Pope blocks German proposal for shared communion

Last updated on: June 5, 2018 at 6:24 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

From CNS: Pope Francis has asked the Catholic bishops’ conference of Germany not to publish nationwide guidelines for allowing Protestants married to Catholics to receive Communion at Mass, but to continue having diocesan bishops judge specific situations. Greg Burke, director of the Vatican press office, confirmed the authenticity of a letter published June 4 on the Italian blog Settimo Cielo. “The Holy Father has reached the conclusion that the document has not matured enough to be published,” said the letter signed... Read more

The deacon as ‘Suffering Servant’

Last updated on: June 4, 2018 at 8:33 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

Father Dwight Longenecker recently offered a reflection on the “cosmic mystery” of the chalice — and brought up this point about deacons: The next mystery of the chalice is the mystery of ordination. Here Christ offers the way of the Warrior Priest and the Way of the Suffering Servant. Both are bundled into this one passage where Christ speaks of being priest and victim, but links this directly with being the suffering servant. By the way, this is the... Read more

New York City may add third gender to birth certificates

Last updated on: June 4, 2018 at 3:57 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

Details: New Yorkers who don’t identify as male or female may soon be able to reflect that on their birth certificates. City officials want to add a third gender category of “X” to city birth certificates to make them more inclusive. “This proposal will allow transgender and gender non-conforming New Yorkers to live with the dignity and respect they deserve, and make our City fairer,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a statement. New York City would join the states... Read more

Ordination update: 25 new deacons for St. Louis

Last updated on: June 4, 2018 at 1:51 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

The wife of one of the new deacons forwarded the picture above. Read all about it here. Some sensational news: The archdiocese notes on its website that this is “the largest ordination class in archdiocesan history.” Congratulations, brothers, and welcome! Ad multos annos! Read more

Why Roseanne and other celebrities need to learn the Act of Contrition

Last updated on: June 4, 2018 at 11:48 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

I’ve been thinking the same thing, and I’m glad someone is putting this out there. Nobody knows how to apologize or express contrition anymore. So here’s some welcome wisdom from a Catholic upbringing, via Margaret Renkl in The New York Times: One of the most useful things Catholic school taught me is the fundamental structure of apology. Whether or not you accept the notion of original sin in its most literal sense — I don’t — it’s impossible not to... Read more

The story everyone will be talking about: SCOTUS rules for baker who refused to make cake for same-sex wedding

Last updated on: June 4, 2018 at 11:14 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

From CNN: The Supreme Court ruled narrowly in favor of a Colorado baker who refused to bake a cake to celebrate the marriage of a same sex couple because of a religious objection. The ruling was 7-2. The court held that the Colorado Civil Rights Commission showed hostility toward the baker based on his religious beliefs. The ruling is a win for baker Jack Phillips but leaves unsettled the broader constitutional questions the case presented. The ruling, written by Justice Anthony Kennedy,... Read more

50 years later: the 17-year-old busboy who gave Robert F. Kennedy his last rosary

Last updated on: June 3, 2018 at 11:39 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

There will be a lot of remembrances and commemorations in the days ahead marking the death of Robert F. Kennedy 50 years ago. He was killed by an assassin’s bullet in the kitchen of a Los Angeles hotel on June 5, 1968. But few accounts will be as stirring or heart-wrenching as this one by Juan Romero, done by NPR. Romero was a 17-year-old busboy in the Ambassador Hotel when Kennedy walked by and shook his hand seconds before being... Read more

Report: Trump to host Ramadan dinner at White House

Last updated on: June 3, 2018 at 4:49 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

From Politico: President Donald Trump will host an iftar dinner at the White House next week to recognize the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, according to a White House official, a departure from last year’s decision not to host the traditional post-sundown meal. The iftar dinner is scheduled for Wednesday. The White House official declined to provide a list of attendees. During the month of Ramadan, Muslims fast from dawn to sunset and they break the fast with a meal... Read more

Historic: Pope Francis appoints first-ever lay person as rector of Pontifical Lateran University

Last updated on: June 3, 2018 at 4:41 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

From America: In another historic step to assign key positions in the Catholic church to lay people, Pope Francis has appointed a married layman, Vincenzo Buonomo, as the new rector of the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome. He is the first layperson ever to hold this important position in what John Paul II called “the pope’s athenaeum.” Some 3,000 seminarians, priests, women and men religious and lay students from 100 countries, including the United States, study at the university in Rome for degrees in theology, philosophy,... Read more

Ordination update: 27 new deacons for Dallas

Last updated on: June 3, 2018 at 8:57 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

A wonderful image, above, from Twitter, where I found this great post from Bishop Edward Burns: I offer thanks to God for the ordination of 27 men to the diaconate. Today’s Ordination Mass was at St. Francis Parish. We prayed together before Mass, asked the intercession of all the saints during the litany, and now celebrate the joy of new deacons for the Diocese of Dallas. I hope to have more details soon. But congratulations, brothers, and welcome. Ad multos... Read more