Remember Fr. William Rowe? Now, there’s a followup: An Illinois bishop has confirmed that a Roman Catholic priest was fired because he “simply would not and could not pray the prayers of the Mass” under a new translation that went into effect last year. In a rare letter of explanation about an internal personnel dispute, Bishop Edward Braxton of Belleville, Ill., publicly responded to the firing of the Rev. William Rowe, who has been pastor of St. Mary’s Catholic Church... Read more
Cardinal Timothy Dolan (and, ahem, a deacon), during a Mass he celebrated this afternoon for Archdiocesan employees at the New York Catholic Center in Manhattan. The cardinal’s mother Shirley was also there. Read more
A friend on FB was recently speculating about a Santorum/Rubio ticket — in theory, the first to be all-Catholic — but Marco Rubio’s religion remains murky and contradictory. Now, according to at least one report, he has Mormon roots. Details: In the compelling personal narrative that has helped propel Florida Senator Marco Rubio to national political stardom, one chapter has gone completely untold: Rubio spent his childhood as a faithful Mormon. Rubio was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ... Read more
From yesterday: Pope Benedict XVI — preceded by two deacons — arrives to celebrate Ash Wednesday Mass at the Basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome. (photo by AP/Gregorio Borgia) Read more
A banner spotted this morning in the lobby of the New York Catholic Center, which houses the offices for the Archdiocese of New York: Read more
It engendered a lot of controversy — and late yesterday it failed after the governor changed is mind and decided not to support it. Details: A Virginia bill that would have required women to undergo an invasive ultrasound before having an abortion failed Wednesday after Gov. Bob McDonnell withdrew his support. McDonnell, a Republican who opposes abortion and is mentioned as a possible vice presidential candidate, came out against the measure in the face of anger among some women and ridicule... Read more
Hot on the heels of yesterday’s post about Wendy’s suddenly ubiquitous fish sandwich comes this story about a Dallas pizza chain offering vegetarian pizzas as a way to battle what has become an annual Lenten slump in sales: The folks at Pizzeria Patron have nothing against Catholicism, really, but every year, starting after Ash Wednesday and continuing till Easter, sales across the chain have traditionally dipped 4 percent as people give up meat for Lent. Enter its “Pizzas de Cuaresma”... Read more
And now for something completely different: An Ohio church is offering a drive-thru Ash Wednesday blessing for parishioners pressed for time or reluctant to come inside the church for the Lenten observance. The Rev. Patricia Anderson Cook of Mt. Healthy United Methodist Church in Mount Healthy offered the ashes Wednesday evening for people of all faiths beginning around 5 p.m. in the church parking lot. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Christian season of Lent, which concludes after 40... Read more
Have we started a trend? Details: Don’t assume every ash-marked forehead you see today belongs to a Catholic. Ash Wednesday, long associated with Catholicism, is increasingly observed in Protestant churches. The Rev. Joe DeRoulhac became senior minister of Redlands’ First Baptist Church in 1989 but didn’t preside over Ash Wednesday services there until 2003. The idea came from an interfaith Ash Wednesday event he participated in a year or two before. DeRoulhac said there’s an increasing desire among Protestants to... Read more
This year’s ashy portrait, courtesy Fr. Antonin: Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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