One project I’ve wanted to do for some time is a series of single-page bulletin articles that explore and explain the core elements of the Catholic faith. Since the Gospel passages for the next month or so come from the Bread of Life Discourse in John 6, this week is as good of time as any to start with a multi-part discussion on the Eucharist.
I’m proud to announce the “Basics of Catholicism” series of bulletin inserts. These inserts are one-page articles that will discuss the basic teachings of the Catholic Church. It’s my hope to release one of these articles each week, and will be available in both Microsoft Publisher and PDF format. The articles, like all the material on my website, is free to copy and modify as needed. The only thing I ask is that I get attribution as the original source.
I will be posting these articles exactly as I’ll be publishing them in St. Mary’s parish bulletin, which means that they will contain some references to local events, such as my homily for the weekend. Most parishes will want to make some modifications to make them connect more closely to their parishioners. While the bulletin articles are not meant to be “camera-ready” outside of St. Mary’s here in Malta, I do hope there will be very little labor needed to prepare them for other parishes’ bulletins.
Please let me know if there are any topics for discussion that you would like to see. I hope these articles will be yet another tool for enriching your faith!
I would like to see something about confession. I’m a cradle Catholic and I’ve had a couple of priests tell me not to come in with a laundry list. One asked me what I saw as a major flaw that I had and I said pride and he said big deal everyone has that. I take it that the sacrement has evolved and I’m behind the times.
Thank you for your comment! Yes, I will definitely talk about Confession. As parishioners here will tell you, I don’t shy away from encouraging that great Sacrament.
I’m sorry to hear that those priests gave you such bad advice. Unfortunately, too many have been formed to believe that the Sacrament is just a spiritual counseling session, when it’s really about bringing our sins before God and asking for forgiveness. We’re not to be looking for “major flaws”, but bringing in the “laundry list” of sins to be cleaned. I’m extremely disappointed that a priest would blow off the most deadly sin of pride. I don’t know what the availability of priests is like in your area, but I would advise you to keep looking for a good priest who has a proper understanding of the Sacrament of Confession.