Barb from Ohio

Marge

First of all, you are a breath of fresh air and I have enjoyed all of your hardwork and input on Fox News. During these uncertain times in a declining moral society I am so glad you are in the media representing the Chrisitian faith. It would be an honor to meet you in person someday. You and I have a couple of things in common- we are both the same age and grew up in Ohio. It is disheartening to see there are fewer young men joining the priesthood. The church needs more of you!

I have been so moved by the Pope’s visit to America. I have followed his papacy since he was elected Pope and am very enthused about him being the leader of the church.l

Alot on this blog of Catholics compared to Lutherans, Episcoplians and so forth. But we have to remember one thing- we as Christians have alot more in common than we do differences. Lets all love and respect one another. It’s disappointing enough that church memberships and attendance is down as well as the threat of islamist extremism in Europe and the U.S. I wish for all Christians- Catholics and Protestants and even Jews to respect and care for each other.

Anyhow Father, I am at a point in my life where I need to have a deeper relationship with Christ. I havent attended church regularly for many years but have always had a strong belief and love of god. You recently said something that hit home to me- ” each day we are all moving closer to the end of our lives.”

I was baptized and raised Lutheran but have considered becoming Catholic since high school. My mother was raised a Catholic, her oldest brother has been an ordained priest for almost 40 yrs. She left the church and became Lutheran after she and my father married. She left the church for the same reason Geri who blogged earlier did- she felt the church instilled in her alot of guilt. She is a good woman and her and my father gave my brother and I a solid Christian background. I find myself struggling with faith somewhere in the middle of Lutheran and Catholism, leaning more Catholic.

I attended an all boys Catholic high school where I received alot of curriculum and teachings of the Catholic church. I know more about the Catholic church and its teachings than I do about the Lutheran faith. I do know the Lutheran church I grew up in is very, very close to the customs and message of the Catholic church. Lutherans practice baptizing, first communion, & confirmation just as Catholics do. I have however, always been impressed with the traditions and practices of the Catholic church. I consider myself a traditionalist, I am not a big fan of these new contemporary services that now seem to be so common now in other Christian churches.

I guess what I am needing is a little guidance in making the right decision. I believe the eucharist is the body and blood of Christ. I enjoy attending mass in the Catholic church. And Father, I am not sure if I am wrong for doing so but beginning in high school mass I have taken holy communion in the Catholic church even though I received baptism and first communion in the Lutheran church.

It would be greatly appreciated if you replied with your input. Once again, thank you for your good deeds and hardwork!

God bless!
Joe

Second, it seems that the stand of Nancy Pelosi and all of the pro-choice politicians regarding the Church’s denial of the Eucharist to them needs to be addressed. It is not my understanding that this is a matter of ‘personal morality’ as Ms. Pelosi indicates. It is surely not the Church who is holding them up to ridicule. They know the teaching of the Church and the consequences in their decision to not abide by it. Where is their personal responsibility?

It is my belief that a strong stance by the Church will not deter Catholics from entering politics; on the contrary, it will strengthen them in holding to their convictions. I, for one, am not edified by so-called ‘Catholic’ politicians who scoff at their faith.

Back to ‘first’… Thank You for your great coverage. Share this with all at Fox. We know it takes a lot of people to bring it all to us who are not able to be with you.

I have watched as much as possible of Pope Benedict’s visit on Fox News. I have heard what he has said and your commentary on Pope Benedict’s words as well as your analysis of them. I truly believe you have truly caught the essence. Though not Roman Catholic (Episcopalian) I truly am moved by the annunciation of the universal truths stated so clearly and simply by the Holy Father. Now we will all have to wait and see just how they will be implemented in country’s whose human rights records are not good.

May God continue to bless Benedict XVI in all his good works and may God continue to shower you with his blessings.

Jack

Blessings,

Jan

I hesitate to send this, but prayed about and decided it was a legitimate question and not being negative.

Where did they get the music for the Mass at the stadium? I can honestly say it hurt my ears, it was so off key. Have they read the Pope’s writings at all, or know of his love for beauty, in all forms, but especially in music, and his love for sacred music? So many wonderful composers to choose from, who wrote deeply sacred and liturgical music…

After his homily and the start of the same type of music, could not listen anymore, one advantage of listening via video Sure they meant well, but pray that the Pope addresses this directly sometime, very directly, as we American’s tend to be like kids. If you tell us not to play in A mud pubble, we go to another and say, “but you didn’t say THIS puddle.” My heart just aches when abuses take place…

BUT, this Pope gives us such hope. He tells us how to live our Faith in such a beautiful, loving and clear way. Thank you very much for covering his visit and for the commentaries. A big “Well Done!” to you and all those with you.

Christ’s peace,

Judy

Here is Pelosi’s quote regarding pro-abortion politicians taking Communion — from Fox’s own web site:

“If Catholic legislators are scorned and held out for ridicule by Church leaders on the basis of a single issue, the Church will lose strong advocates on a wide range of issues that relate to the core of important Catholic social teaching,” they wrote. “Moreover, criticism of us on a matter that is essentially one of personal morality will deter other Catholics from entering politics, and in the long run the Church will suffer.”

Nice threat, Ms. Pelosi.

Here’s a link showing pro-abortion politicians receiving Eucharist:

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/apr/08041707.html

What more is needed to force this issue? It’s either a rule or it isn’t!

