Pope Benedict clearly manifested his intention to step down; his resignation announcement was made at a meeting of the College of Cardinals and in front of several journalists.

The practice of administering Holy Communion by intinction — i.e., where the minister dips the host in the precious blood, which the communicant then receives on the tongue — is certainly “legal” and is an established option for receiving communion under both kinds.

A true fully, conscious and active participation in the Mass is understood to require our literal, physical presence at the liturgy. Because of this, watching Mass on a screen would not fulfill the Sunday obligation.

The smoke that rises from the burning of incense has for millennia been understood by the Christian community as a symbol of the prayers of the faithful rising up to God.

Jesus’ baptism truly is a major “turning of the page” in Jesus’ life, since, after his baptism at the hands of John the Baptist his quiet, hidden life became one of public ministry, wherein he actively sought to make his saving mission and identity known and proclaimed.

The Catholic Church does not recognize any Protestant denomination as having the Real Presence in the Eucharist.

The point of religious art and imagery is not so much to give us a perfect, historically accurate picture of events that occurred in the life of Jesus.

The catechism is meant as a summary of core Catholic beliefs and is widely available both in print and online — and there are a few searchable web versions of the catechism that make it fairly simple to navigate.

You cannot “double dip” by attending a Christmas eve Mass that happens to be on Sunday and have this one Mass fulfill two obligations.

The diocesan chancery office would have access to maps of parish territorial boundaries, and would also be familiar with any “quirks” of local sacramental record-keeping.