I recently experienced a growing trend in Catholic parishes, and wrote about it for this week’s column, “All Things New”: I have seen the writing on the wall. And I’m not impressed. A couple of Sundays ago, I found myself at a sparkling, sprawling parish in central Florida, in a church nave surrounded by stained glass and leafy palms and cheerful greetings between families. About three dozen children were receiving their First Communion. The place was buzzing with energy and... Read more
Max Lindenman, that is. The ham-on-wry (and wouldn’t his Jewish ancestors love that?) who gained a loyal following as sub-Anchoress when Elizabeth was tied up in Rome now has a blog of his own, right here at Patheos, called “Diary of a Wimpy Catholic.” From his first post — which begins, aptly enough, with a tip of the yarmulke to Elizabeth herself: I trust most of you will know exactly what I mean when I say I fell quite in... Read more
In a remarkable move co-sponsored by the Catholic Action Center, people who have next-to-nothing are going to Missouri to help those who have even less. Details: A dozen Kentucky volunteers who know what it’s like to lose everything are joining the relief effort in tornado-stricken Missouri. The volunteers are from a homeless shelter in Lexington, Ky., where they saw the devastation on TV and decided to take action. They headed to Joplin on Tuesday, ready for more than a week... Read more
Well, Indianapolis Auxiliary Bishop Christopher Coyne shares that and more in his blog. He seems smitten by both Kelly Clarkson and Florence Henderson. (Picture below!) The bishop’s prayer: “Good and gracious God, we give you thanks for the gift of this marvelous day and for all blessings in our lives as we gather on this Sunday for this closing race of the centennial era, the Indy 500, the greatest spectacle in racing. It is a blessing for us all... Read more
From Los Angeles comes this inspiring story of a deacon and his wife who are leading a ministry that is helping young people reconnect with their faith: “The church usually skips a generation; it goes from serving youth to serving adults, and young adults are usually left out,” Rouzan said, echoing her peers. The 37-year-old administrative assistant at Loyola Marymount University felt the need of stretching her relationship with God, but it was hard for her to apply the Scriptures... Read more
This time, it’s the Catholic Spirit, from Minnesota. From the Star-Tribune: The Catholic Spirit, the venerable 100-year-old newspaper of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, may publish fewer editions and eventually go completely digital — changes that could affect how the most faithful, least Internet-savvy church members get their news. A report to the Catholic Spirit’s board of directors earlier this month said the paper “as currently configured, may not be financially sustainable beyond June 2012.” Catholic leaders are... Read more
No, it’s not “Evan Almighty.” But it’s been quite a production. Details, from the New York Times: If Noah had run into the modern nanny state, or nimby, or a few of the other obstacles that Johan Huibers has been facing, the animal kingdom might look a lot different today. Mr. Huibers, 60, the successful owner of a big construction company, has spent the last few years building an ark, identical in size to the one Noah is said in... Read more
It’s the new priests from Newark: 18 in all. Story here. They were ordained Saturday. Ad multos annos! Read more
Arlington National Cemetery, Memorial Day 2007. The story behind it, from photographer John Moore via LIFE.com: ‘One Memorial Day weekend, in 2007, I took my family to Arlington,’ photographer John Moore told LIFE.com, talking about this almost unbearable picture. ‘I went to photograph, but also just to visit, having covered so much war over the years. Mary McHugh had lost her fiancé, Sergeant Jimmy Regan, in February 2007 to a roadside bomb while he was in Iraq. She and I... Read more
In a fit of incredible civic pride, the city of Grand Rapids, Michigan got 5,000 residents to record this amazing video — a “lip dub” that itself has been dubbed “The Greatest Music Video Ever Made.” I don’t know about that, but it’s a big 9-minute-long grin. And it may go down in video history has having the longest single sustained shot ever. One camera. No edits. And a ton of heart. Just watch. Happy holiday weekend. Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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