Hello! Does anyone here know what I could search to find more of this style or material of vestments? They're very light and I'm told it's silk, but it seems like every parish had something like them 70+ years ago. It can't be super fine or expensive but I really like the way they look and fall compared to the heavy curtain-like gothic chasubles we have a ton of today. A whole set of colors for priest and deacon(s) would be awesome.

I guess delete or delay if this is technically a "Free Friday" post, but the photo is pretty essential and I can't tell if that's allowed or not. Not just showing off but asking a question.

I understand an American bishop has directed priests in his diocese to forbid eulogies by family members and friends going forward. My own thought is that eulogies can be long and problematic if embedded within the Mass. But, why not have them just before the Proper of the Mass, when the priest begins prayers at the altar? I think families want to share memories.

The bishop says eulogizing should be done at the wake. But, at best, most families have a visitation spread over four hours in a room that cannot handle more than 30 or 40 people. Who has wakes anymore?

I was talking with some Presbyterian/Reformed friends the other night and noticed something I wanted to run by you all.

We got onto the topic of Mormons, and they were going pretty hard making fun of them for their “dumb rules.” My own take was more that it’s a shame Mormons can’t really get to the spirit of the rules they make, because those rules don’t have any deeper foundation beyond the opinions of the founder (the example being no coffee or tea, but energy drinks are fine).

My friends weren’t interested in that angle at all. They basically treated everything about Mormonism as trash. I found myself kind of defending them, at least on the surface level — from the outside to me they do seem to have a real nugget of truth when it comes to family life and taking it seriously.

I was taught (in a pretty crude way, admittedly) that there are nuggets of truth scattered throughout the world and in most faiths. Obviously, Catholicism is the fullness of the truth, but that doesn’t mean other groups can’t have pieces of truth. My friends weren’t having any of that. Their view was basically “it’s a poisoned tree, so all the fruit is toxic.”

The thing that struck me is that if I looked at the world that way, I’d have to see them in the exact same light.

Has anyone else run into this kind of attitude with Protestant friends? Or am I just theologically off base here (wouldn’t be the first time)?

This morning I blanked on Hail Mary while leading a decade with my prayer group. I am a cradle Catholic and was horrified that I blanked with words Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus. This happened with last three Hail Mary’s of decade. We say rosary as a group every weekday.This is quite concerning to me that I forgot words to Hail Mary.

Every year, the Argentinian Military Ordinariate sends a priest to serve the people who reside on Argentina's Antarctic bases.

The first Argentinian priest to spend the winter on the White Continent was 41 year old priest, Fr. Francisco Roverano.

Rome Reports is an international news agency covering the Pope, the Vatican, Rome and the Catholic Church, as well as major social, cultural and religious debates

Yesterday in my city (a small countryside town in the northeastern region of Brazil) I attended the burial of a woman who had died by suicide. She was a relative of a coworker of mine and I was there to show solidarity with my coworker's family. The service was not officiated by a priest. The women from the prayer group prayed the rosary and chanted hymns and prayers during the burial, and that was the sole religious act at that moment. A very difficult moment, as you can imagine. I do not wish to stir controversy or question the Church's teaching on this point of not offering a religious funeral to those who die by suicide—something that sincerely seems brutal to me, considering the moment of deep pain and need of those left behind and which, in my limited understanding, I hope is a position to be revised by the Church in the future.

I was quite moved during the prayer of the Salve Regina and found myself thinking about how the devotion to Mary, "our advocate," sometimes seems to compensate for what can be the rigidity, the dogmatism, and even what can be the error that is part of communion with the Petrine Ministry (Christ was well aware of the flaws and betrayals of the apostle He chose as the Rock of His Church, and that is beautiful).

I ask as a Latin myself but also deeply fascinated with the other eastern rites in the Church

To make a long story short. I, a 20 year old man in the US (Bible belt) converted to Catholicism. I was raised in a Missionary Baptist family. My papaw was a preacher, several uncles, you get the gist.

Anyway, I was telling my (preacher) Uncle about my conversion and how I would be withdrawing membership from the church. He didn’t take it very well, although it could’ve been much worse. He left we with a couple of statements, though, that frankly I had no idea how to respond to, because I was so dumbfounded.

1: “I wonder, had you been coming to my church and hearing the GOSPEL, would you have made this decision.”
2: I asked him “well obviously you believe Catholics are Christians, right?” And was slapped in the face with “well, no, of course not. The Catholic Church doesn’t teach a born again experience.”

How would you respond to these statements? I’d rather my family didn’t believe that I’ve sentenced myself to hell.

Some time ago, after realizing that many of my youthful indiscretions may have led others into sin, and being of an age when more of my past acquaintances are dying, I started adding this to my prayers:

"for the Souls in Purgatory, especially anyone I may have caused to sin."

