Since this is Catechetical Sunday, it seems a good time to turn a nice shiny spotlight on someone who knows a thing or two about being a catechist — indeed, being An Amazing Catechist — my Patheos neighbor Lisa Mladinich. Her fine column last week paid tribute to the catechetical vocation: Catechists have always had a major impact on the health of the Church. Those who are unfaithful in their transmission of the Church’s teachings do her grievous harm that... Read more
How’s this for a little Sunday morning lectio: a story about the day Fred Rogers met a boy with cerebral palsy. Mr. Rogers asks the boy to pray for him: The boy had always been prayed for. The boy had always been the object of prayer, and now he was being asked to pray for Mister Rogers, and although at first he didn’t know if he could do it, he said he would, he said he’d try, and ever since... Read more
The diocesan paper doesn’t appear to have anything about this, but the local secular press does: Nine men from throughout the 19-county Toledo Catholic Diocese will be ordained as deacons Saturday by Bishop Leonard Blair in a Mass at Rosary Cathedral. Msgr. William Kubacki, director of formation for the permanent diaconate, said this is the diocese’s first class of deacons since 2008 because the program was placed on hiatus after the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops enacted new rules in... Read more
[Click here for the readings.] This Sunday, we mark Catechetical Sunday – an opportunity to celebrate, pray for and bless those men and women who use their time, their talent and their love to teach the faith. If you think you have a good idea of who these people are, think again. About 10 years ago, my wife and I were on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. And one of the women on our trip was a new convert. ... Read more
[Click here for the readings.] This Sunday, we mark Catechetical Sunday – an opportunity to celebrate, pray for and bless those men and women who use their time, their talent and their love to teach the faith. If you think you have a good idea of who these people are, think again. About 10 years ago, my wife and I were on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. And one of the women on our trip was a new convert. ... Read more
One week after the anniversary, here’s a moving and thoughtfully produced short film by Andrew Jenks that gives a different perspective. It shows how young people were shaped by the events of September 11, 2001. Read more
The latest, from Fr. Pavone: It’s so encouraging to see so many people on the same page with me, loving and respecting the Church and, out of that very love and respect, supporting the pro-life mission we are all engaged in together. Amidst the many expressions of support, many say to me that they are praying for me “in this difficult time.” But what’s difficult about it? Sure, it’s distressing to have to endure false suspicions, inaccurate media reports, and... Read more
A reader sent along the following e-mail: Eight deacon candidates will be ordained tomorrow at St. Teresa of Avila Church in Carson City, Nevada for service in the Diocese of Reno, Nevada. It would be wonderful if you could post this information on your blog. We would all appreciate your prayers. You got ’em. Pictures to come next week. God bless, brothers! Meantime, below is the prayer of consecration from the Rite of Ordination: Almighty God, be present with us... Read more
As someone mentioned to me in an e-mail, the wisest thing for Fr. Pavone to do at this moment would be to “call off the dogs.” Details, from Ed Peters: A group called “The Center For Bio-Ethical Reform” has decided to intervene in behalf of Fr. Pavone. I know little about CBR, but if their goal is to aggravate the Zurek-Pavone dispute, they could hardly have chosen a better array of inflammatory, indeed outrageous, methods. “Until Bishop Zurek releases Fr. Pavone... Read more
And a priest has a few observations, along with some recipes: The Filet-o-Fish sandwich was added to McDonalds’ menus in 1962 after Louis Groen, owner of the chain’s Cincinnati franchises, noticed that his restaurants experienced a sharp drop in sales every Friday. Even today, 25 per cent of the 300 million Filets-o-Fish sold annually in the US are during the 40 days of Lent. Many campaigners have recently urged Catholics not to embrace fish with too much gusto as part... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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