Thanks,

John

Geri, the Catholic church is very much involved in their communities. If you are ever in Brea, California, please visit St. Angela Merici. We have many ministries that serve the community. I am involved in Saturday Hospitality. This ministry feeds the poor and homeless every Saturday. This ministry is not unique to St. Angela. You find many Catholic parishes and charities that serve their community especially the disadvantaged and neglected. The Catholic church is global and local. We serve here and overseas.

God bless, Father Jonathan

I’m a lifelong Lutheran who is being received into the Catholic Church next Sunday, April 27.

The Holy Father’s visit to this country is a such a blessing. I’m taking the saint name Benedicta in his honor next Sunday at my Confirmation!

You wrote a couple of excellent pieces about a year ago (no longer on the archives) about the sexual abuse situation…Just a suggestion here…

…The Pope is doing a great job of admitting & speaking on, etc., both his, personally, & the Catholic Church’s, embarassment re: the sexual abuse scandal (& stating that measures have been taken to stop from happening in the future)…In your articles I referred to, you did not make any excuses for the Church, and you focused on all the controls that were put in place to prevent in happening again…but, you also quoted some legitimate ststistics that pointed to other denominations having similar problems percentagewise, without the same controls in place, etc….which also ties in with Pope Benedict’s pointing a finger at the sexually permissive & immoral climate, etc. in America today, that need to be addressed.

Is there a forum that would be effectively appropriate where you could bring the aforementioned up again, where it could receive more exposure?…perhaps on TV after the Pope is finished on Sunday…maybe during your wrap-up. Frankly, it would accomplish, in my opinion, 2 things…#1. it would place more awareness & responsibility on our secular society overall, & on the many individuals of other religious groups & denominations that continue to criticize the Catholic Church, going forward, unfairly (since we have the controls in place & many of them do not)…@ #2. it would help complement what the Pope stated he wants his Church folks to do…compliment & appreciate the other 95% of the Christ centered priests & clergy that are focused on doing God’s work at the local level.

Father, I sincerely believe that expressing some summary comments on your “comparative analysis & perspective” documented last year could be very meaningful & effective (especially due to the respect & goodwill you have earned on Fox news & the media in general)… In addition to accomplishing my above 2 points, addional bonuses would be helping give our priests more confidence that they aren’t being criticized in their daily encounters…plus aiding in shutting up some of the holier-than-thou hypocrites out there (especially some of the unfair media types…such as Bill Mahr).

Just thinkin’…God Bless…Jack Kelleher

Many Catholic politicians who support abortion rights attended the Mass yesterday and received communion in direct oppostion to B16’s guidance for them to obstain from reception of the sacrament.

When asked by the press, Pelosi, the speaker of the house said that yesterday was a celebration of Catholic unity and not centered on just one issue. Isn’t this just the moral relativism that B16 preaches about? Was this action by Sen Pelosi, Kerry, Mikulski and other just a slap in the face to B16 and leads to confusion among Catholics and just fuels the anti-Catholic forces?

Thanks for the great coverage!

Please take care and God bless

Being retired, I’ve had the advantage of watching the events unfold during the Pope’s visit and the various messages he’s delivered. How exciting it is to watch this wonderful man of faith endure the schedule he has while he’s here. I was especially touched that he set aside time to meet with some of the victims of sexual abuse. This was an extremely sensitive and necessary move that I’m glad the Pope made.

Thank you so much for all of your hard work and insight into the Pope’s visit. I look forward to the continuing coverage on Fox and EWTN of this memorable visit.

To Geri - who is now Lutheran.. I’ve been Catholic all my life and have been through some very difficult times. I once considered leaving the Catholic faith to become Lutheran, because it would help relieve the “guilt” I felt over being divorced and settle the dissagreements I felt with the Church at that time. One time when I was listening to Dr. Laura, she advised someone not to leave the faith they had before they understood what they were leaving. I took that to heart and decided to learn more about my Catholic faith. Needless to say, I am still Catholic and I love the Church more than ever. During those tough years, I sought priests and religious to help me, and I was disappointed too. But I found that the Church is much more than my experiences with individuals within.

As I learned more about my faith and began to trust Jesus with my life, I was strenghtened. I have received nothing but mercy and love from Christ through His Church. Once I learned truly what the Churches teaches, I could not leave it. I found out that it was not the Church that had to change, but me. I still have difficulty with certain things and life isn’t easy, but the Lord, my Shepherd leads me and I have surrendered my life to His and look to our Holy Father, our shepherd on earth, for guidance as I journey day by day.

I hope Geri finds peace in whatever path she journeys.

In many ways today’s media is not friendly to the hearing impaired, especially on-line — while the EWTN site posted earlier does use winmedia for example, rather than the dreaded Flash (from a CC or subs standpoint), they fail to make use of the ease with which winmedia accommodates captioning.

With my *shame-on-you* towards the media folks out of the way, I should balance it a bit by saying that on the screen you are very clear & easy to read — Thanks Very Much Father Jonathon.

A very much analytical type of German heritage myself, I suppose that I’m among the relative few who get great amusement from explanations that, basically, yes, the Pope means what he says. I pray that as he is welcomed into the hearts of America, so too is the Catholic Church…

God Bless