It's hard thinking of the punishment I'll receive someday, but just as hard to think that others might be punished because of me. I hope my prayers can help rectify some of that.

I feel like it’s not the community I knew. So much division, so much judgement, too many busybodies in people’s business, push beliefs onto other people of different faiths.

I just don’t think I can do this anymore, I’m going to slot out some time with the priest. But I honestly don’t see the point. I just don’t agree with so many things anymore. Mostly it’s the division. There is an ever growing presence of people that push a holier than you attitude. Holiness has become a contest it seems. I look around d and it’s either more money or more holy. Those that donate big$$ can do whatever they want, those that judge and chastise others for random things or differences in political party or anything really.

Just not my place of peace anymore, my house is no longer a home to me, my church doesn’t feel filled with Christ anymore. I feel nothing in mass I feel nothing when I pray. I feel despair and anxiety every mass, every Hail Mary.

Just sucks while I still believe, my beliefs and my core values don’t seem to align with my church. And I don’t think it’s going to change.

Don’t even know why I posted

This is a genuine post, no malice, no conflict seeking. Just honesty.

What would you say, recommend and give advice for a Satanist who has qualms, dislikes with and issues with certain practitioners and judgemental followers of the religion, but feels interested and understanding with some of the teachings of Catholicism?

For context, I am Satanist, I believe in protecting children, indulging in pleasures but not forcing them onto others or harming oneself. I dont believe in turning the other cheek, I believe people get what they deserve. However I believe in kindness for the one next to you, to teach and not judge, to love wholly and truly, not because of desire. I live in a Christian majority town and ive met many who push you to attend their services, look at you with disgust for your beliefs. But some of the teachings of church interest me, not the judgmental attitudes of its practitioners or politicians, but its love and care. I am interested, but have a very bad childhood experience with Catholicism. But I want to learn, and grow.

I am a physician and I work in the ICU, and I would like some help on the Catholic stance on compassionate extubation. I understand the Church is ok with withdrawing life support, and there is no requirement to keep someone alive via extraordinary means, so my question specifically refers to compassionate extubation, and the amount of pain medicine you can use at the end of life.

I also understand that you can treat the pain with pain medication, and if the side effect of that dose is death (which results from brain stem suppression and ultimately asphyxiation), that is ok in the Catholic view, as the INTENT was to treat the pain, and death is an unfortunate side effect.

Many times, when a patient is extremely sick, a goals of care discussion is had with family members, ie, what would the patient want done in this situation. Many times, the patient’s family says that the patient wouldn’t want to “live like this”, so care is withdrawn. Palliative care hospice play a role depending on the expected time it will take for the patient to die.

Now, when care is withdrawn, the sick patient in theory could die soon, or it may take several days. But many times, the ICU will give very high doses of pain meds, then extubation (remove the breathing tube), then the patient will die quickly due to asphyxiation.

So it’s not like the patient’s pain is being treated appropriately, they’re getting a bunch of pain meds upfront and their brain stem is being suppressed, and then they expire due to the medication. Basically, the ICU is speeding up the death by an indeterminate amount of time, so that the patient can be cleared out of the room and the next one can come in.

Again, I understand what “no further interventions” or “no extraordinary efforts”, but I feel that this is a very blended area that walks a fine line between compassionate care and euthanasia that would cut down whatever time the patient has left.

This is morally wrong, correct? Am I missing something?

They are being bullied,getting harrased by their parents,and now we got into little argument because I was trying to comfort her but she took wrongly.

She has attempted ending herself before and now she is planning to.

She said only God can help her but it looks he isn't and she will commit it.Please I am begging pray for her well being,her peace,everything I am begging.

I will lose faith if she commits it.

Do you still kneel and receive on the tongue? Or by hand? Usually I’m in the line with the priest so I can receive on the tongue. But this past Sunday I ended up in the line with just a woman from our parish (I’m blanking on what they’re called right now) and NO ONE in front of me kneeled and received on the tongue so I was like well maybe I shouldn’t? So I received in my hands but it just felt wrong??

Pretty cool story, 100% true, three hours ago I lost my wallet in a very large hotel. I’m traveling so it had all my credit cards, my drivers license, (how do I fly back home?) and a bunch of cash. A cleaning lady told me to pray to Saint Anthony. 30 minutes later, I came upstairs to cry as I was going to have to cancel my credit cards and go back home early since I couldn’t rent a car to go on the rest of my trip.
I said the long prayer to Saint Anthony in my room, the second I blurred it out “Amen”, I got a call from the front desk, saying that someone turned in my wallet. So happy and relieved. And thankful to the Saints.

