Returning To The Church Quesiton

A reader writes:

I have a friend who has come back to the Church!  He has been going to Mass and Confession now for over a year.  He was married in a civil ceremony about eight years ago.  She is not Catholic but is Christian.  His Mother who is Catholic has said he should not being going to Communion until he is married in the Church.  Is this true?  He has nothing against getting married in the Church but I think it bothers him about not being able to go to Communion until this happens.

It’s wonderful to hear that your friend has come back to the Church, and I’ll do my best to help provide an answer here. Unfortunately, there are a few missing facts that I’d need to know the answer to in order to give an individually-tailored answer. Specifically:

  1. Had your friend formally defected from the Catholic Church at the time of his civil ceremony (e.g., had he formally joined another church with the intention of no longer being Catholic).
  2. If he had not formally defected then did he have a dispensation from the Catholic form of marriage?
  3. Is he presently having conjugal relations with his spouse?

The easiest way to give the answer in light of the missing facts is in the form of a decision tree:

IF he had formally defected OR had a dispensation from form THEN based on the fact pattern you have laid out his marriage is presumed valid and he can participate in the sacraments of the Church, including confession and Communion. He also does not need to get married in the Church.

IF he did not formally defect OR have a dispensation from form THEN his marriage is presently invalid. (See next two points.)

IF his marriage is presently invalid AND he is having conjugal relations with his spouse THEN he is committing grave sin (having sexual relations with someone he is not validly married to) and cannot participate in the sacraments, including confession and Communion. He needs to get married in the Church in order for his conjugal relations to cease being sinful. At that point he can participate in the sacraments, including confession and Communion.

IF his marriage is presently invalid BUT he is not having conjugal relations with his spouse THEN he is not committing grave sin and so can participate in the sacraments, including confession and Communion. He does, though, need to get married in the Church before he can resume conjugal relations without sinning.

I hope this helps. It’s not phrase in the pastoral manner that I would like, but given the missing facts I thought it best to write as clearly as possible to avoid confusion. Documentation of any of the above answers can be provided from the Code of Canon Law if needed.

One pastoral note: I suggest that you DO NOT ask him about the third missing fact. That’s between him, his spouse, and his confessor.

In the meantime, we should rejoice that your friend has come back to the Church. He should be assured of God’s love for him and his spouse and that it sounds as if his marital situation can easily be regularized (if needed). It generally does not take very long to rectify situations such as this.

Back before I was Catholic, I was in such a situation myself (as the non-Catholic spouse) and so I have a special empathy for the situation.

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At Last! Someone In Hollywood With A GOOD Idea!

And by "a good idea" I mean "my idea."

You may have noticed that the time between the theatrical release of a motion picture and its DVD release is getting shorter. MUCH shorter.

My idea: Eliminate the time discrepancy COMPLETELY. Release movies on DVD at the same time they are in the theater.

In fact, SELL THEM IN THE THEATER. There’s no better time to hit a person up to by a DVD of a movie than when they’ve just seen it and are all excited about it. Make them wait 3-6 months and their enthusiasm will cool and you’ll have less of a chance of selling them that DVD.

I know I’ve come out of a movie and really wanted a DVD of it only to find myself thinking, months later when it finally comes out, "Was it really that good? Do really want to spend the money for a DVD?" My memories of the movie have faded enough that I end up not buying one, even though I now have the chance.

Selling DVDs in the theater would also (a) help boost flagging theater revenues (good for the theaters) and (b) cut down on film piracy if people can buy a legitimate copy the same way selling songs through iTunes cuts down on illegal downloading (good for the studios) and (c) please the customer (good for the customer)!

I know, I know.

People will argue that letting people buy the DVDs will cut down on ticket sales. Maybe so. Maybe not. You can cut down on that some if you only sell the DVDs in the theater while the movie is showing, so you have to go there to buy them.

At any rate, it gives customers more choice, and in principle, that’s a good thing. (Me being a customer.)

