The desires of the flesh are against the Spirit
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J. Penance and reparation are the consequences of sin. Or again, penance and reparation are the price we have to pay for our own and other people's sin. Penance and reparation, finally, are what God requires from sinners as a condition for...
The Eucharist is the infallible way of preserving vocations
by Fr. John A Hardon, S.J. Come & See Chapter 5: The Eucharist and Vocations It is impossible to exaggerate the close relation between the Holy Eucharist and vocations to the priesthood and the consecrated life. This is only to be expected once we realize that...
The Catholic Discovery of America
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J. We are addressing ourselves to the subject of The Catholic Discovery of America. This year [1992] is the five-hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus. It is also the five-hundredth anniversary of the birth...
Virtue: the happiness of becoming a member of the Holy Trinity
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J. This is our closing conference. I mean it when I say it pains me to have to leave. But, I promise from today on, first time I made this promise, I will remember the Handmaids of the Precious Blood by name every morning after rising and the...
Family should be fertile soil for vocations
by Fr. John A Hardon, S.J. Come & See Chapter 4: The Catholic Family and Vocations Where are vocations to the priesthood and the consecrated life mainly fostered? In strong Catholic families. When do these vocations flourish? When Catholic families flourish. When...
If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J. The following is an excerpt from: The Catholic Lifetime Reading Plan The Catholic Church has been persecuted in every period of her history. However, the first three centuries of the Christian era are commonly known as the Age of...
Christianity is unintelligible without conversion from sin
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J. Our present lecture is on conversion from sin as necessary for salvation. This, as you know, is our reflection on the Scriptures and, concretely, on what the Sacred Scriptures tell us about conversion. First, by way of introduction,...
Lent: how to be educated in an authentic sense of penance
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J. It seems certain that a Lenten season preceding Easter goes back to the time of the Apostles. The length of time has varied. But by the Council of Nicaea (325 A.D.), which was the first general council of the Church, Lent was observed for...
We should promote commitment, not vocations
by Fr. John A. Hardon Come & See Chapter 3: Vocations and the Commitment Crisis With the dwindling number of entrants into seminaries and novitiates, we naturally ask, "What happened?" And we are inclined to put the blame where it does not belong, on a lack of...
How to Win Lapsed Catholics Back to the Church
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J Our present conference is on how should Catholics be retrieved who have lost either their faith or they have at least lapsed from the practice of their Catholic religion. Our first conference, you remember, was on why there has been such...