Nicholas LaBanca

Are All Christian Religions Just "Window Dressing"?

With the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation coming up later this year, it’s sad to note that while great strides have been made in ecumenical outreach between the various Christian communities out there, there are still many things that divide us.

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Intro to the Eastern Catholic Churches Part VI: Great Byzantine Saints

In the two previous parts of this look into the particular Churches of the Byzantine Rite, we learned more about the history of each of the Churches, where they stand today, and what these Churches do in terms of their liturgical worship and traditions. Now, we take a look at the holy men and women that have been canonized or beatified by the Catholic Church,

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Intro to the Eastern Catholic Churches Part VI: The Byzantine Churches Today and Its Liturgical Traditions

In the previous essay, we took a look at the rich history of the various particular Churches in the Byzantine Rite. Now, we'll look more closely at the liturgy and traditions of Byzantine Catholics, as well as what's happening in each particular Church today.

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Intro to the Eastern Catholic Churches Part VI: The Byzantine Rite and Its History

The Catholic Church is made up of many members, over an estimated 1 billion people. Therefore, it’s not surprising that many of these Catholic Christians worship in many different, appropriate ways through their liturgies and their traditions.

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On Praying ad Orientem: Are the Reasons For Facing the East During the Mass "Rubbish"?

On a popular, ever hilarious Catholic page devoted to memes, a new meme was posted regarding the ad orientem kerfuffle that's been going on since Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Robert Cardinal Sarah, addressed a liturgical conference earlier this summer in London.

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A Twenty-Something's Perspective on the Extraordinary Form

There seems to be a lot of sparks flying around within the Church, and it's sad to see so many people divided over various issues. There is so much on my mind regarding these things, but one in particular I'd like to address are some comments made by the Holy Father about a week ago regarding the Extraordinary Form (EF) of the Latin Rite.

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Why Follow the "Rules" When You Can Just "Follow Your Heart"?

In a world that has made the word “freedom” synonymous with “I can do whatever I want as long as I’m not ‘hurting’ anyone”, the question of why we need rules in society, and why we should keep them, often comes up in daily life. And that question comes up even more when it pertains to religion.

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Looking Towards the East: The Importance of Cardinal Sarah's Call to Celebrate the Mass ad Orientem

Now that the dust has settled somewhat following Cardinal Robert Sarah's controversial, but really not-so controversial, comments on the Sacrifice of the Mass being celebrated ad orientem, it seems to be like a good time to reflect on what’s happened.

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Intro to the Eastern Catholic Churches Part V: The Antiochene Rite

As we probe deeper and deeper into the various liturgical traditions of the Catholic Church, we come to one of the most historically important liturgical traditions of the Church. Today, we will take a look at the Antiochene, or West Syrian Rite of the Catholic Church. The Church in Antioch is traditionally the oldest patriarchy in the world, older than even Rome,

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The Church's Charism of Infallibility and the Real Presence of the Eucharist

Many Catholics today realize how important Chapter 6 of the Gospel of St. John is to our understanding of the Eucharist. Many Protestants realize this importance as well, but it seems so hard for them to understand this clear doctrine because of other reservations regarding the Church founded by Christ.

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Intro to the Eastern Catholic Churches Part IV: The Chaldean Rite

By now, many of us have come to realize that the liturgical traditions of the Catholic Church are rich and numerous. Following an introduction on all 23 of the Eastern Catholic Churches, we’ve already delved into the Armenian and Alexandrian Rites of the Catholic Church. Today, we’ll take a look at the East Syrian (or Chaldean) Rite, which houses two more sui iuris (that is, particular) Churches.

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Intro to the Eastern Catholic Churches Part III: The Alexandrian Rite

The universal Catholic Church has many different ways of expressing the fullness of the Truth handed down by Christ to His Apostles and their successors. We see these different ways of expressing our Catholic faith manifested in the Churches of the West and the East,

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Intro to the Eastern Catholic Churches Part II: The Armenian Rite

In my first article in this series, An Introduction to the Eastern Catholic Churches, we were able to get acquainted with the 24 sui iuris (autonomous or self-governing) Churches within the Catholic Church. 23 of those Churches are Eastern Catholic Churches, and each of those 23 Churches belong to one of five liturgical traditions or rites.

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An Introduction to the Eastern Catholic Churches

If you are reading this, chances are that you are a Roman Catholic. Or, to put it more officially, you are a Catholic of the Roman Rite within the Latin Catholic Church. Sounds a little confusing, doesn’t it?

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Transubstantiation, Scripture and Church Authority

Recently, I seem to be posting thoughts that must be considered controversial. This is the second time in a row I've had a lengthy discussion after writing an article on the Real Presence. What I've come to realize, is that some non-Catholic Christians are unable to reconcile their sola scriptura beliefs with the doctrine of the Real presence,

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