The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1904-01-02
ncn-CatbcIle Queries, and Hnswer$ Cbereto
(San Francisco Monitor.)


Did not the doctrine of ndulgences originate in the
BY what authority does your Church grant indulg-
ences?
By the divine power that Jesus Christ gave to
Peter and the Apostles in union with Him to free
the repentant sinner from everything that hindered
ms entrance into heaven, namely, sin and the eer
nal and temporal punishment due to sin.
Whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth it shall
be loosed also in heaven" Matt. xvi, 19); what
soever you shall loose on earth shall be loosed also
in heaven" (Matt. xviii, 1S): ''Whose sins you shall
forgive, they forgiven them (John Xxx, 23).
st. Paul exercised this power upon the incestu-
Gus Corinthian, whom he first accommodated and
then pardoned in the name of Christ after he had
given proof of heartfelt sorrow. Il indeed, absent
IN body but present in spirit, have already judged
TO deliver such a one to Satan for the
destruction of the fesh," etc. O. Cor. v 3-5) $50
that on the contrary you should rather forgive him
and comfort HIM, lest perhaps such one be swal-
lowed up with overmuch sorrow. = What
l have pardoned, if l have pardoned anything for
your sakes have done it in the person of Christ"
0I Cor. ii, 6-10). Catholics believe that many
members of the Church-for instance virgins mar
tyrs, confessors and countless saints--have per-
formed penances far exceeding what was due their
sins, and that their merits in union with the in
finite merits of Jesus Christ form spiritual treas
ury, which the Apostles and their successors can
draw from to pay the debt of temporal punishment
for all who belong to the Communion of Saints.
For the body is one, and hath many mem
bers; and all the members of the body whereas they
are many, yet one body, so also is Christ;
and If one member suffer anything, all the
members suffer with it; if one member glory all
the members rejoice with it" q. Cor. xiii 1920
What does the Catholic church teach concerning the
Incarnation?
The Catholic church teaches that Jesus Christ
IS both God and mantle eternal, only begotten
Son of the Eternal Father, who became flesh among
us (John j. 14).
In Jesus Christ there are two natures, the di-
vine and the human, perfectly distinct from each
other, and yet forming but one divine personality
The Athanasian Greed declares that Jesus is "God
of the substance of the Father born before all ages
and man of the substance of His mother, born in
time Perfect God and perfect man. subsisting of
rational soul and human body. Equal to the
Father, according to His humanity.
One not by the changing of the divinity into flesh
but by the assumption of the humanity of God.
One not by the confoundng of substance but by
the unity of person. For as the rational soul and
the body is one man, God and man is one
Christ"
Just as one may point out man, and say of
him: This is my brother or my friend so we
can say of Jesus Christ: This is the Eternal God,
Creator of heaven ard earth my Master, by Judge,
my everlasting hope. : His humanity is
no fiction. His body is real true body, born of
Mary, ever virgin, pierced on the cross, sitting
at the right hand of God. : y He
has human soul united to His flesh like our souls
are TO our flesh = The Two natlres vrere
each the nature of one and the same person, and
what each nature did the Person did; what each
nature was the Person was.
God was made man, and was man. A man
was God. & : : 1t was not the humanity
which created all things; it was not the Godhead
which nailed to the cross; but the Person to
whom both belonged did the one and suffered the
other, and the Person was Jesus Christ" (Bshop
Hedey, 'Our Divine Savior and Other Discourses,'
SermonD.
Why not all our prayers answered, when Christ
said: IF you the Father anything in My name
He will give tito you?" John xvi, 2So
What did YOU pray forg-temporal blessings!
We have right TO ask God for health, success for
tune and the like, according to our Lords own |
words; Give us this day our daily bread Matt vi
% but he often refuses what ask because he
knows it would keep from His love here and His
kingdom hereafter. If sick bed brought us close
TO God, while health would make us forget him If
failure humihated and forced us to turn to
God for comfort, while success would puff us up
with self-suhcency; if poverty made us friends of
the poor Christ while riches would render us full
of svarice, lust and irreligion, then God forseeng
all this grants petitions for these temporal fa-
vors by not giving US what ask for. We in our
ignorance may not understand the reason why: God
knows what is best for us all.
Did you pray for spiritual blessings for others.
glz., the conversion of friend or relative? Your
prayers not mheeded, for God undoubtedly
l'oured forth Ills grace IN superabundant measure
Hpon the soul you loved. There may be no out
EFard sign Of the efficacy Of your prayer. but who
Knows the secret workings Of God! ,Tndoubtedl1,
man has the power TO resist Gods grace unto the
md. lie wants free service and win compel no
man to serve Him. But constant prayer has melted
many hard heart, Christians know full we'll
Have you prayed for yourself, Forgive us our
trespasses; lead not into temptation but deliver
us from evil" with humility, faith love and sor-
row Tor SIN! God never refuses such prayers.
Most important, too, is the manner in which YOU.
prayed. If, for instance, while your lips framed
some careless. mechanical prayer, your heart was
bent upon other things could you expect God to
answer your
You would not dare to speak thus to friend
you loved dearly
This people honoreth Ne with their lips, but
their heart is far from Me-" Matt. XIV, s..
Again, our Lord taught us to pray with humil-
1ty, realizing well our sins and unworthiness and
our uteer dependence upon Him. Some people de-
mand fayors of God as a right, and blsspheme His
molly name for not answering at once "The prayer
oi hum that humbleth himself shall pierce the
clouds (Ecclus. xxxv, 81; cf. the parable of the
Pharlsee and the Publican, Luke xviii, 10-14)
Other conditions on which He insists are faith
confidence and perseverance, by which, despite every
difficulty, continues to ask of God every need
1ul of body and soul; consider the woman of
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