The Deacon's Bench
A giant h/t to Frank Weathers for bringing the image below to my attention, courtesy Feminists for Life. Given this news item, I think it’s a question more people need to confront. Read more
A giant h/t to Frank Weathers for bringing the image below to my attention, courtesy Feminists for Life. Given this news item, I think it’s a question more people need to confront. Read more
Wow. I’m drooling. Read more
President Obama gave a rare interview about his religious views to the magazine of the National Cathedral. Politico has highlights: In an interview with the Washington National Cathedral magazine, President Obama discussed how his faith influenced his politics — saying that at the end of the day ‘God is in control.’ “First and foremost, my Christian faith gives me a perspective and security that I don’t think I would have otherwise: that I am loved. That, at the end of the day,... Read more
The following e-mail arrived Tuesday afternoon: On July 31, 2012 one of our deacons, Deacon Thomas Bates died of cancer after a brief illness. Deacon Bates was 63 years old and was ordained on May 24, 2007. I had recently purchased “Ordained to Serve”, Prayers and Blessings for Permanent Deacons, edited by Denis Robinson, OSB. On page 214-215 are “Prayers for Vesting a Deacon after Death”. Deacon John Devlin and I, along with Deacon Bates’s wife, Lois, her mother and Tom’s sister... Read more
Some big news from him today that you might even call a blockbuster: Next week I will be going back to graduate school—back to seminary, in fact—to pursue diaconal studies in preparation for ordination to the permanent diaconate in the Archdiocese of Newark. (I currently hold an MA in religious studies from St. Charles Borromeo in Overbrook, Pennsylvania. As of this year, my archdiocese requires diaconal candidates to earn an MA in theology, so…back to school I go.) I’ve been... Read more
That’s the statement released by the campaign Sunday night: Vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan’s strong views on abortion took a back seat to his new boss’s view in a Romney-Ryan campaign response to a Missouri Senate candidate’s controversial remarks about rape and abortion. The statement on behalf of Ryan and presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney said the pair would “not oppose abortion in instances of rape.” Rep. Todd Akin suggested to St. Louis station KTVI on Sunday that if a “legitimate rape” occurs, “the... Read more
An interesting contrast to this scream-like-a-little-girl video at an amusement park is the one below. The guy keeps a straight face through the entire ride. (Tip: if you run into him and he suggests a friendly game of poker, just say no.) Read more
This video, posted over a week ago—showing what happened to a Catholic priest who prayed outside a Chick-fil-—has generated a lot of heat. And now Elizabeth Scalia sheds some light: It is difficult to feel sympathy for Father O’Reilly; his actions toward the gay activists were intentionally provocative, which rendered his mumbles about “tolerance” insupportable. It’s one thing to stand away from a protest, praying, and have the protesters come after you; there, you might legitimately ask, “Where’s the tolerance”?... Read more
Just in time for the back-to-school crowd, this inspired Gilbert & Sullivan parody. I hope his major is music. Read more
Details, from the Chicago Tribune: Lynne Mapes-Riordan, of Evanston, hopes women will one day serve as Roman Catholic deacons. After 800 years, she could be one of the first. Growing up, she never gave ordination a second thought. But then she learned that, unlike the church’s verdict barring female priests, the question of female deacons has never been resolved. That open question has led Mapes-Riordan, 49, and fellow parishioners at St. Nicholas Catholic Church in Evanston to seek an answer.... Read more
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