I think it’s an idea that’s at least worth experimenting with.

AND NOW, FINALLY, SOMEONE IS.

Aaaaa-AAAAAA-aaaah!

WilhelmlogoThat’s one way of trying to transcribe the most famous scream in motion picture history:

THE WILHELM SCREAM!

It’s named after a character named Pvt. Wilhelm in the western The Charge At Feather River (1953), who is just filling his pipe when he is shot in the leg by an arrow, prompting him to utter the now-famous scream.

The scream went on to be used in countless Warner Brothers movies and, after it was discovered by Star Wars sound designer Ben Burtt, in countless additional movies as well.

Burtt ran down the source of the scream and found that it was originally used in the 1951 film Distant Drums, where an unnamed character is eaten by an alligator.

After the photography on the film was done a series of voice takes was done under the title "Man being eaten by an alligator," and these became (collectively) known as the Wilhelm Scream.

Who the voice actor was doing the Wilhelm Scream is not known for certain, but Burtt has uncovered evidence that it was Sheb Wooley. best known for recording the song "Purple People Eater."

The scream has been used in innumerable movies, including all of the Star Wars films, all of the Indiana Jones films, and the second and third Lord of the Rings films.

It’s even used in TV shows and video games.

No doubt, you’ve heard it dozens of times, and now you know its name!

LISTEN TO THE WILHELM SCREAM (.wav).

(PARTIAL) LIST OF MOVIES WITH THE WILHELM SCREAM.

NPR RADIO FEATURE ABOUT THE WILHELM SCREAM (.real).

WATCH A MONTAGE OF CLIPS WITH THE WILHELM SCREAM (.mov; 48 mb!).

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE WILHELM SCREAM.

BUY MOVIES WITH THE WILHELM SCREAM.

BUY WILHELM SCREAM MEMORABILIA.

How many films have you seen with the Wilhelm Scream?

(Maybe I’ll take the .wav file and use it for one of my Windows sound events. Every time my computer crashes, it could make the Wilhelm Scream.)

New Ecumenical Document

Zenit is reporting that the Pontificial Commission for Promoting Christian Unity is expecting to have a new document out soon with the Lutheran World Federation.

This time the topic is apostolicity and apostolic succession, and they’re hoping to publish it next year.

What kind of document it is and whether 2006 is just meant to inaugurate a discussion of it or be its final proclamation, I dunno. The story isn’t specific enough. They might follow the path they did for the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, which involved having an initial release of it for comment, followed by a revision, followed by the Lutherans voting on it, followed by the Vatican getting cold feet at the last moment, followed by a Catholic response document, followed by behind the scenes negotiations, followed by a much-embarrassed both parties finally promulgating it.

Only I hope not.

Speaking of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, Cardinal Kasper indicates that the document may not remain an exclusively Catholic-Lutheran work.

According to him the Methodists are planning on endorsing it next year, too.

GET THE STORY.

An Excommunicated Cardinal?

After the press reports of the cardinal who (may have) broken his oath of secrecy regarding the most recent conclave, a lot of folks have been wondering about what canonical penalty might apply to the cardinal.

The article I linked reports a reporter saying that he can’t name the cardinal because the penalty for breaking the oath is excommunication.

Since many folks know that some excommunications take effect immediately and some have to be imposed, I was a little surprised that nobody has yet e-mailed to ask whether this might be an automatic or an imposed excommuication–or whether excommunication is really in play or not.

I was writing in a hurry and so didn’t have time to go into the canonical question, figuring I’d do a follow-up post.

Fortunately, I don’t have to.

ED PETERS HAS.

FYI

A momentary lunchblog.

For those who might be wondering why the comments on the Spiritual Help After Miscarriages post are now hidden, the reason is that there was an egregious Rule 20 violation unfolding in the combox and the quickest way to solve the problem was to hide the comments.

My thanks to those who argued against the Rule 20 violation. My apologies to those whose comments could have stood if not for the Rule 20 violation.

