“Blessed are they who mourn.” How striking it is to hear these words right now. When Jesus delivers these Beatitudes, some of the first people he proclaims to be blessed are those who are grieving. With all that has been happening in the news this week, I couldn’t help but think: There are many “blesseds” in Pittsburgh right now, and many around the world mourning with them during this painful time. The other day, the New York Times wrote about... Read more
Cardinal Timothy Dolan made the announcement this morning: Dear Member of the Family of the Archdiocese of New York: I regret once again having to be the bearer of bad news, but I write to inform you that the archdiocese has received an allegation of sexual abuse of a minor brought against Bishop John Jenik, an auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese. The Lay Review Board has carefully examined the allegation, which concerns incidents from decades ago, and concluded that the evidence is... Read more
This is from my homily for All Saints Day in 2012, delivered in the days after Hurricane Sandy, and feels just as timely now as it did then: Yesterday morning, I went to the store to pick up a few things. While I was in line, a little girl came in, six or seven years old, wearing a pink costume and carrying a small plastic pumpkin. She tried to get the attention of the guy behind the counter “Trick or Treat!,”... Read more
God help us: Jeffrey Myers, the Pittsburgh rabbi who watched as 11 of his congregants were gunned down during Saturday services, says he has become a political target and is receiving hate mail for saying he would welcome President Trump to his place of prayer. And he’s not the only one. Brothers David and Cecil Rosenthal were murdered in the shootout are being laid to rest Tuesday. Both lived with disabilities and received help from ACHIEVA, which operates a community home.... Read more
One passage in the final document of the recently-completed Synod of Bishops is raising eyebrows: Is this a bad idea? Is it (as one site claims) “Soviet-style censorship”? Well, in theory, it doesn’t sound all that different from the time-honored practice of issuing a “Nihil Obstat” or “Imprimatur” on a published work: The Nihil Obstat (nothing stands in the way) and the Imprimatur (it may be printed) are indications that a written work is not known to be in contradiction... Read more
From The New Yorker, a profile of Lucetta Scaraffia, editor of the Vatican’s magazine, Women Church World: Scaraffia is, by and large, quite conservative: she does not want women to be priests, nor does she want the Pope to upend the Church’s positions on sexual mores, she told me. But she thinks that abortion should be legal, and she believes in a merciful Church, with doctrinal walls porous enough to welcome believers who do not conform to teachings on sex... Read more
Baptist theologian Russell Moore offers us an important Christian message in the aftermath of Pittsburgh: It a time when it seems as though every week brings more bloodshed and terror in this country, we should not let the news cycle move on without a sober reflection of what this attack means for us as Christians. Such is especially true as we look at a world surging with resurgent “blood-and-soil” ethno-nationalism, much of it anti-Semitic in nature. As Christians, we should... Read more
I don’t care what your political affiliation, this is just abhorrent: Signaling how high the stakes have become in Tennessee’s U.S. Senate race, seven protesters were forcibly removed Sunday from a campaign event in Davidson County hosted by Republican nominee Marsha Blackburn. Moments before Blackburn took the stage — which came just nine days before Blackburn squares off against Democrat Phil Bredesen in the Nov. 6 general election — several protesters yelled their opposition to the congressman and were taken from the event.... Read more
The clip above, an outtake available only online, features Siobhan O’Connor, longtime assistant to Buffalo Bishop Richard Malone, explaining why she decided to come forward—and how the diocese dealt with victims who called the local hotline. You can watch the full video here. The transcript: Until now, Siobhan O’Connor had carefully kept her identity secret. Siobhan O’Connor: I had to rely on God even more than I ever have before. She is the whistleblower who leaked records from the secret... Read more
From The Forward: A crowdfunding campaign formed by two Muslim groups has raised more than $60,000 for the victims of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, which killed 11, the Independent reported. Muslim-American non-profits Celebrate Mercy and MPower Change were behind the campaign, “Muslims Unite For Pittsburgh Synagogue.” It is also in partnership with the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh. The campaign reached its initial goal of $25,000 goal in six hours. As of press time, it raised $62,500 of its new $75,000 goal. The proceeds... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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