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Jesus, Scripture, and the Catholic Church teach that water baptism is necessary for our salvation. It washes away our sins, infuses our souls with grace, and puts us in communion with God and His Church. Still, many wonder why we need water for baptism. Why can’t faith in Jesus be enough? Accordingly, this article will lay out the reasons for water baptism. Let us begin with the Catechism of the…

In a previous article, I wrote about moral perfection in this life, but I focused on contrasting mortal and venial sins for the purposes of helping us to remove sin from our lives and grow in holiness. In that article, which you can find by clicking here, I briefly mentioned deification, of which eradicating sin from one’s life is a part. When studying deification, you will sometimes read or…

Recently, I received a couple of questions that I would like to address in this article.  The questions were: 1) Can God lie, and 2) can He suffer. I’ll begin with this – why would God lie?  First, as the One who answers to no one because of His eternal and infinite power, he has no need to deceive others.  In other words, it’s not like He’s going to be in trouble if He lies.  His omniscience…

Many thanks to the Homiletic and Pastoral Review for publishing this article. In a previous article published at HPR, I wrote about moral perfection in this life, but I focused on contrasting mortal and venial sins for the purposes of helping us to remove sin from our lives and to grow in holiness.[1] In that article, I briefly mentioned theosis (or deification) of which eradicating sin from…

Scripture does not tell us explicitly that God created Adam and Eve full of sanctifying grace, but it implies that God did. Therefore, this article will explain how we can know that God created Adam and Eve full of grace. Catechism On Adam and Eve Being Full of Grace The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, “ The first man was not only created good, but was also established in friendship…

Our society throws around the word “blessing” a lot, and many people use this word without any reference to God.  Many more people do not understand their primary purpose. So, my hope is that this article will bring some clarity to the subject.  Before defining what blessings are, however, we should briefly look at what they are not. What Blessings Aren’t Blessings are not things that the…

The truth that we need to stop sinning is evident for Christians.  We believe that God calls us to moral perfection, gives us the grace to achieve it, and gives us His Son as the supreme example of holiness.  However, we still make excuses for sinful behaviors, or we find ourselves believing that God cannot perfectly sanctify us in this life.  Therefore, this article will provide a roadmap to…

The truth that we need to stop sinning is evident for Christians.  We believe that God calls us to moral perfection, gives us the grace to achieve it, and gives us His Son as the supreme example of holiness.  However, we still make excuses for sinful behaviors, or we find ourselves believing that God cannot perfectly sanctify us in this life.  Therefore, this article will provide a roadmap to…

Two thousand years ago, the eternal Word came to us as the Primordial Sacrament to make grace visible and to sanctify us.  He gave us the example of sacrificial love to show us how to love God and others.  He gave us the sacraments as sensible signs that communicate grace to sustain us and to help us grow in grace during His physical absence.  Finally, He gave us the Church as the universal…

Several weeks ago, I was thinking about the sacraments being an outward sign of grace.  Then, I realized that Jesus, the eternal Word made flesh, is an outward sign of grace—a sacrament.  In fact, theologians refer to Him as the Primordial Sacrament, the first Sacrament from whom all the other sacraments flow.  The One who is invisible grace assumed a human nature to make grace visible, to save…

Occasionally, children face insults and unfair attacks from others.  These can range from physical bullying to making fun of one’s physical attributes, intelligence, skin color, social awkwardness, financial status, clothing, religion, etc.  Overbearing parents and adults with high expectations can create problems for their children as well.  Sometimes, these belittling behaviors can impact a…

Recently, Patricia Oedy-Murray from Annunciation Radio in Toledo/Sandusky, Ohio, interviewed me about my article on grace and merit. To read the article, please click here. Also, Catholic Community Radio in New Orleans/Baton Rouge, Louisiana, interviewed me on this same topic. The interview begins at 37:22 and ends at 48:04 on the progress bar.

In this life, we encounter innumerable struggles. They can range from struggles against sin to serious illnesses and even persecutions for the Faith. Many, if not most, of these struggles cause suffering. Thankfully, God’s grace gives our struggles and sufferings meaning and gives us countless opportunities to grow in grace. When we embrace our struggles with courage, humility, and love of God,…

The Catholic Church and Scripture unambiguously teach that good works following justification are necessary for salvation. Although some Protestant churches hold fast to the idea that good works, to include those performed after justification, do not contribute to our salvation, their assertion is false. Below, I will show why this is the case. Catechism on Good Works First, we should be aware…

We are all familiar with the Last Supper narratives in which Jesus identifies Judas as his betrayer. However, something interesting occurs in John 13 when one of His disciples asks which one of them will betray Him. John 13:26-27 (RSV-CE) states: ‘It is he to whom I shall give this morsel when I have dipped it.’ So, when He had dipped the morsel, He gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot.…

I received a question recently about Romans 3:23, which states, “… all have sinned and come short of the glory of God” (King James Version). The inquirer wanted to know how to respond to people who use this verse to assert that every single person, including the Blessed Virgin Mary, has committed sin. In this article, I will show why this assertion is erroneous. Context St. Paul was writing to…

I have heard some Protestants try to use Matthew 18:20, “… where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am,” as a reason for not being Catholic.  They rationalize their avoidance of all things Catholic (and sometimes organized religious activities in general) by opining that if God is present where any two or three Christians gather, then being a Catholic or going to Mass is unnecessary. …