Is this the month my question will be answered?

If you’ve ever submitted a question to be answered on the pages of the Dakota Catholic Action, this might be your lucky day. Possibly.
 
If an infant is baptized in the hospital by a nurse in the case of an emergency, can the baby be baptized “again” by a priest later?
If the nurse baptized the baby using water and the words, “I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” then it’s a valid baptism. The child is baptized, a child of God, full of God’s grace. Therefore, there is no need to give the child what he or she already has. What happens later in the baptismal liturgy at the Church are readings from Scripture and symbolic rituals which help understand what baptism is. The white garment symbolizes the purity a person receives in baptism. The flame lit from the Easter candle shows the child has been given light from God. And the child is anointed with Chrism which points to the need for the sacrament of confirmation given by the bishop. 
 
Why would I take marriage advice from a priest?
This is an honest question. The answer is quite simple. A doctor doesn’t need to have a broken bone to treat a broken bone. A mother doesn’t need to have an earache to treat her child’s earache. A carpenter doesn’t need to have his own house to build a house. There are many things a priest can know about marriage even though he’s not married. After all, he hears the struggles of marriage in the confessional or pastoral counseling which the average person does not know or hear. This doesn’t mean that all priests give good marriage advice. And I would not recommend you get all your marriage advice from a priest. There are many good marriage counselors and marriage coaches who do this for a living and are more equipped than many priests. 
 
Why does the Catholic Church have so many traditions and rules that are not anywhere in the Bible?
Many traditions and rules of the Catholic Church are in the Bible which the Church does not have the power to change. Here are some examples. The command to attend Mass: “Do this in memory of me.” (1 Cor 11:24). Marriage is indissoluble: “Everyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and the one who marries a woman divorced from her husband commits adultery” (Luke 16:18). St. Paul lists a number of sins that keep a person out of heaven, (that is, if one does not repent of them and turn to God): “Do not be deceived; neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers nor boy prostitutes nor sodomites nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor 6:9-10). But then there are rules and traditions that the Church does have the power to change. Two examples are: which language can be used to celebrate the Mass and whether married men can become priests. There are many more. This is similar to the rules parents make for their families. There are some rules parents must follow, and there are others they have the authority to make or change.
 
I’m Catholic and my spouse is not. If I die first, how can I ensure that my funeral will be a Catholic Mass?
My first recommendation is to have this conversation with your spouse, if you haven’t already. Tell him or her that you want a Catholic funeral and ask them to promise you he or she will have a Catholic funeral Mass for you. If your spouse is opposed to it, my next recommendation is to talk to your parish priest asking that if your family does not have a Catholic funeral Mass that he offer a Mass for the repose of your soul when you die. Requesting it in writing and reminding the priest from time to time of this request is also helpful to your parish priest to remember your request.  
 
How can anyone recognize if the devil is behind something?
Here’s a good example: If he’s behind a living room chair, you’ll likely see his horns sticking out the top of the backrest, his red pointy viper tail wagging back and forth on the floor or tangled up in the lamp cord, and he’ll probably be clucking like a chicken. 
 
But in all seriousness, we know that the devil is in some way behind all the evil in the world. Since Adam and Eve handed humanity over to the serpent, we now experience evil. Yet, you must always remember that Jesus has conquered the devil. The devil is merely a creature. Jesus is the Creator. By consistently praying, reading Scripture and receiving the sacraments—especially confession and Holy Communion—God protects us from the devil. Yet, God doesn’t always keep us from suffering since suffering can be a way to conquer the devil, but He will always keep us safe. God is always a hundred moves ahead of the devil. If you’re constantly lifting your mind and heart to God, there’s no need to worry the devil is behind anything, because God already has a better plan.  
 
Why are there different versions of the Bible if it’s the true Word of God?
The books of the Bible that we read here in North Dakota are usually in English or Spanish. But these were not the languages which the Holy Spirit used when the books of the Bible were originally written. If at Mass, or otherwise, the Bible was read in its original languages of Hebrew or Greek, we would not understand what is being spoken. So, the Church has had the Bible translated into the vernacular or language of the people so that we can come to know what the Bible is saying. There are many translations of the Bible because no one translation is able to say fully what the original says. My Greek professor said in seminary, “Reading a translation of the Bible is like looking at a sunset in black and white. A black and white sunset may be beautiful, but a sunset in color is so much better.”
 
Why must married couples be open to children when that’s really none of the Church’s business?
One of the great things about the Catholic Church is that we don’t have “Church police” who go from door to door making sure people are living Catholic lives. There aren’t any fines or Church jail for those who aren’t fully living Catholic lives. If the Church had a jail or fines, most would be in that jail or be paying fines; we all are sinners. But what God has put into each of us is a conscience. Our consciences remind us of what is right and wrong. Clergy, religious and laity alike, are called to remind us of what is right and wrong. 
 
In regard to being open to children, the Church simply reminds married couples to “be fruitful and multiply”—God’s first commandment in the Bible found in Genesis. God made the sexual act for two purposes: to unify the man and woman and to bring forth new human life. We can see this and know this at the scientific level too. 
 
Can I hang a rosary from my car’s rear-view mirror or is that sacrilegious?
If you’re in a state which allows things hanging from the rearview mirror, you certainly can. North Dakota is one of those states. I have one hanging from mine as a reminder to lift my heart and mind to God while I’m on the road. And because it’s hanging there in clear view, it also reminds me to pray the rosary too. If someone has it hanging there as jewelry rather than a reminder to pray, then there could be problem.