The Doctrine of Indulgences

September 30, 2025By

Conference – September 2025

When we commit a sin, we accrue the debt of guilt as well as the debt of punishment.  The guilt may be removed through the sacrament of Penance or perfect contrition.  For those sins forgiven but not yet satisfied, God’s justice demands that the debt of punishment must be removed through the sufferings of Purgatory after death.  However, we may also remove this temporal punishment through the sacraments as well as the application of indulgences.  Indulgences are not an invention of the Church, but rather the application of the Power of the Keys.  An indulgence is the extra-sacramental removal of temporal punishment for sins already forgiven.  They are based on the economy of salvation, which includes the infinite merits of Our Lord’s sacrifice on the Cross, the superabundant merits of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the merits of the saints.  Plenary indulgences remit the entire debt of punishment, while partial indulgences remit only part of the temporal punishment due to sin.  The origin of the practice of indulgences demonstrates how close we are to one another and how we may assist our neighbor through our meritorious works.  How beautiful it is that we may bear each other’s burdens in this way.
#20250930

Listen Now

We Will Serve!

September 29, 2025By

Feast of Saint Michael 2025
This feast was originally celebrated in honor of St. Michael and all the angels.  We do not know the details of the test given to the angels, but we know that St. Michael stood as “First Champion of the Kingdom of Christ” in opposition to Lucifer’s rebellion.  Today we remember the dedication of a place of worship.  How fitting this is for the Archangel who chose to serve God at His altar.  During the Requiem Mass, we call upon St. Michael to carry our souls to Heaven after death.  In the Epistle of this Mass, we are given a glimpse of Heaven and the future.  We are told that the angels serve as God’s messengers, but more importantly, they remain before Him, praising Him for all eternity.  In the final days, St Michael will wage a battle against the Antichrist.  The Prince of the Heavenly Hosts will cast the Dragon into Hell in the end.
#20250929M

Listen Now

Sursum Corda

September 28, 2025By

16th Sunday After Pentecost 2025

The autobiography of St. Thérèse is one of the most enjoyable books to read in our modern times.  Innumerable miracles have been granted to the faithful through her intercession.

In today’s Gospel, Our Lord tells us to sit in the lowest place at the table, not to win the honor of all present, but due to an honest estimation of what we deserve.  Those who live in humility here on Earth will one day obtain Heaven, the higher place at the table.  Although God and all the saints in Heaven want us to be saved, some will be lost because they lack the great desire necessary.  Heaven must be the one thing in life we desire.  Everything else is incidental.  This Sunday is all about our holiness of life, and if we make up our minds, we could begin to live a holy life starting now.  At every Mass we are called to lift up our hearts to Heaven, now is the hour for us to do so.
#20250928S

Listen Now

Mother of the Forsaken

September 15, 2025By

Seven Sorrows Of The Blessed Virgin Mary 2025
We should be familiar with all seven of the great sorrows of the Virgin Mary’s life.  In the devotion to the Sorrowful Mother, we see Our Lady in all her bravery and strength, yet still possessing the tender love of a mother.  She is Mother of Priests because, although she was not a priest herself, she teaches and guides all priests.  Our Lady is repelled by the empty sentimentality of those who favor the appearances of holiness over true sanctity.  From her Immaculate Conception, the Blessed Mother was filled with all grace and virtue.  She was so united with Christ in His sufferings that it was only by a miracle that her life was sustained through her Divine Son’s Passion.  She was capable of feeling pain far more profoundly because she loved more deeply than anyone else is capable.  Every time we pray the Hail Mary, we are asking the Blessed Mother to apply the merits of Our Lord’s Passion to us, so we may have final perseverance at the end of our lives.
#20250915

Listen Now

The Sign in Which We Conquer

September 14, 2025By

Sermon From The Feast Of
The Exultation of the Holy Cross 2025
In the Old Testament the symbol of the cross was foreshadowed in the tree of the Garden of Eden, in Isaac carrying the wood to be used for his sacrifice, and in the brazen serpent lifted up on the beam to rescue the Israelites.  More importantly, this feast commemorates pivotal events in the age of salvation.  Emperor Constantine’s miraculous conquest, St. Helena’s discovery of the True Cross, and Emperor Heraclitus’ rescue of the Cross are all commemorated today.  The cross, once a symbol of hatred, has now become the greatest symbol of love.  We must not only pray for the strength to bear our crosses, but for the desire to embrace them.  Following the examples of St. Andrew and Fr. Miguel Pro, may we heroically take up our cross and follow Christ as they did before us.
#20250914B

