Open Forum

The callers choose the topics during Open Forum, peppering our guests with questions on every aspect of Catholic life and faith, the moral life, and even philosophical topics that touch on general religious belief.

Questions Covered:

• 06:24 - My brother is getting civilly married to a woman who was previously married in the Church but has not received an annulment. I know I should not be attending due to the circumstances. How can I explain to them why I will not be going to the wedding?
• 15:48 - If someone is not in a state of grace but plans to go to confession immediately after Mass, can you receive communion during the Mass? If you are not in a state of grace, do the prayers you say at that time have less of an effect than if you were in a state of grace?
• 21:11 - If a marriage ends in divorce and an annulment is granted on the grounds that it was never a true marriage, is the sexual relationship between spouses now considered to be fornication? Is this something that needs to be taken to confession?
• 29:57 - I understand most of the bible is covered over a 3 year period of Masses. What percentage of the Bible is actually read over 3 liturgical years, and why do we not include the entire Bible in the Liturgy of the Word?
• 36:20 - Does a non-sacramental marriage need to be annulled, or does special permission need to be obtained, before a person gets married in the Church or joins a religious order?
• 42:45 - How can we as lay people of the Church minister to people to help them understand the healing process of an annulment and the blessing of a sacramental marriage, as opposed to settling for a civil marriage?
• 45:38 - When and how did the Liturgy of the Hours originate? 
• 50:02 - I would like to ask if my previously annulled marriage was valid. It seemed questionable to me because we had children together. Now I am remarried in the Church and this is something I’ve questioned for many years.