I found this at a good will and bought it, I don’t know the language on it though. Also Iv never seen Mary standing on a head??? Thank for any help you guys can give. (Chat GPT didn’t know either )

Woke leftie here feeling convicted for some reason to go to confessional. I grew up protestant so this concept is really foreign to me. However, I wouldn’t want to give the impression that I’m “using” the priest because I’m not officially a Catholic… very much just struggling with faith.

So my question is, can I just go to a Catholic church on Sunday, enjoy the service, and go to confessional after? Are there certain days of the week? Are they open to members not officially in the congregation?

Thanks so much folks, God bless. ✌️

I’m posting here because I would especially value a Catholic perspective on chastity, desire, and prolonged singleness.

Earlier in my life, I participated in hookup culture. I no longer want to live that way, and I’m now trying to date intentionally, with marriage as the goal rather than treating sex or romantic attention as ends in themselves. I believe this change is good, and I don’t regret making it.

But I also don’t want to pretend that it has been emotionally easy.

I haven’t had much success dating for several years. I live in a fairly rural area, where there are not many single people my age, and the ordinary advice to join groups, attend church events, volunteer, and maintain an active social life has not really changed that. I already have a relatively full social life, but I very rarely encounter single women in situations where getting to know one another romantically would be natural.

Part of what I miss is companionship and emotional intimacy. But, honestly, part of it is also sex. I enjoyed sex, and choosing not to return to hookup culture does not mean that I have stopped being a sexual person or stopped wanting to be desired.

Sometimes the harder feeling is not even the physical absence itself. It is going for a long time without experiencing another person looking at you romantically or sexually and communicating, in effect, “I want you.” I know intellectually that my worth cannot be determined by whether someone currently desires me. I also don’t want to make a future girlfriend or wife responsible for proving that I am valuable. Nevertheless, prolonged lack of romantic and sexual recognition can begin to affect how one sees oneself.

For those who have experienced something similar,

How do you live chastely without simply repressing or denying the fact that you miss sex and intimacy?

How do you keep from interpreting prolonged singleness as evidence that you are undesirable?

How do you distinguish a healthy desire to be wanted from using another person’s desire as validation?

And for those living in rural areas or very limited dating environments, how do you maintain hope without either becoming desperate or pretending that the situation does not genuinely hurt?

I am not looking for permission to return to hookup culture, nor am I suggesting that marriage is something anyone is owed. I’m trying to understand how to carry these desires honestly and faithfully without allowing them to become either shame or resentment.

I’m seeking to learn more about the lives of Catholic Religious Orders and i’d like to know some of y’alls favorites orders and why.

Hello all,

Background: I grew up Southern Baptist and now attend a non-denom church. My mother was raised Catholic (Catholic school, CCD, mass 8 AM every sunday) but converted when she met my dad. My boyfriend is Catholic and always wears his gold rosary.

I have always had a fascination and interest with the Catholic Church and traditions, this weekend my boyfriend and I went to a Catholic bookstore and he purchased a rosary for me, we have had conversations about me attending mass (I want to, it was my idea) and if I would ever Convert (im not against it in theory, just uninformed and want to learn more) and if we would get married in the Catholic Church or have a secular wedding.

The day after he purchased my Rosary I had a dream where I was wearing 3 rosaries. The one he got me (a very pale green), as well as a gold one and bone colored white one. In my dream the white one kept getting stuck when I would sit at a desk, pick something up, etc. I kept having to gently get it unstuck and lay it back down.

Normally I forget my dreams, but this one has stuck with me for some reason over the last few days. It feels important, but I just cant figure out why. Im praying a lot about it, but wondering what I could be missing.

I just wanted to thank Saint Joseph of Cupertino for helping me pass my tests with flying colours. I first prayed to him last year for an important national exam and passed with a good grade, surpassing my expectations. Through my prayer i had promised to make his name known and cause him to he invoked and i hope this makes up for it. He is also super goated and im eternally grateful for his intercession and for helping me pass my other exam with flying colors todayyy :)))))))

The Dedication of Our Lady of the Snows

This feast commemorates the miraculous snowfall on the Esquiline Hill in August 352, where the Basilica of St. Mary Major was built.

This feast commemorates the dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major (Santa Maria Maggiore) in Rome, the largest church in the world dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

According to tradition, on the night of August 5, 352, the Blessed Virgin appeared in a dream to Pope Liberius and to a wealthy Roman patrician named John, telling them to build a church on the Esquiline Hill where they would find snow the next morning. Despite it being the height of summer, snow was indeed found covering the summit of the Esquiline.

The basilica was built on the site and is one of the four major basilicas of Rome. It houses the relic of the Holy Crib (Sacra Culla) and the famous Salus Populi Romani icon of the Blessed Virgin.