptism in RCIA, and one of the candidates says he thinks that original sin is a stain on the soul, but concupiscence is more psychological. Is he on the right track? 29:41  - What’s the difference between the extraordinary and ordinary magisterium? 32:30  - Can you respect the position of the papacy and still disagree in some aspects with the pope? 37:10  - Why didn’t the Apostles eat Jesus’s body after he died, since he called himself the bread of life? 45:05  - What does Jesus mean in the anointing at Bethany when he says “For the poor you have with you always; but you do not always have Me” (Mt. 26:11)? 51:08  - What’s moral and not moral when it comes to investing?

  12:00  - I don’t feel a very good connection to our Lord. How can I make that connection deeper? 17:03  - Does the devil or anything evil make miracles like Jesus? 22:12  - I teach CCD and my student asked, “If God is all knowing and knew that Judas was going to betray him, why did he choose him as a disciple?” 29:03  - What are your book recommendations on building our relationship with God? 13:47  - I had a priest tell me that the particles of the Eucharist don’t contain the real presence of Jesus. Is this true? He was referring to the video of the priest that had a mystical experience at mass and said their church wouldn’t be receiving on the hand anymore. He took it in a negative direction. 40:17  - How do you help get youth to have a relationship with Jesus? I work specifically with teenagers. 43:08  - How can we be as perfect as Jesus? 45:02  - I’ve been on a journey of “sainthood” and in the midst of 2 years, I feel like I haven’t go...

  05:10  - How do we talk to people about defending the lives of those on death row? 12:20  - If God is sovereign, why would the fetus be born in the first place if he knows they’re going to hell? 19:18  - How would you respond to someone that says, “A fetus is an innocent aggressor, therefore killing it is justified”? 31:15  - One of the arguments from pro-choice people is the verse in the bible that states that the soul enters the child’s body at some point in the middle of pregnancy. They argue that abortion is ok up until that point. How would you respond to that? 36:04  - How do you respond to someone that says that since the heartbeat starts at 6 weeks, it should be ok to stop it before that point? 43:46  - Do we know if aborted babies go to heaven? 47:55  - With so many self-esteem issues, how do you explain the value of life to someone that doesn’t think they should live? Since they don’t think their life has value, they also don’t see the...

  01:26  - In Revelation 12, it talks about how the woman has birth pains when delivering her son. Is there any evidence that this refers to Mary’s pain at the foot of the cross? 12:25  - From scripture, is there a difference between dogma and doctrine? 17:10  - Is there anything that describes if the prophecies of Isaiah have all come true? 20:41  - In Matthew 27:52-53 when all the people rose from the dead when Christ was crucified, why is it not recorded in any gospels other than Matthew? What kind of impact did it have on Jerusalem? 28:44  - In Samuel 4:1-11, the Philistines went and got the Ark of the Lord from Shiloh. What is the ark? Why did the Lord leave Israel to lose to the Philistines? 34:24  - When we pray in accordance with the scriptures, what scriptures are we referring to? 39:32  - What amount of awareness did Mary have during the passion of Christ? 44:58  - The New American Bible has a note that the 2nd story of creation in ...

  02:54  - Did Jesus put himself in Mary’s womb since he’s God?   04:33  - I don’t think that Jesus was the Messiah. Why do Christians believe this?   12:52  - In 2nd Corinthians 5:18, it talks about the ministry of reconciliation. Is this approved text for the sacrament? If not, what does it mean instead?   20:22  - How can we interpret Romans 13:2 in reference to injustice in the world with the government? For example with the revolutionary war.   24:13  - Since only the Father knows the end of the world, does that mean that Jesus isn’t all knowing?   32:29  - Could you explain the typology of Mary being the Ark of the new covenant? Is it too far to say if someone touched her that they would die?   39:16  - In Mark Ch 3:21, Jesus’ family thought he was “out of his mind”. How does this fit in with the Catholic understanding of the holy family?   45:39  - Jesus said “I’m the way, the truth, and the life”. Ho...

  08:12  - Are there any statues honoring Israelites who came from Bethlehem? 14:33  - What’s your view on receiving on the hand vs. on the tongue? 21:20  - What are the Nephilim, and how do we know that we’re completely human and not possibly descended from them? 30:08  - How would you respond to a Protestant who said the Church apostatized in the 200s century is the modern Catholic Church? 35:56  - Does chewing gum break the Eucharistic fast? 41:12  - Is there any possibility Ignatius can reissue St. Gregory’s prayer book in larger print? 43:49  - Catholic Community Radio….Do the Gospels recount things in chronological order? 50:30  - What’s the emphasis of the parable of the talents?

