The Deacon's Bench
Congratulations from Kenny and Selma. – Watch More Funny Videos Read more
Congratulations from Kenny and Selma. – Watch More Funny Videos Read more
Springfield’s Bishop Thomas Paprocki is getting a lot of attention these days as one of the bishops reviewing the LCWR. He also likes to sing. A lot. In homilies. The clip below is from his installation as bishop two years ago. Read more
It’s an unusual trend in the theater right now, and the New York Times looks at one effort to get people who go to church to also to the theater: Jesus is cracking jokes, sharing parables and dying for our sins in three Broadway musicals this spring, while another six shows feature religious themes that are woven through dialogue and lyrics. But what many of these productions lack are ticket-buying multitudes who identify themselves as people of faith, a group... Read more
O Glorious St. Joseph, model of all those who are devoted to labor, obtain for me the grace to work conscientiously, putting the call of duty above my natural inclinations, to work with gratitude and joy, in a spirit of penance for the remission of my sins, considering it an honor to employ and develop by means of labor the gifts received from God, to work with order, peace, moderation and patience, without ever shrinking from weariness and difficulties, to... Read more
This is pretty amazing and very clever: from a presentation designed to sell people on Stockholm. I don’t know if I’m sold on Stockholm, but I’m definitely sold on the way they use iPads here. Read more
The clever cats at Improv Everywhere decided to stage an unexpected romantic date in Central Park — complete with champagne and a classical quartet — for two people who were, in a word, whelmed. Can you feel the love? Read more
That’s the question at the heart of this thoughtful and challenging piece by Star Foster, who toils over at the Pagan Portal here at Patheos (and who, I should add, is a great gal, to boot!) I’m not in the habit of posting links to pieces by Pagans, but I thought this one worth thinking about, because it touches on something we have to contend with as Catholics, too. Periodically, people grumble about all the other religions and belief systems... Read more
Details: Madison Catholic Bishop Robert Morlino has moved to quell a backlash against a group of conservative priests in Platteville by warning parishioners they risk formal church censure unless they stop spreading “rumors and gossip.” The action by Morlino, which two Catholic scholars called highly unusual, appears to include the possibility of offenders being prohibited from taking part in church sacraments such as communion, confession and burial. The warning came in a five-page letter Wednesday from Morlino to St. Mary’s... Read more
You may remember this item I posted last month, about a Catholic diocese in Louisiana planning a funeral for dozens of people whose bodies were never claimed at the local coroner’s office. Saturday, that service took place, and the local paper was there: A few hundred people gathered at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist on Saturday morning to celebrate the lives of those forgotten with a rosary, wake, Mass and graveside military service. Some of the human remains... Read more
He’s three. A diaconal bow of gratitude to his dad for this YouTube gem. Read more
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