Although it’s true that the use of a wreath decorated with lit candles dates back to pre-Christian Germanic people, it has been used by Christians since the Middle Ages as part of their spiritual preparation for Christmas.
Commentary by Susan Brinkmann, OCDSSeveral years ago, William J. Bennett wrote a book entitled, The True St. Nicholas: Why He Matters to Christmas, in which he details the story of this heroic saint and how his story became the foundation for the Santa Claus we know today.
The Committee on the Judiciary and the Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government in the U.S. House of Representatives released an alarming report of its findings on the FBI’s targeting of certain Catholic Americans they categorized as “potential domestic terrorists.”
As all regular readers of this blog know, we get many questions about children's books in which the characters use sorcery in one way or another. In an effort to help Christian parents learn how to discern whether or not this content is suitable for their children, I would like to post insights from Michael O'Brien's book, Harry Potter and the Paganization of Culture (www.studioobrien.com) which I hope you'll find useful.
CS asks: "What can you tell us about herbs and plants that are supposed to help certain ailments, like fish oils, omega 3's and things like that?"
Susan left this comment on our blog: "I’ve been reading these posts for a while and I’m wondering how vulnerable, sick people who realize they need help are going to get the help they need when health care and self-help have become a minefield of New Age practices/products. . .
Witch bottlesBeach goers are reporting on a series of eerie finds that have been washing up along the Gulf coast of Texas recently – glass bottles containing strange objects that are supposedly used by witches to trap malevolent spirits.
Entrance to the Ramtha School of Enlightenment, Yelm, Washington (Photo courtesy of Wikicommons Images, Richard David Ramsey, CC BY-SA 3.0 DEED)BL asks: "What do you know about a woman named J.Z. Knight who claims to channel a 35,000 year old spiritual entity named Ramtha?"
JB asks: “Somebody just told me about Life wave patches that are supposed to help with pain and other problems that haven’t been helped with traditional medicine. I don’t know if these are legit – they talk about scientific studies, but I am afraid they fall under New Age medicine practices. Can you tell me what you think of this?”
Due to an alarming increase in enrollment in Freemasonry in the Philippines, the Vatican Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) released a new document that reaffirmed the Church’s long-standing condemnation of masonry.
