Catholic Answers Live

Protestants often ask how Catholics can believe in sacraments, purgatory, and the Mass while affirming that Jesus’ sacrifice was once and for all. We explain how Catholic theology upholds this truth, along with insights into purgatory, salvation, and the unity of the Church. Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here Questions Covered: 00:45 – The Bottom Line on The Natural Law  10:02 – What passages can I use as evidence for purgatory that a protestant will accept, especially 1 Corinthians?  14:32 – Why do Catholics believe there could only be one Church?  30:11 – I’m Protestant moving closer to Catholicism. How does Catholicism view the once and for all Sacrifice of Jesus considering all the things Catholics believe in like sacraments and purgatory?  36:50 – How do I refute the Protestant view that we are all one church?  45:59 – How do Catholics respond to the question: Are you saved?  49:40 – Regarding Baptist baptism. Would their intent to baptize confer grace even if they don’t believe it is salvific? 

Many Protestants see relics as idolatrous—but are they? We explore the biblical and historical support for relics in Catholicism, and also answer questions on praying to saints, Marian apparitions, and what makes Good Friday “good.” Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here Questions Covered: 04:54 – How do we support the use of relics when Protestants see it as idolatry?  14:01 – I’m in OCIA. How are Catholics different from Gnostics and Protestants?  21:29 – The bible tells us not to seek mediums or speak to the deceased. How is it then you can speak to the saints?  34:53 – My protestant sister asked me, why do they call it Good Friday if that was the day Jesus suffered and died? Who gave it that name?  42:03 – Why do Catholics take John 6 literally but John 6:58 sounds more metaphorical?  48:39 – How do we know that Marian apparitions are not taking away attention from Jesus? How do we get the title of Queen of Heaven for her? 

What sets the Catholic Church apart from other faiths? We explore the historical, theological, and spiritual reasons to choose Catholicism, along with questions about evolution and the conditions for a valid Eucharistic consecration. Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here Questions Covered: 17:00 – I’m a convert. If a priest walked into a bakery and said the words of consecration, would the bread become Jesus? 21:54 – Why Catholicism over any other religion? 46:01 – How do Catholics approach evolution?

What does the Church say about receiving the Eucharist if your annulment hasn’t been finalized? We explore this important question and also discuss healing after divorce, reuniting with a former spouse, and how to approach annulments with non-Catholic partners. Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here Questions Covered: 18:42 – I’m in a civil marriage that needs an annulment on behalf of my wife. How do you get a non-Catholic to support the annulment process? 22:42 – I went through an annulment. I found it easiest to focus on writing out a draft and presenting it 32:10 – My annulment was the best thing that has happened to me. It allowed me to fully recognize my now Catholic Marriage. 37:34 – What do you think about the idea that more attention needs to be placed on the person who is not seeking out the annulment? 40:42 – I’m a good practicing Catholic and I don’t want a divorce, but I can’t handle the abuse, he’s a narcissist. What should I do? 44:21 – I’m 59 and my ex-husband remarried civilly. Should I seek out an annulment to help him out? 50:28 – Is it ok for me to receive communion even though I left the annulment process incomplete? 53:29 – I married my husband, we got a divorce and then got back together. Do I need an annulment?

With evidence of burial rituals and culture, were Neanderthals spiritual beings like us? We explore their place in theology, along with topics like praying in dreams, moral behavior in animals, the nature of heaven, and whether we could ever learn like computers. Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here Questions Covered: 01:13 – What physical explanation can parapsychology offer? Because one thing is describing phenomena, another one is explaining it in a physical framework.  11:15 – How are we to consider our Neanderthal cousins? They were hominids, close enough to us that we interbred (I have more than the average Neanderthal DNA), they had a culture, and there is evidence that they not only buried their dead, but buried flowers and grave goods with them, hinting at a belief in the afterlife. Yet, they were different from us, and they went extinct millennia before the Incarnation. Theologically, how are they considered? semi-Neanderthal minds want to know!  16:31 – Can animals act in ways that are morally good or evil? i.e. the dog that saves the child vs the dog that bites the child. What implications, if any, would that have on the prospect of an animal afterlife?  22:44 – If I am asleep and I dream that I am praying, is it possible that God and the saints I ask for intercession hear those prayers? And if I receive a blessing in the context of my dream, is it possible that some minor intercession has occurred?  29:15 – If a sincere penitent in the confessional confesses that he has set a bear trap outside the priest’s confessional, set to go off the moment the priest exits the confessional, could the priest require the penitent to remove the bear trap as a part of his penance? Or can the priest not make requirements like that in order to give absolution? (One that I’ve actually gotten from my students!)  34:34 – Tell us about your Arkansas accent. It’s coming on pretty thick these days. I assume you lost it when you moved to CA and now that your back you just naturally fell back into it?  41:30 – I’ve never heard anyone address this: after the resurrection, we will be reunited with our physical bodies. So is heaven a physical place?  44:15 – Growing up I was told that our souls wander about while we sleep as an explanation for Deja vu. I know in the past you’ve attributed Deja vu to remote viewing, how similar are these 2 ideas?  52:45 – The mystery of learning and memory. Why can’t humans learn, store, and recall information in the same way a computer does (i.e. massive storage, data compressibility/extractability, can download and upload information, etc.)? It would seem extremely beneficial if humans could learn via download and share via upload like computers. Just to qualify I mean the speed of data transfer as well. For example, instead of spending years learning a new language, just download it and have perfect fluency (similar to the Matrix and how Neo could learn things). 

