How much reading do you do in a year? More specifically, how much Catholic reading do you do in a year? I am talking about books, articles, newspapers, blogs, websites, twitter, and instagram to name just a few. What about Catholic radio? Do you send a specific amount of time reading or learning about your faith? The Catholic faith is complex and rich with history and significance. There is so much to know about it and the resources are everywhere. I think that as I became more comfortable with the teachings of the Catholic church through study, I became much more willing to do as Jesus asked and evangelize. Bringing the Gospel to the unchurched is one of our primary missions in life. Exposing people to the life of Jesus and His teachings is needed in this world more than ever. The spread of relativism, the focus on oneself and free will, has made the world we live in very complex. As Christians we are assaulted for our beliefs everyday. And one of the ways to push back on this relativism is by bringing people into the Catholic church. Another way is to live the life that Jesus chose for us. We should be focusing less on ourselves and more on others. How is God calling you to be His earthen vessel? What is your special mission? A good way to begin to discover that is to learn more about the Catholic faith each day. Make a short term goal of reading a few pages of Catholic writing everyday. Turn you car radio to the local Catholic station. Bring your prayer book to work and use the small down time windows as your opportunity to pray more. All of this effort will allow you to grow in knowledge, faith, and confidence so that you are willing and able to evangelize.
The release of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith’s note, Mater Populi Fidelis , on November 4, 2025, seems to have sparked some immediate and widespread confusion, driven largely by sensationalist headlines from secular sources. In response to requests, particularly surrounding a potential Fifth Marian Dogma of Spiritual Maternity , the DDF addressed the usage of titles like Co-redemptrix and Mediatrix. Unfortunately, this has led to a large contingent online and in the media claiming that the Church has "tossed out" centuries of doctrine, with some outside the Church even proclaiming a "victory" over Catholic teaching (This may be the saddest part of it all, that we as Christians, are "competing" with each other). It is essential to understand that this doctrinal note is fundamentally about titles and clarity, not doctrine and change according to the Vatican News. The true teachings regarding Mary's unique role in salvation remain inviolabl...