John Martens at America’s blog “The Good Word” has a few good words for those who consider themselves the next John the Baptist — or even the next Jesus: John the Baptist was a prophet and Jesus is considered by Christians to be both God and man, the Messiah, Lord, who will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. The next time you feel like shouting at someone, or judging them, or using blunt criticism or... Read more
Since this is Reconciliation Monday in the greater New York City area — three dioceses are “leaving the light on” until 9 pm tonight, so people can go to confession — here’s a fascinating glimpse at the sacrament from the 19th century, courtesy Pat McNamara, who found this advice in a manual for seminarians: A dangerous rock which the priest encounters in the stormy sea of the world is the hearing of women’s confessions. The knowledge of this fact and... Read more
Well, whataya know? A website has decided to put together a handy list for seminarians of all faiths who are hunting online for information and news about religion and religious formation — and Your Humble Blogger merited a mention. Visit the site, Theology Degrees, to see who else is on their list. You’ll find a lot of familiar names (and some not so familiar) and it can be a great way to discover new voices and sample what they have... Read more
Like many monastaries, the Benedictine house at Portsmouth Abbey in Rhode Island is seeing its enrollments dwindle down to next-to-nothing. And they’re trying to reach a new audience using new technology. From the New York Times: The Benedictine monks at the Portsmouth Abbey in Portsmouth, R.I., have a problem. They are aging — five are octogenarians and the youngest will be 50 on his next birthday — and their numbers have fallen to 12, from a peak of about 24... Read more
If you’re wondering what to do with those long, leafy fronds you got at church today, here’s the answer. It shows you, in one minute, how to turn a palm leaf into a cross. Meantime, the truly ambitious can try the designs at this website. (Thanks, Shana!) Read more
At my parish in Queens. Masses were pretty full, but not as crowded as last year. I was there for four of the five weekend masses. (Served and preached at two, assisted with communion at the others.) Everything went beautifully — and none of the readers made the blunder I was anticipating: pronouncing “buffeted” as if it referred to a form of dining at Disney World. The shots below (from my camera phone) were at our “high” mass with a... Read more
It has to be the most conspicuously religious resignation letter President Obama has received, coming from a high-profile Catholic in his administration: Douglas Kmiec, U.S. Ambassador to Malta, plans to resign from his post on August 15. Kmiec’s resignation follows the release of a State Department report which criticized him for a number of alleged infractions, including spending, “an inordinate amount of time reviewing his writings, speeches, and other initiatives.” In a letter addressed to President Obama, dated April 13,... Read more
Yesterday, I posted this clip of “Hosanna” from the 1973 movie version of “Jesus Christ Superstar.” If that had you feeling nostalgic, you have to check out the clip below: the star of that movie, Ted Neeley, performing the heart-rending “Gethsemane” over 30 years later, in a “Farewell Tour” of the stage musical. When I stumbled on this on YouTube, the prospect of watching a 60-something aging rock star perform a role created for someone half his age did not... Read more
Some intriguing answers can be found over at the excellent Pray Tell blog, which unearthed a Harris Survey from 1967. What were American Catholics saying about the changes in the mass and the Church? Check it out: Asked of their opinion of the changes to simplify and modernize the Church, 66.7% of US Catholics thought it was for the better and 13.5% thought it was for the worse. In an open-ended response explaining why they felt this way (yea or... Read more
It’s a problem a lot of Catholic dioceses are facing, but it seems especially acute in upstate New York. From the Buffalo News: More people in Western New York adhere to Catholicism, by far, than any other faith, but clergy sometimes joke that the area’s second-largest denomination also is Catholic. Its members just don’t show up for Mass. Often called nominal or cultural Catholics, they identify themselves as part of the faith tradition, but mostly stay away from church. Some... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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