Dwight Longenecker's Blog, page 285

America and Molech

Understanding the Sins of Sodom in yesterday’s post made for some pretty grim reading from the Old Testament. If you have the stomach for some even harsher language and more shocking imagery–but which reads like yesterday’s newspaper from our society take a look at Ezekiel chapter 16. You thought Sodom was bad, the prophet says [...]

Old Monk on Obedience

If you cannot obey your superior in Christ in the Church, why do you imagine that you will be able to obey Christ himself when he calls?

Mary Queen of Heaven: The Bible Tells Me So

Calling Mary the “Queen of Heaven” seems to most non-Catholics a title too far. How can the simple girl from Nazareth be “Queen of Heaven”? Isn’t that a pagan term? In fact, isn’t the “Queen of Heaven” actually condemned in the Bible? In Jeremiah 44 the Hebrews are blamed for turning back to false gods [...]

A Little Lesson in Moral Theology

I am no moral theologian, but I understand some basics, and if more people understood the basics of Catholic moral theology they would understand (even if they did not agree with) the Catholic teaching on certain moral actions much debated in our society. The basic principle is this: every action is always either objectively right [...]

Mother of God in the Month of May

Having a sandwich with my buddy–a former Baptist–when we were discussing the Mother of God. “Mary is the defender of Christian orthodoxy” I explained. “If you have the wrong view of Mary you will almost certainly have the wrong view of Christ. If you have the right view of Mary you will almost certainly have [...]

Old Monk on Theosis

Novice: I have said my prayers, fasted, fed the poor and kept the vigil. What more must I do? Old Monk: (stands up with hands raised, from his fingertips spurt flames of fire and with eyes blazing) Why not become a living flame of love?

The Sin of Sodom

Where does the word “Sodomy” come from and what does it mean? The word refers to the city of Sodom–a city in the Book of Genesis which, along with Gomorrah, was known for the wickedness of its inhabitants. In Catholic moral theology sodomy is one of the sins that “cry out to heaven”.  These four [...]

Divine Mercy–Light in the Darkness

Recently I have been increasingly drawn to the Divine Mercy devotion. At the Catholic leadership conference in Philadelphia I met Fr Michael Gaitley–who is the director of the Divine Mercy shrine in  Massachusetts and listened to his powerful talk on the Divine Mercy. I have begun praying the Divine Mercy chaplet every day, and have [...]

My Conversion Story

Is now posted at the Why I’m Catholic website. Go here. You can also read other versions of my conversion story at the Archived Articles section of this blog here, and you can download audio versions of My Journey to the Catholic Church and the story of how I ended up as a Catholic priest [...]

Immaculata: from the Head to the Heart

It is often said that the longest journey is from the head to the heart. In other words, we can sometimes understand something intellectually, but until it gets into the heart–the seat of emotion and the seat of our will–it will only ever be a good idea. This is what happened to me with the [...]