  03:47  - Do you know anything about The Healing of Families by Fr. Yozefu B. Ssemakula and whether it contains harmful falsehoods? 05:11  - Are Protestants who divorce and remarry (while still remaining Protestants) in adulterous relationships? 14:58  - My friend just delivered a premature baby. Her priest says he can’t baptize the baby because he can’t be touched inside the incubator. Is that correct? 19:21  - How do I respond to my Anglican friend who says that the Eucharist is simultaneously the Body and Blood of Christ and the bread and wine? 28:35  - What are the origins of depicting God as an old man and Jesus with long hair in religious art? 37:20  - How did John the Baptist end up living in the wilderness without his parents? 41:30  - My friend is going through a difficult time with his paranoid religious mom and I’m wondering if there’s anything I can share with him from a Catholic perspective that will help him out. 44:46  - How m...

  19:30  - Should I fear purgatory? 28:40  - Does the apostolic pardon remove all temporal punishment, or is there some other thing you have to do like being completely detached from sin? 33:10  - Did I answer my granddaughter correctly when she asked me “If purgatory is real, why did Jesus die?” 41:00  - If we pray for the souls in purgatory, do they know who prays for them? And is it okay to hear several masses for them, or is one sufficient? 46:50  - It’s a good idea to begin suffering in this life so we don’t rely on purgatory too much. 51:30  - Is it possible to prove that purgatory exists?

  16:45  - How can I reach my son who refuses to talk to me at all?   22:50  - My son just told me he no longer believes in Christ but he wants a Catholic marriage to a girl who’s a devout Catholic.   43:15  - How do you turn off your mind at night when you’re thinking about your kids?   49:50  - How do I talk to my adult son and daughter who are fallen-away Catholics?

Questions Covered: 06:10  - Why is Michael the Archangel a saint if he’s an angel? When did the Church first start having saints?   16:15  - What is the origin of birthstones? Are they a pagan item? If so, is it ok for Catholics to have them?   23:19  - Following the resurrection, we’re told God exists outside of time and space. Given this, how would we be with him in the new world?   28:25  - What is the Church’s teaching on marital rape? A friend said it was never seen as rape but just a marital dispute so the law never had any say in it.   31:07  - Have you heard of Wycliffe’s bible? If so, is it ok for Catholics to read from it?   35:10  - As a Catholic, will your book A Daily Defense help me explain our faith to people who may not believe in it?   38:22  - How can I defend and incorporate my faith into conversations with Atheists and Protestants? 44:30  - Is there any connection between the sons of Noah and the 3...

  Questions Covered: 06:19  - In other religions, can there be miracles? What do we do with the stories of other so-called saints from other religions?   14:05  - Can you explain the process of how the church declares something infallible?   16:15  - I’m an immigrant and I’ve lived in the US for 19 years but I don’t have legal status. What advice would you have for someone like me that wants to be a good Catholic and live a good life according to Christ’s teaching?   20:00  - You mentioned the best dating for the birth of Christ being 2-3 BC. Where did you get this conclusion from? Why do you believe that is the best time period as opposed to a different time period?   28:55  - I’m not sure what to do about my husband receiving communion. When I met him, he said he was Catholic but when we did marriage classes, he told the deacon he had only been baptized and didn’t receive his First Communion. I only recently found out about this so wha...

  05:11  - In Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus talks about being saved and doing the will of his father in heaven. What does the will of the father mean in relation to entering the kingdom of heaven?   13:38  - When Jesus tells the disciples to eat the bread and drink the wine, he’s just talking directly to them. Where in the bible does it say those items are supposed to be distributed to the people?   17:24  - What does God mean when he says we need to pick up our cross?   23:45  - I have a friend who claims she went to hell and while there, she was tormented by demons. What does the Catholic church say about life after death experiences?   35:43  - Will my mom still be saved if she used to be Catholic but she’s now protestant?   46:03  - Is water baptism necessary for salvation?   51:15  - The bible says that when Jesus died on the cross, people were risen into heaven. Were any of the people that died before Jesus taken into ...

