Catholic Answers Live

Question Covered:

15:15 – Why do Christian denominations practice the holy eucharist differently? Would it “count” for say a Mormon or Baptist?

19:00 – I believe the John 6 dispute among the disciples was Christ’s statement that he came from heaven to earth. The conversation with the disciples seems to confirm this in verses 61 and 62. Thoughts?

30:00 – There is such a different view between Catholics and Protestants on this topic. How/when did they determine the Eucharist wasn’t actually the body of Jesus? How can we prove it is to non-Catholics? If I have been receiving “communion” from a Protestant church, am I committing mortal sin?!

36:07 – Did Jesus offer His literal Body on the cross or was His Body a symbol?

37:18 – How can we as Catechists correct a former student who went back to Protestantism, especially after leaving the Holy Eucharist?

46:09 – Would you tell us about the Eucharistic miracles of Lanciano Italy and Bueno Aires regarding their laboratory test results?

50:21 – if a “mortal sin” is an addiction and I feel like eating the Eucharist helps fight the addiction can I eat it even though I’m still struggling?

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Questions Covered:

11:03 – Should we take it literally that a star led the Wisemen? Was it possibly an angel? 

19:11 – The Wisemen didn’t come for like 2 years right? 

24:00 – Was Jesus’ family wealthy because the Wise Men brought gold, etc. in their treasure chests?  

29:35 – Do they think Jesus was born at midnight? Or sometime during the night. 

33:12 – why have they made up names for the three kings since those names are not in the Bible ( like Balthasar etc..)? 

35:38 – Are we supposed to bless our homes with chalk on the Epiphany? Why and how? How did the writing with blessed chalk above one’s household door come about, and why is it okay (i.e., not some kind of spell casting)? 

37:38 – Why do they say we are celebrating Jesus’ baptism when it was really a circumcision since they are not the same? 

 – In the Byzantine liturgical tradition, the Magi are always depicted as gentiles. But in contemporary biblical studies, they are generally considered as Jewish. What do you think? 

47:37 – Hello my brothers! I’m from Mexico and when I was a kid my grandma and other family members used to tell us that the three stars aligned in the sky were the three magi and I used to be so excited looking up during these special days of the epiphany and in Mexico we receive our Christmas gifts January 6th and you write a letter to the magi not Santa jaja have you heard of these traditions? Especially the one about the stars? 

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Questions Covered:

07:22 – What to say to a Protestant who insists that a relationship with Jesus is more important than denominational squabbles. 

18:11 – I would love to hear an explanation of Adam and Eve being the first two people created by God. I’ve had a couple of people (including a newly ordained priest) say that this story is not historical, but that there were two “progenitors” through which we inherited original sin, and that they were “more or less” the first two people. Also, the other person said there was no way that all of the population came from just two people, that they “evolved” from other creatures around the world and “original sin is really just the downfall of man during that time.” 

28:23 – Please explain why Joseph was an older man and how a young Joseph was a latter theological novum 

33:55 – Do we actually know that Yahweh is how the divine name was said or are we just guessing? I know about the tetragrammaton and how the a stood for Adonai and the e stood for Elohim so doesn’t this mean the divine name was something else? I grew up a Jehovah’s Witness, so this is something close to my mind often. Thanks for all you do Joe! You and all the crew at Catholic Answers helped bring me to the Catholic Church! 

37:51 – Was St. Patrick a Baptist? 

44:03 – What would you say to an Orthodox who would make the claim that because the Catholic Church says they have valid sacraments or priesthood that they don’t need the Pope. 

48:55 – Were there any church fathers, say, in the first 150 years, who did not believe in baptismal regeneration? 

51:29 – Does John 10: 22-23 (Jesus being in the Temple during Hanukkah) disprove the Protestant Canon being that Hannukah is only found in 1 & 2 Maccabees? 

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Questions Covered:

04:31 – What’s an obscure teaching that more people should know about? I saw something in Denzinger which condemned eating for pleasure. That was odd and not sure what to make of it. 

12:50 – Hey Joe, according to 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 the last generation don’t sleep (die) and are changed instantaneously, in the twinkling of an eye. If the last generation don’t go to purgatory and God can change them instantly then why can’t God change the dead instantaneously without the need for purgatory? Thanks, God Bless 

19:47 – Why did the Church declare an anathema and tie salvation to the belief in the Marian dogmas (in particular the immaculate conception and the assumption)? On the surface, these dogmas don’t seem to have anything to do with the Gospel message that Jesus died for our sins as we can imagine a world where Jesus still defeats death with a Mother who had original sin or was not assumed into heaven. 

29:42 – I would like Joe to answer the “no salvation outside the catholic church” you hear the rad trads say this then on the other side you hear the universalist “everybody goes to heaven” perspective. In my limited study it appears the answer lies in the middle but it’s very complex. 

37:25 – What is wrong with the patriarchal ratification theory of what makes a council ecumenical? 

43:03 – Something I’ve always wondered: What do priests do if they don’t have access to valid matter for the Eucharist? I’m thinking, for example, of explorers like Father Jacques Marquette, traveling for a long time in a strange (to them) country without wheat or wine. Are they just excused from the obligation to celebrate Mass frequently? 

45:21 – How can we find holiness in our ordinary lives? 

50:54 – Hi Joe, where did your awesome blog name come from? 

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