For the individual committing the Rule 20 violation, you may not be familiar with the rules I operate this blog under. Rule 20 exists for a specific reason and that reason is definitely in play when someone writes in with an event which is, by his own admission, one that has been emotionally devastating to him.

If you want to disagree with me, fine, but do it via e-mail. Don’t go <expletive>ing on the pastoral comfort I’m trying to provide to a devastated individual.

He’s No Match For Droidekas!

Kimjongil_2Good news, everybody!

Battle robots may be joining the peace-keeping mission at the North Korea/South Korea DMZ (a.k.a., "the Neutral Zone").

EXCERPTS:

Armed, six-legged robots may one day work alongside man’s best friend on the southern side of the Korean DMZ.


South Korea will spend 33.4 billion won over the next five years to develop the robots for the heavily fortified demilitarised zone that divides the peninsula, the Communications Ministry said in a statement Friday.


South Korea envisages the robots performing roles on the battlefield now done by dogs, such as sniffing for explosives and catching intruders, the ministry said.


The robots will stand knee-high to the average adult, mounted on wheels for road missions or on as many as eight legs to get them over uneven terrain, it said. Equipped with firearms, they will be able to carry out combat missions via remote control.

GET THE STORY.

RomulanNorth Korean dictator Kim Jong-Il probably won’t be pleased!

No floral baskets for the robots!

Spiritual Help After Miscarriages

A reader writes:

My unborn child was never born. We tried our best, and went to the best doctors available to us, but this is something that’s natural and happens, unfortunately. My child could never be baptized.

This episode has been truly devastating to us.

As a parent, what should I do? I know I can pray for my child’s soul. But I wanted to have the tradition masses celebrated, like 7 day, 1 month, 1 year, and yet I have no name of baptism to ask the mass to celebrate for. In whose name should I ask the mass to be celebrated? I don’t even know the gender. I don’t know of any way the church deals with this subject. People deal as if children lost during pregnancy never existed, and yet we maintain they have souls. This seems like a paradox to me. I don’t want the soul of my child to be left without a funeral, and without a mass. This seems cruel. I want to do something, and I don’t know what. I prayed in the mass and light some candles, but somehow this doesn’t seem enough.

I was wondering if I could choose a gender-neutral name and pray and hope for a special baptism of sorts, one done by the will and prayer of the parents. Would that be right? Could I ask a mass to be celebrated in this name?

First, let me say that my heart goes out to you two. I will be praying for both of you and the child, and I encourage my readers to do so as well–as well as all those in situations like yours. Miscarriages are very tragic events, and we need to keep those who experience them in prayer.

In regard to what you can do for your departed child, you are already thinking along constructive lines. You can ask God to bring your child’s soul to be with him, either through your own desire for the child’s baptism or through whatever other means God might choose.

The Church does not have a special baptism or baptism-like ceremony that is performed in situations like this, but it does have a ceremony for blessing the parents of a child after a miscarriage. In America this is printed in a book known as The Book of Blessings. I’m not sure about equivalents in other countries, but

HERE IS A LINK TO THE TEXT OF THE BLESSING.

As far as a funeral goes, the Order of Christian Funerals (that’s the Church’s official set of rites for conducting funerals) includes a Rite of Final Commentaion of an Infant that can be used for children who are stillborn or who die shortly after birth. It may be possible to use this rite to have a funeral for your child, though consult with your local parish for help in determining whether this is the case.

As far as having Masses said and doing other devotions on behalf of the child, there are a number of options. You could give the child a gender-neutral name, as you mention. You could also have Masses said for "Baby ___________________" where the blank is filled in with the child’s last name. Or you could have the Mass said "For the Child of ______________ and _______________," giving the names of the parents. Those would be a few possibilities, anyway.

I hope these suggestions help, and my prayers are with you at this difficult time.

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Conditional Baptism Needed?

A reader writes:

I am currently serving in Iraq, and do not have anyone I feel confident enough about to ask my question. 

