catechesis
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Under Pontius Pilate
The phrase “Under Pontius Pilate” reminds us that the crucifixion of Jesus Christ was an historical event. It is an event that can be corroborated by non-gospel sources. So it is not just a story made up later by the faithful. Monsignor Knox contrasts that when you tell a fairy tale, you open it with Continue reading
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He Suffered
The next phrase is “he suffered.” We are familiar with the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane that Jesus endured on the night before his passion, but there are other times in the gospel stories where it’s clear that our Lord is suffering. After his 40 days in the desert, he is hungry. And hunger Continue reading
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Born of the Virgin Mary
The next phrase from the Apostles Creed is, “conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary.” Monsignor Knox points out that the title Our Lady is not an ancient title that we see from the early days of the Church, but it seems to come perhaps in the Middle Ages and perhaps it’s Continue reading
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And in Jesus Christ Our Lord
The next phrase from the Apostles Creed is and in Jesus Christ his only son. Jesus is just the Aramaic form of the word that we see in the Old Testament Joshua. So it’s a relatively familiar name for a boy, and as is the case with so many Hebrew names, it means something. In Continue reading
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Father Almighty
So far we have covered the beginning of the Creed, and we have covered the words: “I believe in God.” The next concept is the Father Almighty. And Monsignor Knox uses this to take a look at the problem of suffering. People struggle with the fact that a loving God who is Almighty doesn’t seem Continue reading
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Hungry to Know Our Dignity
The talk will revolve around the parable of the Prodigal Son and St. Pope John Paul II’s 1980 encyclical on the Mercy of God known by its Latin title, “Dives in Misericordia.” Because one is never sure of the depth of an audience’s familiarity with the Bible, let me give you a very brief synopsis Continue reading
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The Creed in Slow Motion Pt 1.
Origins Ronald Knox was an Anglican whose conversion was partly due to his relationship with G.K. Chesterton, a famous public Catholic intellectual at the time. Having gone through the English upper-class education system and been ordained as an Anglican priest in 1912, he was brought into the Catholic Church in 1917 and quickly ordained a Continue reading
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The Four Temperaments
The pattern of inclinations and reactions that proceed from the physiological constitution of the individual. Something permanent that admits of only secondary modification. (OUR WIRING.) Sanguine Temperament Reacts quickly and strongly to almost any stimulation or impression Reaction is usually of short duration Remembrance of past experiences does not easily arouse a new response. Usually Continue reading
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Vainglory
The desire for glory when glory is due to God alone, hence vain (empty) glory. St. Thomas’ three ways glory can be vain the things for which one seeks glory are vain or petty – WRONG THINGS the persons from whom one seeks glory are uncertain or lacking in judgment – WRONG PEOPLE the end Continue reading
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Melancholy/Sloth
Sloth seeks undue rest in so far as it spurns the Divine good Sloth is not an aversion of the mind from any spiritual good, but from the Divine good, to which the mind is obliged to adhere. He is sorry to have to do something for God’s sake. Evil in itself (sadness in reaction Continue reading
Bound in Love 