The Journalist’s First Loyalty: Truth in the Service of the Human Person
© 2026 Victor R. Claveau, MJ When Christ stood before Pilate, He declared that He had come into the world “to bear witness to the truth” (John 18:37). Pilate knew that Jesus was innocent, yet, political expediency, public pressure, and institutional self-preservation prevailed. The Passion thus reveals an enduring danger: truth may be known but […]
Question: What is the Catholic Church’s teaching on pornography?
Victor R. Claveau, MJ Answer: From the Catholic perspective, pornography is always gravely immoral. The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines it as removing real or simulated sexual acts from the partners’ intimacy in order to display them deliberately to others. It: perverts the intimate self-giving proper to marriage; transforms human persons into objects of […]
Question: Which religions in the world advocate or support Lesbian and/or Homosexual activity?
Victor R. Claveau, MJ Answer: Several religious denominations and movements officially accept—and sometimes actively promote—consensual same-sex relationships, same-sex sexual relations within committed partnerships, and same-sex marriage. It would be inaccurate, however, to say that Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, or Hinduism as a whole supports homosexual activity. The support generally comes from particular denominations or progressive […]
Does Judaism Allow Birth Control?
The Jewish tradition encourages procreation, but some forms of contraception are less problematic than others. By Rabbi Ronald H. Isaacs There has been much discussion in recent years among rabbinic authorities on the rights and wrongs of birth control. Almost all of the legal discussions on the subject are concerned with whether it is ever possible […]
The Ethics of Assisted Suicide: A Catholic Moral Analysis
2026 Victor R. Claveau, MJ Among the most profound questions confronting modern society is whether a person may intentionally hasten his own death with the assistance of another. Advances in medicine have prolonged human life, alleviated many forms of suffering, and transformed the experience of dying. At the same time, these developments have generated new […]
Do No Harm, Medical Ethics, and the Catholic Moral Tradition: A Narrative Reflection on the Care of Children Experiencing Gender Dysphoria
2026 Victor R. Claveau, MJ The ancient maxim primum non nocere—“first, do no harm”—has long occupied a central place in the moral imagination of medicine. Though not found verbatim in the Hippocratic Oath, the principle expresses a fundamental truth recognized by physicians, philosophers, and theologians throughout history: the healer must never intentionally inflict injury upon […]
Mental and Spiritual Depression: A Catholic Moral Narrative
©2016 Victor R. Claveau, MJ Mental and spiritual depression has accompanied humanity since the fall of our first parents. Sacred Scripture, the lives of the saints, and the teachings of the Church reveal that profound sadness, discouragement, desolation, and even despair have touched many of God’s faithful servants. The Catholic faith does not deny the […]
A Structured List of Mortal Sins in Catholic Moral Theology
In Catholic teaching, a sin is mortal when it involves: The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches: “Mortal sin destroys charity in the heart of man by a grave violation of God’s law.” — CCC 1855 Below is a structured list of acts traditionally recognized as grave matter that can constitute mortal sin when committed […]
For Those Considering a Vasectomy
©2011 Victor R. Claveau, MJ — Expanded Theological Treatment Introduction A few years ago, I was asked to conduct 35-weekly sessions based upon the foundations of Catholic theology. During the second session, a participant asked me to explain the Church’s teaching on artificial contraception. At the time I hesitated to do so as I had […]
The Loss of a Soul
©2026 Victor R. Claveau, MJ St. John Chrysostom wrote, “The loss of one soul carries with it a penalty which no language can represent. For if the salvation of that soul was of such value, that the Son of God became man, and suffered so much, think how sore a punishment must the losing of […]