Questions of Faith The practice of marrying multiple spouses – also known as polygamy – is a hot topic at the moment. Not completely dissimilar to an open relationship where a couple agrees to having sexual relations with other people, polygamy takes this a step further and enshrines the relationship in marriage. There are three…

Questions of Faith If you pop into any church around the world and have a look around, you’ll probably see a set of small candles burning with the option to light one yourself. The use of prayer or votive candles has become very popular in recent years, and they are usually lit in front of…

Questions of Faith Organ donation can make a tremendous difference to the quality of people’s lives – thousands suffer yearly from liver, kidney and heart problems, so a chance to find a replacement organ for its damaged counterpart can be a dream come true. Despite its benefits, it’s not uncommon to hear reservations about this…

Questions of Faith Catholics believe that at the end of her life, Mary, the mother of Jesus, was assumed both body and soul into heaven. Preserved free from all stain of original sin, she was taken up by God to share in his heavenly glory. This doctrine was dogmatically defined by Pope Pius XII in…

Questions of Faith In today’s world, plenty of people have lucky charms; it might be a football that their father gave them when they were a child; a special pen that is always used in exams; or a lucky coin that is kept in one’s wallet or purse. The belief that objects or practices have…

Questions of Faith When it comes to marriage, films and television shows often depict the ceremony with the bride donning an elegant, white dress as she walks up the church aisle towards the groom. This portrayal of weddings is not much different from those in real life; most women considering marriage usually take wearing a…

Questions of Faith It’s common today for religious or spiritual people to speak of guardian angels – divine entities which protect and guide somebody in their everyday lives. The Church has no qualms about the existence of angels, which are best described as pure spirits created by God. The word ‘angel’ derives from the Greek…

Questions of Faith In the last decade, deacons in Ireland have become more commonplace, especially as priestly numbers continue to decline. But who are these robed men that stand beside the priest at Mass – and what do they do? The name deacon means ‘minister’ or ‘servant’ and the term is explicitly mentioned in 1…

Questions of Faith Modern conceptions of the Devil often depict him as an evil, red-tinged, horned fiend, relishing in the torture of lost souls as he malevolently impales the damned with his pitchfork. This, however, is not how Satan has always been perceived; the Church provides us with a much richer account of who the…

Questions of Faith Deism is the belief that a supernatural entity created the universe, but that this being does not intervene in its creation. The Church describes it like this: “Some admit that the world was made by God but as by a watchmaker who, once he has made a watch, abandons it to itself…