Q: Christians: Can a son be his own father?

Jesus is son of God, and he is God. How can father and son be the same person?

A: God the Father is of an eternal, unique, uncreated, godly “essence”.

God the Son is eternally begotten of this same essence.

God the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, and is also of the same godly essence.

Each person of the Godhead is a divine and distinct person, yet all three together constitute the one, true, God.

The Father is distinctive from the Son and the Son from the Father and the Holy Spirit, yet all are of the same godly essence, so all constitute the one God.

Mathematically: 1 X 1 X 1 = 1.

Jesus also took on flesh and became man, in order to redeem the world from sin. This merely added a human body and soul to his unique godly identity.

So … Jesus and the Father are NOT the same person. They (along with the Holy Spirit) are equally God, but are also distinctive,unique, rational persons, in their own right.

“We think that providing healthcare is itself a pro-life thing, and we think that, by and large, providing better health coverage to women could reduce abortions,” said Richard M. Doerflinger, a spokesman for the anti-abortion division of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“But we don’t make these decisions statistically, and to get to that good we cannot do something seriously evil.”

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Dear Congressman Kennedy:

“The fact that I disagree with the hierarchy on some issues does not make me any less of a Catholic.” (Congressman Patrick Kennedy) Since our recent correspondence has been rather public, I hope you don’t mind if I share a few reflections about your practice of the faith in this public forum. I usually wouldn’t do that – that is speak about someone’s faith in a public setting – but in our well-documented exchange of letters about health care and abortion, it has emerged as an issue. I also share these words publicly with the thought that they might be instructive to other Catholics, including those in prominent positions of leadership.

For the moment I’d like to set aside the discussion of health care reform, as important and relevant as it is, and focus on one statement contained in your letter of October 29, 2009, in which you write, “The fact that I disagree with the hierarchy on some issues does not make me any less of a Catholic.” That sentence certainly caught my attention and deserves a public response, lest it go unchallenged and lead others to believe it’s true. And it raises an important question: What does it mean to be a Catholic?

“The fact that I disagree with the hierarchy on some issues does not make me any less of a Catholic.” Well, in fact, Congressman, in a way it does. Although I wouldn’t choose those particular words, when someone rejects the teachings of the Church, especially on a grave matter, a life-and-death issue like abortion, it certainly does diminish their ecclesial communion, their unity with the Church. This principle is based on the Sacred Scripture and Tradition of the Church and is made more explicit in recent documents.

For example, the “Code of Canon Law” says, “Lay persons are bound by an obligation and possess the right to acquire a knowledge of Christian doctrine adapted to their capacity and condition so that they can live in accord with that doctrine.” (Canon 229, #1)

The “Catechism of the Catholic Church” says this: “Mindful of Christ’s words to his apostles, ‘He who hears you, hears me,’ the faithful receive with docility the teaching and directives that their pastors give them in different forms.” (#87)

Or consider this statement of the Church: “It would be a mistake to confuse the proper autonomy exercised by Catholics in political life with the claim of a principle that prescinds from the moral and social teaching of the Church.” (Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2002)

There’s lots of canonical and theological verbiage there, Congressman, but what it means is that if you don’t accept the teachings of the Church your communion with the Church is flawed, or in your own words, makes you “less of a Catholic.”

But let’s get down to a more practical question; let’s approach it this way: What does it mean, really, to be a Catholic? After all, being a Catholic has to mean something, right?

Read all of BISHOP THOMAS J. TOBIN’S letter to Rep. Kennedy here

+The Fifteen Promises Of Our Lady+

(Promises transmitted to Saint Dominic and to Blessed Alan)
Imprimatur Patrick J. Hayes D.D. Archbishop of New York

1 Those that faithfully serve me through praying the Holy Rosary will receive special graces.

2 I promise special protection and the most remarkable thanks, to all those that pray the Holy Rosary.

3 The Rosary will be the most powerful defense against the forces of the evil spirit. Vice will be destroyed; sin will be diminished; and all heresy will be defeated.

4 Through the prayer of the Holy Rosary, the virtues will blossom, and the good acts. The souls will obtain plenty of mercies. The hearts will keep apart from the wordly affairs and its vanities; and souls will be elevated to wish the eternal goods. Let´s hope that the souls will make the purpose of becoming closer to God through this way.

5 The soul that recommends to me through the prayer of the Holy Rosary, will never perish.

6 The soul that prays the Rosary with devotion trying hard to meditate the Holy Mysteries, will not be defeated by bad fortune. In His Holy judgement, God will not punish him. He will not suffer unexpected death. And if he is just, he will remain in the grace of God; and he will be worthy of eternal life.

7 The soul that keeps a true Devotion to the Rosary, won´t die without the Sacraments of the Church.

8 Those who pray the Holy Rosary faithfully, will have in life and death, the Light of God; and the plenitude of His grace. At the time of death, they will participate of the merits of the Holy in Paradise.

9 I will relieve from Purgatory all those who have had the habit of praying the Holy Rosary.

10 All those who remain as faithful sons of the Holy Rosary, will deserve a high grade of glory in Heaven.

11 You will obtain all you ask me through the praying of the Holy Rosary.

12 All those who propagate the Holy Rosary will receive my help in their needs.

13 For all the devotees of the Holy Rosary, I have obtained from my Holy Son, the intercession of all the celestial Court, through their lives and at the time of death.

14 All those who pray the Rosary are my children,and brothers of my unique son, Jesus Christ.

15 The devotion to the Holy Rosary is a sign of predestination.

http://www.ecatholic2000.com/index2.html

submitted by Don H.

On Saturday’s Huckabee show on FNC, host Mike Huckabee interviewed the former executive director of a Planned Parenthood clinic in Bryan Texas, Abby Johnson, who became a pro-life activist after witnessing an ultrasound of an abortion while she assisted in a procedure.

She charged that the abortion provider tries to “increase the number of abortions they do” for the purpose of making money, and described the emotional experience of watching an unborn baby at 13 weeks pregnancy “trying to get away” as its life was being ended. Video of the interview can be found here.

Johnson: “I saw the probe going into the woman’s uterus. And at that moment, I saw the baby moving and trying to get away from the probe. … And I thought, ‘It’s fighting for its life.’ And I thought, ‘It’s life, I mean, it’s alive.’”

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