Listen Now

Remember Your Weakness

September 7, 2025By

13th Sunday after Pentecost 2025

The Collect of this Mass reminds us of the three beautiful gifts God gives us at Baptism: Faith, Hope, and Charity. Faith is that belief we have in the revelations of Jesus Christ because He is God. Hope is that virtue that helps us to persevere and trust in God’s promises. Charity is the greatest virtue here on earth. The Hebrews did not have the graces we have today. They had to struggle against themselves without the help of the New Law. In today’s Gospel we are reminded of our own weakness, poverty, and need for confident recourse to God. If our Faith is weak, we do not progress in the spiritual life. Without Faith, we cannot love God as we should. We must not neglect our thanksgiving after receiving the sacraments, especially that of Penance. The greatest hindrance to our spiritual progress is our lack of gratitude.
#20250907K

Listen Now

Members of His Body

August 31, 2025By

12th Sunday after Pentecost 2025
This is one of the most beautiful Sundays of the liturgical year.  Despite the glory of the Old Law, it is nothing compared to what we have in the New Testament.  We have the Blessed Sacrament, the Incarnate God here with us at all times.  Every baptized Catholic has the Holy Trinity dwelling within him.  While attending the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, we go back to Calvary.  In this Mass we pray that, through the grace of God, we may hurry towards the rewards God has promised us.  Let us pray often throughout the day that we may love God with our whole heart and soul, following the great examples of holiness like St. Raymond Nonnatus, St. Cuthbert, the Twelve Holy Brothers, and St. Stephen, Duke of Hungary.
#20250831S

Listen Now

Knowledge of Self

August 24, 2025By

11th Sunday after Pentecost 2025

St. Paul corrected the Corinthians who doubted the General Resurrection.  Not only was the Resurrection of Our Lord a type of our own, but without this dogma, our “faith is vain.”  It was St. Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles, who brought the Faith to the non-Jewish world.  Yet, despite all he did for the Church, he knew himself to be the least of the Apostles.  With the help of a daily examination of conscience and true self-knowledge, we too will appreciate that all the good we possess and all we accomplish in this life is due to God’s grace.  Through our examination of conscience, God allows us to see ourselves as we really are, which prepares our path to perfection.  In the words of St. Augustine, “This is the very perfection of a man, to find out his own imperfections.”
#20250824B

Listen Now

We the Hypocrites

August 17, 2025By

10th Sunday after Pentecost 2025

The gifts St. Paul refers to in this Epistle were given to the early Church to help spread the Faith.  They were not meant to sanctify the one with the gift, but those who witness it.

The pharisee of the Gospel begins his hypocritical prayer by praising himself, while the publican, keenly aware of his sins, refers to himself as “the sinner.”  True prayer is not self-praise, but rather the lifting up of the mind and heart to God.  It is for His glorification and our own self-abasement.

We should continually rely on our “books and beads” to better participate in the liturgy, so that we may progress through the stages of the spiritual life.  By tapping into these prayers, we may be united to the never-ending prayer of Christ.
#20250817M

Listen Now

The First Fruit of the Redemption

August 15, 2025By

Assumption Evening 2025
Judith of the Old Testament is a figure of the Blessed Virgin Mary who crushes the head of Satan and defeats sin.  In the Gospel, the Blessed Mother was early with child when she traveled to visit her cousin Elizabeth. With the infant Jesus only three days old in her womb, the Virgin Mary was affirmed by St. Elizabeth to be the Mother of God.  Tradition teaches us that when the Blessed Mother was near death, the Apostles were inspired to come to the place where she was to die.  Before the Apostles’ very eyes, she rose from the dead and was assumed into Heaven.  The Blessed Mother is the first fruit of the Redemption.  It was only in view of the coming Redemption that she was preserved from Original Sin.  Today is a true homecoming.  Heaven, not Earth, is our home, and we pray that Our Lady will lead us to that home one day.
#20250815K

Listen Now
0
    0
    Your Cart
    Your cart is emptyReturn to Shop
    To find out your shipping cost , Please proceed to checkout.
    Continue Shopping