Can St. Agnes Find You a Husband?

KV writes: “Recently a fellow Catholic told me about a ritual on the Eve of St. Agnes – fast all day and then at night the fasting woman will dream of her future husband. This sounds strange and superstitious to me. I could not find information on this from a credible Catholic source. Have you heard anything about this?”

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Are Birthstones New Age?

                                                                      (Image by Bryce Edwards, cc-by-2.0, Wikimedia Commons)

MH writes: “I’m wondering if you would know if there is any new age connection to birthstones?  I’m from Ireland and wanted to get my niece a ring for her eighteenth birthday and she wants a birthstone ring. I’m not certain if there is any new age association. I would really appreciate it if you could answer this question.” 

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How Astrologers Sell Us the Stars

For the third time this year, the planet Mercury has gone into retrograde and once again, the internet astrologers are trying to outdo one another with dire warnings about how this cosmological event can wreak havoc on planet Earth. Too bad it’s nothing but hype to sell natal charts and good luck charms.

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What to Do About Those Email Prayer Chains

MI writes: “I don’t feel comfortable with this type of prayer request [that I received today]. ‘We are doing an Intercession of 1000 prayers for those people with cancer. Say the prayer and pass it to 10 people, Let me know if you cannot, so that we do not break this Intercession.’ Am I wrong? Isn’t it basically a chain letter. Would you participate? Looking forward to your thoughts!”

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