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Jim
Johnson
wrote:
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Hi, guys —
I have a dear friend who is Catholic and has
recently committed a heinous crime. He asked
me to pray for him. I want to do something
special for him in his religion.
I'm a white Baptist, and he's a Mexican Catholic,
but we are brothers and we both believe we
serve the same Father and Son. It's just mama
we don't agree on. I will pray for him in
my way, to beg the Good Lord's mercy for his
crime.
- Is there some kind of ceremony
or ritual
I can perform in a Catholic church on his
behalf?
He knows he has sinned against God, family,
and society, and is too embarrassed to see
me.
He wrote me a letter asking me to do what
I can for his business, and to pray for him.
- From a Catholic view, what would you suggest I do for him?
I mean no disrespect in this note. I'm only
looking for a way to comfort a fellow human
being at the low point in his life.
Jim
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{
Is
there some kind of ceremony or ritual I can
perform in a Catholic church on his behalf? }
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John
replied:
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Dear Jim,
Thanks for your question. Your concern
for your friend is admirable.
You should convince your friend to
go to a priest and have his Confession
heard. The priest will be able to
council him on these sins and absolve
him from his sin.
For your part, if you don't have
too many details of the crime he
committed, you can simply just pray
for your friend. No particular ceremony
is needed.
However, if you know the details
of a serious crime, you, yourself
may be in a precarious legal
situation.
You should probably consult a lawyer.
You may be in a situation that if
you don't report this crime, you
could be guilty of aiding him in
the crime by not turning him in,
or something like obstruction of
justice. Unlike a lawyer or a priest,
you don't have a privileged relationship
which protects you from having to
disclose facts.
As an aside, your friend needs to
go to Confession. The priest won't
be able to report him because canon
law forbids him. Nevertheless, he
can council him.
You, on the other hand, may have
a problem if you know the details
of this crime.
Again, just pray for your friend.
You can, if you want, have a Mass
offered for him. Simply visit any
local Catholic parish and ask to have a Mass offered up on his behalf.
They will ask you if he's alive or
dead. That's all the information
you need to give them. If they ask
if he's sick, just tell them he is
going through a tough time and needs
prayer.
That is sufficient. There is usually
a small stipend of $5.00 or $10.00
dollars for the service.
John
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Jim
replied:
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Hi, John —
Thanks for the kind words.
I will stop by Our Lady of the River
in the morning and have a Mass said
for my friend Hugo and his family.
Again, thanks so much for your help.
I find your response much in the
manner of Christ.
Jim Johnson
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John
replied:
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You're welcome James.
If you have any other questions about
this situation or about the Catholic
faith, including any objections you
might have as a Baptist, let us know.
We'd be happy to clear up any misconceptions.
Finally, please always hit the Reply
to All feature of your e-mail
program when writing to us.
That way the whole team can follow
the conversation.
If you wish to go deeper, I would encourage you to consider buying a cheap copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church to learn everything we believe as Catholics.
John
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