Every year, at the enormous Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, Cardinal Mahony has participated in an online chat – two, in recent years, one with schoolchildren, and the other with adults. Here’s the transcript of the latter. Some excerpts:

James: I’ve read that Pope Benedict is concerned about the liturgy and is about to issue a decree that encourages a more generous use of Latin in the liturgy including the use of the Tridentine rite. Do you support this and will you encourage the use of more traditional forms of worship in the archdiocese if he issues the decree?

CardinalMahony: James: of our 5 million Catholics, only a handful are interested in the Latin Mass. I must focus upon the 99% who need a vibrant Mass that includes them in its celebration.

steve25: Who are your most favorite Saints?

CardinalMahony: Steve: St. Joseph is my patron saint. In our new Cathedral, we have a tapestry which depicts him as the young man he really was.

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RECongress: From Jeffrey at Congress: Why doesn’t the Archdiocese mount a more vigorous defense of itself against the outrageous claims of the movie Deliver us from Evil?

CardinalMahony: Jeffrey: we have posted all of the problems with that film, and it is better to ignore it–the more we ignore it, the fewer people will see it, and the faster they will remove it from screens. Today, it is very hard to find it anywhere.

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Leonel Martinez: Cardinal Mahony, thank you for providing this forum for discussion. Some have suggested that the American bishops have not followed the wishes of Pope Benedict XVI because they have opted not to uniformly deny communion to Catholic elected officials who support abortion rights. How would you answer them?

CardinalMahony: That is not what our Holy Father is asking. Rather, he is asking that everyone who approaches Holy Communion should make sure he/she is living a life worthy of Jesus in this Sacrament. The burden is on the recipient, not on the minister.

Arleen: My daughter asks, why do we need to go to church on Sunday? I attend faithfully, but my daughter is of this younger generation that doesn’t see the importance of going to church. She says it’s boring and all they do is ask for money. How can we make church and the mass more appealing to this younger generation? I try to set an example, but feel like I can’t persuade them. What can I do

CardinalMahony: Mass should involve the full, active, conscious participation of everyone. If we are involved, we love meeting God in this form. There are great Masses for teens, such as parishes with Life Teen. Find her a group of active Catholic teens who love Mass, and she will too….CardinalMahony: We need to attend Eucharist because we are all members of the Body of Christ, and that Body is incomplete unless we are all there.

Moderator: From Denny: Why can only men become priests, and not women?

CardinalMahony: The moderator has better answers than I do to that question!!!
CardinalMahony: Denny: we are following the tradition of the early Church and Jesus’ actions. That has become our Tradition for a long time.

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Moderator: From Fran at Congress: I’ve been asked this and I don’t know — Can Catholics’ burial ashes be scattered?

CardinalMahony: Fran: normally, we encourage that all of the ashes be in one place for the sake of the family and future generations, but if someone wants to spread their ashes over the sea or forest, well, they do return to their origins. Just don’t spread them over Disneyland.

Um, from the Website of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles:

May I scatter the ashes?

No. "The practice of scattering cremated remains on the sea, from the air, or on the ground, or keeping cremated remains in the home of a relative or friend of the deceased are not the reverent disposition that the Church requires." (Order of Christian Funerals, Appendix II)

Moderator: From Denny: Why can only men become priests, and not women? CardinalMahony: The moderator has better answers than I do to that question!!! CardinalMahony: Denny: we are following the tradition of the early Church and Jesus’ actions. That has become our Tradition for a long time.