Let’s face it: we could all use a little dose of awesomeness right about now. Here, then, the awesome Clarence Clemons, with that guy from New Jersey, nearly 30 years ago — all sweetness and youth and rowdy, unstoppable, laugh-out-loud joy. Crank up the speakers and travel back in time. Because tramps like us, baby, we were born to run. Read more
“This morning, mass began with something that most of us probably take for granted, and hardly think about. We do it so often. It’s the sign of the cross. In the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit. It’s not just a gesture that we use to punctuate prayer. It’s not just a sign of our Catholicity. It is a re-statement of our baptism. The words a priest said over each of us as water was... Read more
We love you and miss you. 50 years ago: Summer 1961 Read more
June is bustin’ out all over — with deacons! Some details, from the local paper: This year’s class of deacons includes men with varied and interesting backgrounds, each with their own unique story of faith. They include a former captain of the swim team of the U.S. Air Force Academy, a former railroad president and CEO, an aircraft salesman, a dentist and a computer systems analyst. During the five year formation process, Anne Garcia, the wife of deacon Francisco Garcia,... Read more
With the Corapi news, it’s a question many are asking. A few years ago, Jimmy Akin posted a good and clear-headed summary that, as far as I know, still holds: 1) He can’t celebrate any of the sacraments except for hearing deathbed confessions. It is especially noted that he can’t give homilies. 2) He can’t serve as an extraordinary minister of holy Communion. 3) He can’t serve any “directive office in the pastoral field” (e.g., serving as a parish administrator).... Read more
The Kansas City Star has done a remarkable job of digging into this headline-making priest‘s early life, including his childhood and years in the seminary: Records from Conception Seminary College in Conception, Mo., show that Ratigan entered the school as a freshman undergraduate in 1996, 12 years after he graduated from high school. And though he said later that he’d worried about whether he could do the work, he graduated on schedule in 2000. Ratigan later joined Conception’s Board of... Read more
You don’t have to look far to find a lot of wide-ranging reaction to the Big News around the blogosphere. First up, Max Lindenman, who says something a few people have wondered about in e-mails to me: The man is deeply distraught — that much is obvious. I’ll also venture the guess that he’s either over-medicated or — perhaps worse — under-medicated. He strikes too many discordant notes, sends too many mixed signals. Corapi is a very polished and very... Read more
June is bustin’ out all over — with deacons! Some details, from the local paper: This year’s class of deacons includes men with varied and interesting backgrounds, each with their own unique story of faith. They include a former captain of the swim team of the U.S. Air Force Academy, a former railroad president and CEO, an aircraft salesman, a dentist and a computer systems analyst. During the five year formation process, Anne Garcia, the wife of deacon Francisco Garcia,... Read more
A recorded statement, below … You can also read the text over at his website. No official statement or reaction yet from his order. Stay tuned. UPDATE: Elizabeth Scalia has her first reaction to the tape — and it’s similar to my own. I kept waiting for something, anything, that would point back to God, to Christ, to Mary (the patroness of his order) and heard…nothing. I imagine he can’t see past his own anger and bitterness right now, and... Read more
Allison Salerno has some observations about marriage preparation in general, and one couple in particular: A 78-year-old widower I know, married to his first wife for 55 years, tomorrow will wed a never-married, lifelong Catholic in her sixties. They planned to marry in the Catholic Church. Instead, they are hoofing it across the street to his Lutheran church. What prompted this change of plans? The priest’s insistence this older couple attend PreCana classes, classes designed for folks in their 20s... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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