Updated Comment Policy

Comments on this blog are moderated. When you leave a comment, I receive a notification and choose whether or not to publish it. I have never had much trouble with having to reject comments and I publish almost all that are submitted. Sometimes when I reject a comment I myself leave a comment in its place to explain my decision.

However, some recent submissions have led me to update my comment policy. Here's the new version:

Faithful, or even just thoughtful criticisms are always welcome. Uninformed rudeness to other posters or to the Lord and His Church is not. 

I also reserve the right to reject comments promoting things like private revelations and fringe points of view, if it seems to me like they are being presented in a misleading way. 

If you raise a disagreement with something I say but I do not respond, please do not feel slighted or insulted, or imagine that this automatically means I disagree or agree with you. It's just that I don't find the comment box to be a constructive medium for certain forms of debate.

It's the middle part that's new. It's not that I have any problem with theological opinion that is outside of the mainstream or with a claim of private revelations in itself; I just don't think it's helpful to present yourself as something that you're not or to claim authority that the Holy Spirit has not given to you. That's not to say that I would dispute anyone's freedom to preach any private revelation or heterodoxy that he or she wishes (which indeed many do online, some perhaps without even knowing that this is what they are doing) but as the author of this blog I feel that it is my responsibility that content here published and presenting itself as Catholic should be so in fact.

In fairness, I try to hold myself to this standard in what I post here, which is why, at the bottom of the page, there is always my disclaimer:

I hereby renounce anything I may have posted to this blog which is contrary to Sacred Scripture as it has been authentically interpreted by the Apostles and their legitimate successors gathered in ecumenical council and in union with our Holy Father, the successor of St. Peter, or is contrary to the Rule of our holy father St. Francis as glossed by his Testament to the friars.

Thank you for your understanding.