It was a bit shocking to read recently about the Detroit priest who discovered, three years after ordination, that he had never been validly baptized. The invalid baptism meant he was not a priest. As Fr. Matthew Hood was reviewing a video of his own baptism 30 years earlier, he heard with his own ears [...]
Matter and form are to the sacraments what money and a purchase agreement (contract) are to buying a house. These two elements (money/contract) are the minimum conditions for a legal act and allow the transfer of a thing from one owner to another. Sacraments work in a similar way. Matter (material or tangible element) [...]
In my recent article at Catholic Stand, “An Unexpected Refresher Course on the Sacraments,” I spoke about the invalid ordination of Fr. Matthew Hood of the Archdiocese of Detroit. Father was viewing a video of his own baptism when he discovered that the deacon who performed the ceremony used the incorrect formula for baptism [...]