A church building is a sacred space that is open to the public by its very nature. The faithful fundamentally have a right to join in the prayer conducted in a church building since it is, in a sense, their spiritual home.

It is possible that excellent marriage preparation could “work against” a couple seeking a declaration of nullity in some circumstances. But most of the time, it probably would not.

When in doubt, bring it up in confession anyway. If a person does bear the guilt of a sin committed in their pre-Catholic life, the priest will be happy to grant absolution.

In order to marry in the Catholic Church, a couple does need to be at least open to life in principle — but it is not a requirement that children necessarily be foreseen as a realistic possibility in the intended union.

Sometimes people have the mistaken idea that “annulments” are some kind of Catholic-approved divorce, but this is not at all accurate.

While the act of directly causing an abortion is a canonical crime that is punished with an automatic excommunication, (see Canon 1397, 2) this only applies in scenarios where a particular individual actually brought about an abortion personally — and not in situations where a person promoted abortion in a more abstract way.

The church does have material needs that arise in the course of her spiritual mission. And so it is not simony to accept or request donations on the occasion of the celebration of the sacraments, as long as it is understood that such a donation is truly a free-will offering and not a condition for the sacrament’s administration.

We know that God is infinitely loving and merciful, so I believe that Jesus would have readily and joyfully forgiven Judas if he had only turned back to God and sought reconciliation.

Why would God allow Satan to torture and torment Job when he knew Job was a wonderful man and if God is, indeed, omniscient? (New Jersey)

Confession is a different sacrament with its own distinct focus, and it would seem to be pastoral common sense that those seeking specifically the forgiveness of any kind of sin would most fruitfully do so in the sacrament that was “custom built” for that purpose.