'Father, forgive me' - The Biblical Basis for the Sacrament of 'Confession' at the Benedictine Monastery

The cult of 'emotionalism' and the protestantization of the Church in the west has blinded us from the power of God's Grace given through His Church. How frequently we forget the great power of the sacraments, the visible and outward sign of God's invisible and inward Grace. Penance is one of these sacraments. The fact is that the priestly forgiveness of sins is a far great miracle than even raising the dead because it restores our sanctifying grace and can restore us into communion with the Church saving us from eternal hellfire! Here is a link of a lecture I had the honor of doing recently at the Benedictine Monastery in Wailua on the island of Oahu on the Biblical basis of Confession.

Click Here to Download the Mp3

* In Summary it says that we must confess our sins to God (1 Jn 1:9). We are to confess to 'one another' in the presence of the presbyters (priests)(Jas 5:16). The OT prepares us for the process of confessing to priests (Lev 5:5-6). We see that Christ has the authority to forgive sins (Mt 9:6-8), gives the authority to his disciples (John 17:18, John 20:21-23) who now are ambassadors for this ministry of forgiveness (2 Cor 5:18 -21)* Listen to the Bible study on the biblical basis for the sacrament of Confession.

image from the 'Public domain' via wikimedia commons. St. Benedict, From a fresco by Fra Angelico

Mary Most Holy: 'Potuit, decuit, ergo fecit!'

This audio lecture was recorded at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Ewa Beach as part of the 'Ongoing Formation' program from the Diocese of Honolulu. The lecture was titled 'Mary Most Holy'.

The depth of this Tradition teaches us not only about the wondrous role that Mary plays in salvation history but also reveals to us the amazing love that Jesus had for his mother. This undoubtedly teaches powerful truths about Jesus and gives us insight into the mystery of his Divinity, the Incarnation, and the Trinity. To learn about His mother is to learn about Him.

 Blessed Johannes Duns Scotus, O.F.M, most known for his beautiful defense of Mary's Immaculate Conception, quoted St. Anselm when he exclaimed "Potuit, decuit, ergo fecit" Which means that Mary was preserved from the stain of original sin because God "Could do it, it was appropriate, therefore He did it!" In this class we covered the 4 defined Marian Dogma and see that Mary, as the Mother of God, was preserved from original sin, was perpetually virgin, and was assumed body and soul into heaven where she sits as the Queen of Heaven.


Click Here for the Printed Class Material
image from the 'Public domain' via wikimedia commons. L' Annonciation, 1644, peinture de Philippe de Champaigne

Restless Heart (St. Augustine of Hippo)

I am looking forward to this movie. The Diocesan Young Adult Office is working on getting this movie screened here on Oahu. I am particularly excited that certain parts of St. Ambroseʻs life (my Patron Saint) are highlighted as well!

His Excellency Larry Silva at Iolani Palace (2009)

This video is from quite some time ago but I enjoyed watching our Bishop speak about St. Damien at Iolani Palace. St. Damien is the not only the Patron of Hawaii but the Patron of the Hawaiian people. He spoke the language, knew the culture, and loved the people.

My Book Recommendations

Resource books
Catechism of the Council or Trent - http://amzn.to/2mSpLBM

Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma - http://amzn.to/2n9nvId
*A list of Catholic Beliefs and the level of theological certainty that the Church attributes to it.

Sources of Catholic Dogma - http://amzn.to/2mWB2Sx
*The documents and councils from which we receive our defined doctrine.

Baltimore Catechism - http://amzn.to/2mSA09f

My Catholic Faith - http://amzn.to/2n9uNvE

Some of my favorite Books
Theology and Sanity - http://amzn.to/2n9mXBY
* This is the very first theology book I was assigned as Freshman at Steubenville. A short look at not only catholic teaching but of an entire catholic worldview. Hands down my favorite theology book. 

Belief of Catholics - http://amzn.to/2mSljmG

The Fathers Know Best - http://amzn.to/2n9mnUL
* This one is more of a resource book too BUT its great to read cover to cover as well. 


You can get a hard copy of it here - http://amzn.to/2n9hfjF

Hail Holy Queen - http://amzn.to/2mWD1pS

Chesterton
Apostle of Common Sense - http://amzn.to/2npnq5m
* An Excellent summary and introduction to GK Chesterton. Great way to start engaging his amazing body of writings


Orthodoxy - http://amzn.to/2nELhhO

Whats wrong with the world- http://amzn.to/2mWBgZD

Man Alive - http://amzn.to/2nfaqPm

* HONESTLY anything you can get from Chesterton is awesome! He wrote nearly 80 books and over 15000 articles! 

Excellent Audio Lectures
Lectures by Fr. Chad Ripperger - http://www.sensustraditionis.org/multimedia.html

St. Damien of Molokai, Patron of Hawaii

I stumbled upon a short clip put together by www.realcatholictv.com on the life of St. Damien of Molokai. He is the Patron Saint of the Diocese of Honolulu and of Hawaii. The video is a bit older (as it was released right prior to his Canonization) but is still a wonderful brief look at his life. For more information on St. Damien please visit www.fatherdamien.com



A few months ago I had the honor of going on a pilgrimage to St. Damienʻs Church along with Fr. Joseph Lee, FSSP. Click Here to watch the video of our journey.

Ancient Truths in the Modern World

image from the 'Public Image Archive' at 
MorgueFile : San Francesco D Assisi 
I recently presented at the 2012 NCCL Conference in San Diego. My topic was to discuss effective ways to use modern technologies to deliver the perennial teachings of the Church. 



While in San Diego I had the privilege of fellowshipping as well as learning quite a bit from Carson Weber of CatholicBoard.com as well as Fr. Jarrod Lies of the Diocese of Wichita. I also had the opportunity to visit St. Anneʻs Parish of the FSSP for Mass. What a wonderful experience! 

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