This kid has his head screwed on straight. Details from the New York Daily News: Sal Cocchiaro knows numbers. He just graduated as valedictorian of St. Francis Prep with a 100.7 average and won $480,000 worth of scholarships from seven Ivy League-caliber colleges. But this middle-class Bayside, Queens, kid chose a full four-year ride at [Read More…]
Why Did a Catholic High School Valedictorian Turn Down Ivy League Scholarships?
June 4, 2013 by
Jury Awards $171,000 to Teacher Who Was Fired After Artificial Insemination—UPDATED
June 3, 2013 by
Details: A federal jury awarded Christa Dias $171,000 after finding a Catholic school discriminated against her for conceiving a baby out of wedlock via artificial insemination. The court case that asked whether Catholic schools can legally fire a pregnant teacher for violating church doctrine came close to a conclusion last week after a day of [Read More…]
Great Moments in Journalism: How the AP Reported Corpus Christi
June 3, 2013 by
From Venezuela, we learn this fascinating tidbit: The descendants of African slaves donned masks and bright red costumes as they danced through the streets of this small Venezuelan town on Thursday for its annual commemoration of Corpus Cristi. [sic] Young men beat drums and shook maracas as the “devils” paraded through the streets and people [Read More…]
Ordination Update: 15 New Deacons for Philadelphia
June 3, 2013 by
Details: At a time when the dearth of religious vocations to convents and to the priesthood is epidemic, there is one bright ray of hope. Archbishop Charles Chaput ordained 15 married men of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to the permanent diaconate on Saturday, June 1 at the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul. The [Read More…]
Corpus Christi in Los Angeles
June 3, 2013 by
The picture above, from yesterday, shows Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez before the Blessed Sacrament in the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. And the tabernacle? From the cathedral website: The bronze tabernacle in the Blessed Sacrament Chapel of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels was designed and fabricated by sculptor Max [Read More…]
Grace Under Pressure: This Kid is My Hero
June 3, 2013 by
What do you do when your cymbal breaks during “The Star-Spangled Banner”? Watch and learn. This guy’s great [Read more…]
“Humble Service Means There’s Nothing in It for You”
June 3, 2013 by
Here’s something for every deacon to ponder—and it comes from a woman helping her cousin through childbirth. Elizabeth Duffy expected to be like Mary rushing to the aid of Elizabeth. It didn’t work out that way: As I drove home later that day, assessing the situation in hindsight, it became clear that what I went [Read More…]
“I Am Not Getting Married in the Church. But I Want My Religion In Our Ceremony…”
June 3, 2013 by
This happens three or four times a year: someone I don’t know drops me an e-mail asking if I can perform a Catholic wedding in some place other than a church. Outdoors, maybe, or a catering hall. The presumption seems to be that if a priest can’t do it, maybe a deacon will. So it [Read More…]
EWTN Prepares to Launch Its News Show with Stories “Through a Catholic Lens”
June 3, 2013 by
It will debut next month from studios in Washington, and the Washington Post has a preview: By planting a stake in Washington — in an office space near Capitol Hill — EWTN hopes to raise its profile on issues where religion converges with public affairs: abortion, contraception, stem cell research, immigration, the death penalty, terrorism [Read More…]
Jesus In Queens
June 2, 2013 by
Some of the Corpus Christi procession from my parish in Forest Hills this afternoon. Photos by Rosalind Chan-Ganzhi. [Read more…]
