A forum of Catholic Thought

Questions on baptismal recordsJenna Marie Cooper

Q: My cousin is getting married soon and will need to obtain a copy of her baptismal certificate for inclusion in the pre-nuptial enquiry. As a newborn baby, it wasn't clear if she would survive and ...

What are the rules for Catholics and Christmas trees? Jenna Marie Cooper

Q: When I was a kid, we put up the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve and took it down a day or two after Christmas. As an adult, I put the tree up a day or two after Thanksgiving and left it up until Jan. ...

Why can't the church use disposable plastic cups at Mass?Jenna Marie Cooper

Q: My parish recently returned to communion under the second species. A eucharistic minister holds one cup and one cloth and does one wipe after each serve. Most people are still not receiving it for ...

What does the church teach about resisting rape? Jenna Marie Cooper

Q: As a cradle Catholic, I was taught that the denial of Christ is gravely wrong, that Christians must be prepared to die rather than apostatize. However, now I've become aware of a claim that I am ...

Why are there more letters from Paul than Peter?Jenna Marie Cooper

Q: I'm confused as to why, if Peter was our first pope, we have only two of his writings in the New Testament. James, another early leader, only has one book included. John has five, but Paul, who ...

Question: Are demonic possessions just mental illness? Jenna Marie Cooper

Q: In watching "the Chosen" I noted a couple of demoniac episodes were included, as are in fact depicted in Scripture. No CGI effects were done to show the demons either going in or coming out of the ...

Can mistakes be made when it comes to private revelation?Jenna Marie Cooper

Q: I have a question on discernment of private revelations. I don't mean big ones like Medjugorje, etc., but individuals who say they "have had a word from the Lord." Couldn't this be just their ...

Can a Catholic date a person whose marriage has not been annulled? Jenna Marie Cooper

Q: Can there be situations where a Catholic can date another person who has been divorced but has not yet received a declaration of nullity for that marriage? In a previous column you stated the following: ...