5 minute read
Ask a Franciscan
By Pat McCloskey, OFM
Pat McCloskey, OFM
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Material is grouped thematically under headings such as forgiveness, Jesus, moral issues, prayer, saints, redemption, sacraments, Scripture—and many more!
Are Catholics Allowed to Own Guns?
In light of the chaos in the United States and around the world, are Catholics allowed to own guns or support the National Rifle Association?
Jesus taught us to love our enemies and turn the other cheek (Mt 5:39b; Lk 6:29a). If, however, we must protect ourselves without the help of the police and military, are we allowed to do so by purchasing guns or rifles? Or instead, must we lay down our lives and surrender to terrorists without trying to defend ourselves and our property?
Catholics have as much right to defend themselves within legal limits as anyone else while also telling themselves the truth about why they are purchasing and using firearms—as though they were explaining these reasons to God.
Unfortunately, Catholics are as susceptible to misinterpreting the Constitution’s Second Amendment as anyone else. In context, it certainly does not give everyone an absolute right to own any kind of firearm or to carry it wherever and whenever they want.
Like other Christians, some Catholics give the impression that they are much more committed to their misreading of the Second Amendment than they are to the belief that Jesus Christ was truly divine and human!
Gun ownership has increased dramatically during the COVID-19 pandemic. Suicides by gun also increased in the same time period. Are guns the only—or the best—means of ensuring personal safety?
For decades, the National Rifle Association (NRA) worked very hard to promote responsible ownership of guns and their use. Supporting a mistakenly absolutist reading of the Second Amendment began among its members as a nonnegotiable position only after the NRA’s 1977 annual convention in Cincinnati. All people, including NRA members and their critics, must tell themselves the truth and act accordingly.
Pilate’s Role in Jesus’ Death
How are Christians to accept two completely different versions of Christ’s trial before Pilate? In Mark, Pilate sentences Jesus to death, but in Matthew, Pilate washes his hands, declaring himself innocent of Jesus’ blood.
In fact, there is no real contradiction here. The Romans reserved capital punishment to themselves. That is why Pilate indicated the sign to be posted regarding Jesus’ crime as he saw it (Mk 15:26). John 18:31 indicates that when Pilate told Jesus’ Jewish accusers to judge him according to their law, they replied, “We do not have the right to execute anyone.” According to the Law of Moses, Jewish people guilty of blasphemy must be executed.
The fact that Jesus’ execution was carried out by Roman soldiers indicates that Pilate’s statement that he was “innocent of this man’s blood” (Mt 27:24) is not entirely true.
In fact, about six years after Jesus died and rose, Pilate was removed from his position as procurator because of excessive cruelty toward the Jews. And the Romans could tolerate a great deal of cruelty.
All of this should remind us that the Scriptures need to be read together and within the faith community. We should resist the temptation to pit one biblical account against all others.
In its 1965 decree on the relationship of Christianity to all non-Christian religions, the bishops at Vatican II taught that not all Jews in Jesus’ day or since then were/are responsible for Jesus’ death.
Why is there no Gospel account of Jesus’ meeting with his mother right after his resurrection or in the 40 days before his ascension?
Acts of the Apostles 1:14 says that Mary joined the apostles in the upper room immediately after his ascension. The suggestion is that she was with them prior to that event. The Gospels are not biographies as such but rather faith accounts to encourage people to become disciples of Jesus. If we accept them for what they say about themselves (e.g., Jn 20:30–31 and Jn 21:24–25), then the difficulty you raise can be seen in its proper context.
If Jesus knew all along that Judas would betray him (Mt 26:20–25) and if Jesus came for sinners, doesn’t this sound as though Judas had no choice? Was this preordained?
No, it was not preordained. Although Judas had a genuine choice, we cannot conclude that he was condemned to hell for all eternity. God is not subject to past/present/future the way that humans are. This renders all talk about predestination impossible. After the fact, people may describe an event as preordained, but that is not true because it would force God to act within the bounds of human, chronological time.
Why in Christian art is God the Father often presented as an extremely old man, perhaps over 100 years old?
The Book of Daniel’s description of “the Ancient of Days” (7:9) is probably responsible for this tendency. Regarding God and human time, see the Q&A immediately before this one.
What is the difference between tradition and the magisterium?
Tradition can cover many questions and activities. For example: Does human life begin at conception? Should statues in Catholic churches be covered in the final weeks of Lent?
The Church’s magisterium (teaching authority) weighs in on some issues (human life begins at conception and should be respected) and leaves other things to local decisions (covering statues during Lent). By regularly sharing in the Eucharist, believers develop a sense for which issues need to be resolved at what level of the Church.
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