  08:04  - I have a hard time with the Marian dogmas. Where in scripture is Mary’s perfection written out? 16:37  - I live in a nursing home and they have ecumenical services that have what they call a “eucharistic meal”. I go to the other denominations’ services to build community, but I don’t receive these “meals”. How can I explain to others why I don’t? 23:45  - My girlfriend is Evangelical and looking to convert. She’s having trouble with Matthew 1:25 where it says, “But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to their son”. Why is this said if Mary is a perpetual virgin? 35:07  - What is the proof of Mary’s assumption and incarnation? 44:44  - Why did Jesus have to die for our sins?

  Questions Covered: 02:06  - My son is manically depressed and suicidal. He doesn’t care or believe in God. I know that in order for God to enter into his life, he has to be willing to let him in.  If he is in a state where he’s not thinking clearly, would my prayers be enough to save him?   08:25  - It seems that the Church doesn’t let the public know of how they deal with priests that have violated human rights, particularly those of children. How do they deal with them and why isn’t this information public?   15:55  - Are we allowed to venerate Orthodox saints?   20:05  - Proverbs 17:17 says a friend is always a friend. Does that hold true when your friend is sleeping with your husband?   22:22  - Why is the staff of Aaron involved in the ark of the covenant? Why are the staff and the manna removed from the ark and just the 10 commandments are left?   29:12  - Could you elaborate on how we become true Christians of our...

  Questions Covered: 04:55  - Could you give me some advice on how to improve my prayer life? 12:00  - In the beginning of mass when the priest says “Call to mind your sins,” if he doesn’t say that, are they still forgiven? The priest at our church says “Let’s call to mind God’s forgiveness/mercy” but not the other words. 15:30  - How can one with kids spend time with them in prayer when they’re all under the age of 7? Also, how can one get them more engaged at mass? 19:10  - My mother wants to be cremated and put next to my father. When I recently spoke to the funeral home, I found out the people aren’t actually put under the ground but spread in their rose garden. Should I tell my mother? Both her and I are both devout Catholics. 23:40  - My husband and I have been married for almost 27 years and he started drinking a couple years ago. I have a hard problem with him drinking the harder stuff. How can I communicate with him that I don’t like him drinking t...

  02:25  - I’ve heard a lot of apologists refer to a 3-tiered system of priests. Could you talk about this in reference to 1st Peter and Exodus 19 in light of the golden calf? 14:30  - I was having a discussion with our associate pastor and he said Mary was not married and I disagreed with him. Was Mary married or not? 20:20  - I recently returned to the Church. I prayed to God asking how to get closer to him and out of nowhere, I heard “give up everything”. What does that mean and what do you have to give up to be a disciple of Christ? 29:30  - If I go to confession and after I confess everything, maybe an hour later I die, will I go directly to heaven? 36:15  - How can I explain to a protestant friend that it was never intended for there to be multiple denominations but only one church? 44:55  - What is the church teaching on the books missing from the bible? Should we be reading them? 49:45  - In Genesis 4:16-17, where did Cain find a wife if t...

  04:30  - In the beginning of your book Pope Peter, you talk about how it’s a deficiency that protestants talk about the visible and invisible church. Why do you view it as a deficiency to have this viewpoint? 13:51  - In scriptures in the Old Testament, how do we know that God actually said what he said? Also, how did God speak to these people and how did they know he was speaking to them? 21:34  - What makes a confession valid? If a priest hears a confession, is it only valid if he’s in communion with Rome? 29:34  - How are patron saints chosen? 35:38  - Where in the bible does Jesus teach that pre-marital sex is a sin? 41:00  - My stepson is 9 but he has psychological disabilities in which he has rage fits where he throws things and says bad things. Does he need confession every week in order to receive the sacraments because of what he says and does? 50:25  - Why does Christmas have one “s” at the end, but when we separate “Christ” and “mass”...

  15:14  - How does one answer a person who says he doesn’t believe that the bible is the inspired and inherent word of God? 20:18  - Could you please give a definition of “Theology”? I’m not really sure what it exactly means. 29:50  - Is there a theological preference based on the study of God’s word as to how he is worshiped in the liturgy? 35:53  - I heard about a teaching of the Church about how celibacy is an objectively superior state to marriage. How does it relate to Adam and Eve’s calling as a couple and does it indicate a shift after the coming of Jesus? 41:55  - I had a non-Catholic friend explain to me that compounding sin from Adam is the cause of our shortened life span. Is it true that the sins of our fathers are the reason we don’t live as long as Adam did? 49:12  - Why is the early church father Origen not a saint? As a catechist, do you recommend any sources for a full-blown catechist program?