So...Is Catholic Doctrine Immutable or Relative?

Some questions require either a yes or a no answer. Like Scripture says, "Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one." [Matt 5:37] Jesus was no prevaricator. When he spoke, his message was clear. Even his parables, when explained, made perfect sense. If the seed of truth is strewn on soil filled with lies, excuses, rationalizations, etc. it will be choked and rootless, will not thrive, and will not produce a harvest.

How Do You Talk to Children about Sex? It Begins with Love!

A mother's group I belong to had a question today about how to talk to your children about sex. A nine year old boy asked his mom a series of questions about sexuality. The challenge? How to answer them? Instruction in sexual intimacy always begins with love - parents' love for each other and their mutual love for the child. But in terms of answering specific questions, the best advice I ever heard was to give the least information that satisfies the child. Here's how I would answer the boys' questions:

Q. How are babies born? Like do they cut your stomach open?A. That's two questions so I'll answer them one at a time. First, the baby grows in a special part of a mommy's body called a womb. Remember in the Hail Mary where it says, "Blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus?" That was talking about Jesus growing inside of Mary in her womb which is under her heart. It's a special place perfectly made for a baby to grow and be safe and healthy. When the baby is ready to be born, a mommy's body starts to squeeze the baby out through a special channel called the vagina and the baby comes out between her legs, first the baby's head, then the shoulders and then all the rest. (This is a good time to talk about how happy you were when he was born and how excited you were to find out he was a boy if you didn't know beforehand.)

A. Now your second question.