I was baptised in 2004 by a Methodist minister.  I grew up, however, in a church which believed strongly that the Holy Spirit WAS NOT a person.  I shared this opinion as I grew up.  Thankfully I was never baptised in this heterodox sect. 

In 2004, when I requested baptism from the Methodist minister, I do not know if I then believed the Holy Spirit was a person or not.  I am certain that I did not believe strongly that He is not a person by that time.   Around the time of my baptism I accepted the truth that the Holy Spirit is a person–but it may have been a week or two after my baptism.  I was baptised by immersion, with the formula "I baptise you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."

My question:  My baptism had the proper form, and the proper matter.  Is it possible that the intention was not proper, if at the time I did not believe in the personhood of the Holy Spirit? 

When I was confirmed in March this issue never remotely occured to me.  Needless to say the priest never asked me.
I believe my question is very silly, but for whatever reason these doubts have assailed me from out of nowhere.  The catechism says that an imperfect faith is what is required for baptism, so I’m sure I’m fine. 

PLEASE, if you have the time, answer my question, so I know if I need a conditional baptism.

I have a lot of sympathy for the situation you find yourself in. I was in it myself! When I was first learning about the Christian faith, I was a non-Trinitarian (not because of any organization teaching me to deny the Trinity, just because I was still too green and independent-minded). I came to accept the doctrine, but in later years I was not sure if I had done so before or after my baptism, and it caused me no end of worry. I’m pretty sure that I was a Trinitarian at the time of my baptism, but just to make sure, I insisted on a conditional baptism at the time I was received into the Catholic Church.

Your own baptism is also likely valid. As you note, the Catechism states:

CCC 1253 Baptism is the sacrament of faith. But faith needs the community of believers. It is only within the faith of the Church that each of the faithful can believe. the faith required for Baptism is not a perfect and mature faith, but a beginning that is called to develop. the catechumen or the godparent is asked: "What do you ask of God’s Church?" the response is: "Faith!"

You very likely either believed in the Trinity or had the openness to Christian faith needed for sacramental validity, but to clear away any possibility otherwise, and for your own peace of mind, I would seek a conditional baptism.

I would go to the nearest Catholic chaplain, explain the situation, and ask for a conditional baptism, explaining that one is necessary for your peace of mind. If the chaplain refuses to perform one then, since you are in a situation in which your life may be in jeopardy, I would have one your military buddies (preferably a Catholic so as not to cause confusion for non-Catholics) perform one for you. (You cannot baptize yourself; it has to be done by someone else.)

Have him use the words "If you are not baptized, I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."

Ideally, you would want to have a conditional confirmation as well, but this may not be possible. Fortunately, confirmation is not necessary to salvation in the way that baptism is.

You will not need to repeat your confessions. If the first baptism was valid then all subsequent confessions will be valid as well. If your first baptism was not valid then the new one will be and will wipe out any sins committed prior to it, making it unnecessary to repeat prior confessions.

I’d like to add a note for those who might otherwise worry about whether they might be in the same situation: This situation doesn’t arise because you didn’t understand the Trinity or had a shaky acceptance of it at the time of your baptism. It arises only because you had a history of prior, conscious rejection of the Trinity and are not sure if you were rejecting it at the time of your baptism. Not understanding the Trinity or having a shaky acceptance of it does not invalidate baptism.

Outright rejection of it may, however, and according to the Holy See this is why Mormon baptisms are invalid even though they use the Trinitarian formula. They supply the words of the Trinitarian formula with a fundamentally different meaning.

Whether your former religion’s understanding of the Trinity was so defective as to invalidate baptism is something I can’t answer, because the Holy See has not spelled out the subject in enough detail.

I therefore recommend that you pursue conditional baptism even though the odds are that your Methodist baptism was probably valid.

I hope this helps, and God bless you for your service to our country. I encourage all the blog readers to keep you and all of our men and women overseas in prayer.

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