Can a kamikaze-style sacrifice ever be morally justified? We explore the ethics of self-sacrifice in sci-fi scenarios and real life, along with deep (and wild) questions about vampires, psychiatric visions, Jesus’ second coming, and even the Rick Astley paradox. Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here Questions Covered: 02:23 – If someone were to kill everyone on earth to force Jesus’s second coming, would Jesus come? If the person did it to save everyone so they can all go to heaven, would this make them a good or bad person?  05:00 – Are heaven and hell customized for you and how you lived?  06:55 – If you sacrifice your life for God, do you go to hell for committing suicide?  14:45 – Could a killer whale get a taste for human flesh?  17:55 – I worked as a firefighter/EMT for a while and people prided themselves about having a stiff upper lip and a tough cynical personality. I got to thinking, some people are more docile, and some seem to pride themselves in having a rough edge. When we are perfected in heaven, will we all have the same disposition/temperament and just different talents and interests, or will our different dispositions remain?  22:01 – How will a body not be destroyed when living on earth forever? For example—If you fall off a cliff or get crushed?  28:57 – Can you please comment on the moral implications of the following? In Return of the Jedi, an A wing pilot gets shot down and plows his ship into the bridge of the Executor. Can a space pilot do this if death is a near certainty become a kamikaze? Or, in 2009’s Star Trek movie, Captain Kirk’s father stays behind and navigates the Kelvin on a collision course with the Romulan vessel to protect escaping shuttles. He sacrifices himself and the ship to save his son. Can the captain of a ship stay behind to again be a kamikaze to inflict heavy damage on somebody else and/or save other people if it means certain death?  32:59 – My Mom and sister are both nurses in a psych ward. They have had hundreds of patients who claim to see Angel’s and Demons. Some patients who claim they have seen them also knew personal information they shouldn’t have about Mom and Sister. Do you think these people are actually connected to the spiritual realm in a way we aren’t or is it just a mental illness?  38:08 – If a priest were to become a vampire, would he have to retire?  41:30 – If Santa Claus (not St Nicholas) were to die would he go to heaven?  44:01 – Will we see Wooly Mammoths in our lifetime? Will they really be Wooly Mammoths or something else that looks like them?  48:46 – How does the Rick Astley paradox work? Here’s how it goes: If you ask Rick Astley for a copy of the movie Up he can’t give it to you because he can’t give you Up but if he doesn’t give you Up he lets you down. This has been my hardest question since I heard it. What do you think?  50:54 – Sorry this is kind of a gross one. A few years back, there was a news story about a man who had his leg amputated and then had his friends over for a party where they ate tacos made from his amputated leg. While this is definitely strange, is it necessarily immoral?

Some claim Catholics trust the Church more than Christ—but is that true? We explore this common misunderstanding along with questions on Jesus’ “brothers,” historical temple virgins, and how to reach out to loved ones who feel unwelcome in the Church. Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here Questions Covered: 01:55 – I’ve heard that Catholics put more of their faith in the Church over Jesus. What is your response to that? 16:37 – How do we know that the brothers of Jesus were actually cousins? 24:47 – Are there historical sources for Jew temple virgins? 40:52 – Is there anything I can say or do other than pray, to help a loved one soften their hearts on their belief that the Church is unwelcoming?

A common misconception is that Mary’s perpetual virginity is optional to believe. We clarify Church teaching and how to explain it respectfully, along with insights on binding and loosing, the birth control pill, and how to talk about pornography and marriage. Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here Questions Covered: 06:30 – Does binding and loosing represent the Sensus Fidelium? 13:35 – Why is the pill considered abortifacient? 19:22 – Does God operate based on condition? I can’t wrap my head around the principle of double effect. 30:46 – How do I explain to my daughter in law who’s going to OCIA the perpetual virginity? She learned in class that the Church has never clarified and that her perpetual virginity is optional to believe? 42:54 – We tend to hear in TOB circles that men who are addicted to pornography should be avoided when considering marriage? Would you say the same start can be used for women? 51:27 – How do you avoid making circular arguments for the papacy and magisterium?

Romans 8–9 is often cited in support of Calvinist theology—but is that the only way to read it? We explore a Catholic interpretation of these powerful chapters, along with questions about the priesthood, interfaith prayer, and the role of bishops in setting fasting rules. Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here Questions Covered: 1:00 – Why does the office of the priesthood deserve reverence and respect and how is it beautiful? 08:23 – What kind of authority does a bishop have over fasting rules? 14:40 – Will there be a new temple built in Jerusalem? 18:52 – How do I read Romans 8-9 without reading Calvinism into it? 29:28 – Pope Francis inaugurated the Abrahamic house. Is it smart to be praying with Muslims? 36:40 – How do I respond when I don’t know the answers? 47:31 – Where do you see the papacy in the Council of Nicaea?

Is it really possible for spiritual harm to be passed down through families? We explore the Church’s view on generational curses and demonic influence, along with insights on martyrdom, the Eucharist, and the connection between Revelation and the Gospel of John. Join The CA Live Club Newsletter: Click Here Questions Covered: 03:58 – Is Jesus’ view of election the same as the parable as the wedding feast? 10:20 – I’ve never been able to understand, how is the incarnation not a change? 17:45 – Is there a connection between Revelation and the gospel of John in regard to the relationship between Jesus and Mary? 23:32 – What are the rules and guidelines for picking a confirmation saint? 33:02 – Do you think it real or possible for people to experience demonic activity due to family curses? 42:28 – What does it take to be considered a martyr in the Church? 47:01 – Why do some people not see a change in their lives after they receive communion for many years? 50:22 – If we consider Baptist Christians, would they go to heaven, purgatory or hell?