Was Saint Joseph a virgin? Jerome, Thomas Aquinas and the widower hypothesis
Was Saint Joseph a virgin? Jerome and Thomas Aquinas answer yes, against the hypothesis of the widower with children. Sources, arguments, divergence.
Author: Daniel Afonso
Did Mary take a vow of virginity? The question of Luke 1,34 and the theologians’ answer
Did Mary take a vow of virginity? Tradition answers yes, but divides over when and in what form. Luke 1,34, Thomas Aquinas and the controversy.
Does every human being have a guardian angel? The answer of tradition and of Saint Thomas
Does every human being have a guardian angel? Yes: the majority tradition and Saint Thomas extend the custody to every man, baptised or not.
Who can perform an exorcism in the Catholic Church? The rule of canon 1172 and of the ritual
Who can perform an exorcism in the Catholic Church? Only a priest with the particular and express permission of the local Ordinary, by canon 1172.
Who are the brothers of Jesus in the Bible? The three explanations and the sources
Who are the brothers of Jesus in the Bible? James, Joseph, Simon and Jude. Three explanations have disputed the text since the fourth century.
Can the devil read our thoughts? The answer of Catholic theology
Can the devil read our thoughts? No - only God reads the heart. But angelic intelligence guesses them, and that is what unsettles.
Mary mediatrix of all graces: what the title means and what the sources say
Mary mediatrix of all graces: what the title claims, how old it is and why it is still debated. The sources compared.
St Joseph patron of the universal Church: the 1870 decree and what it declared
St Joseph patron of the universal Church: proclaimed on 8 December 1870 by Pius IX in the decree Quemadmodum Deus.
What is Satan in the Bible? From the accuser of the book of Job to the proper name
What is satan in the Bible? Not a name but an office: śāṭān means accuser. The road from Job to the Book of Revelation.
Do angels know the future? What the sources say about angelic knowledge
Do angels know the future? They see the outcome of everything, but Matthew 24,36 denies them the final day. The sources compared.
Do angels have free will? What the Fourth Lateran Council defined
Angels have free will: the Fourth Lateran Council (1215) defined that the demons were created good and became evil by themselves.
What is the difference between demonic possession and obsession?
Possession seizes the body and blocks the faculties; obsession is an outward siege that leaves freedom intact. The criteria of the Roman Ritual.
What is the hierarchy of angels according to the Bible?
The Bible names seraphim, cherubim, thrones and powers, but never organises nine choirs: that list is a later systematisation. Here is what is certain…
Why is Mary called the new Eve?
The answer springs from Gn 3:15, the annunciation and the 2nd-century Fathers: Justin, Irenaeus and Ephrem explain why Mary is the new Eve.
Mother of the sons of Zebedee: the mother of James and John, and Mary, mother of the servant.
The mother of James and John intercedes for her sons before Christ. Mariological study on Mary, the Mother of the Servant, and the petition to the Kin…