[Click here for readings.] Last week, my wife and I went to see one of the movies that’s up for an Oscar this weekend: “The Artist.” It’s a terrific movie, and something altogether different: a silent black-and-white film about the end of the silent movie era. It focuses on a fabulously successful movie star of the 1920s named George Valentin – modeled, supposedly, on Douglas Fairbanks. When we meet him, George is one of the biggest stars of his day. ... Read more
The latest bombshell from Philadelphia: A Philadelphia archdiocese official on trial for allegedly covering up the sexual abuse of children has asked a court to throw out charges against him based on a 1994 memo showing Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua ordered a list of suspected abusive Catholic priests to be destroyed. Attorneys for Monsignor William Lynn asked a Philadelphia court to dismiss charges of conspiracy and child endangerment based on documents that Lynn had informed his superiors — including the cardinal... Read more
It’s passionate. It’s political. And it’s angry. I’m curious to hear what people think. Give a listen. UPDATE: For another perspective, it’s instructive to read Blessed John Paul’s 1993 statement “Priests Do Not Have A Political Mission,” which notes: The presbyter’s right to express his own personal choices is limited by the requirements of his priestly ministry. This limitation too can be an aspect of the poverty he is called to practice following Christ’s example. In fact, he can sometimes... Read more
From the In My Backyard Desk — and this really is in my backyard, just four blocks from my apartment and three blocks from my church — comes this story about a local movie theater mixing holiness with Hollywood: Among the Pikachu and Spider-Man charms that roll out of vending machines at the Midway Theater are icons with more spiritual depth — including St. Francis of Assisi. A machine at the popular theater at 108-22 Queens Boulevard sells what it... Read more
This one is making the Twitter rounds: Berlin’s new Cardinal Rainier Maria Woelki takes a moment during last week’s festivities in Rome to check soccer scores on his iPhone. Read more
Every year, my wife and I have the privilege of leading our parish’s Stations of the Cross during Lent, using a version that drives home the humanity of the experience in a profoundly moving way. It’s called “Mary’s Way of the Cross,” by Richard Furey (you can read it all here) and it’s become an enduring tradition at our church. Tonight, we begin Mary’s journey again. More than a meditation, it’s a complete event, with a dozen or so altar... Read more
Almost a year ago, we began the Easter season with a roaring fire at the door of the Church – we re-lived the creation of the universe, and it exploded into hundreds of points of light: small, bright candles that were held by every one in the church. We sang: “Christ Our Light, thanks be to God.” And we were made new. Now, it is a year later. And what we are left with…is ashes. So for this one day... Read more
Details: A Catholic church in Union City was defaced on Ash Wednesday with spray-painted pentagrams and messages about Satan, vandalism that is being investigated as a hate crime, police said. Vandals knocked down a wooden cross outside St. Anne’s Church at Cabello and Dyer streets and used black spray paint to deface a statue and write on the church’s exterior walls, police said Thursday. “Satan,” “Carpe noctem” and a pentagram were drawn on the walls, and spray paint covered the... Read more
This appeared on Ash Wednesday on the Op Ed page of the New York Times, written by Michael P. Warsaw, President and CEO of EWTN: EWTN cannot comply with the recent mandate from the Department of Health and Human Services requiring the insurance plans of all employers, with the exception of some houses of worship, to cover the contraceptives and sterilization procedures approved by the Food and Drug Administration. These include emergency contraceptives like Plan B and Ella that can... Read more
A friend noted on her FB page this morning that for the first time a permanent deacon — Deacon Elliott Casalegno — has died in the Archdiocese of Sydney, Australia. The diaconate there is still very new, and very small. The archdiocese ordained its first deacon in 1997, and added just four more in 2000. One of those in the last class was Elliott. Deacon Elliott Casalegno also happens to be someone who had touched my own life. In 2008,... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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