…here’s a press release, from the Archdiocese of Dublin: On next Sunday 20th February at 3pm, a Liturgy of Lament and Repentance for the sexual abuse of children by priests and religious will be held in St. Mary’s Pro-Cathedral, within the framework of the Apostolic Visitation of the Archdiocese of Dublin. The liturgy will ask the forgiveness of God and of all survivors for the failure of those Church leaders and many others in the family of the Church to... Read more
If you wanted to find the most challenging, most difficult, most confounding passage in all of the gospels, this just might be it. It is also the most fundamentally Christian – because it is the passage that calls on each of us to be the most like Christ. More than that, it calls on us to be “perfect, like the Father is perfect.” That is a tall order. And look at what it entails. Turning the other cheek. Giving away... Read more
If you wanted to find the most challenging, most difficult, most confounding passage in all of the gospels, this just might be it. It is also the most fundamentally Christian – because it is the passage that calls on each of us to be the most like Christ. More than that, it calls on us to be “perfect, like the Father is perfect.” That is a tall order. And look at what it entails. Turning the other cheek. Giving away... Read more
…here’s a press release, from the Archdiocese of Dublin: On next Sunday 20th February at 3pm, a Liturgy of Lament and Repentance for the sexual abuse of children by priests and religious will be held in St. Mary’s Pro-Cathedral, within the framework of the Apostolic Visitation of the Archdiocese of Dublin. The liturgy will ask the forgiveness of God and of all survivors for the failure of those Church leaders and many others in the family of the Church to... Read more
Well, almost. Check out this clever book plug. Read more
What a powerful witness. Seminarian Philip Johnson — diagnosed with brain cancer — shares his story. H/T Deacon Brad Watkins, whose blog remains the definitive vocations resource on the internet. Read more
It’s a recurring problem at some Catholic liturgies — notably, weddings and funerals — where a sizable number of those in attendance may not be church-going Catholics. How do you handle the blank stares and stony silences? (And the silence can be deafening, and dispiriting. I’ve presided at a couple of weddings where, after I’ve said, “The Lord be with you” … nobody uttered a word.) Well, they handled things very deftly at my aunt’s funeral on Wednesday, at St.... Read more
I’m not sure this is something the world has been itching to have…but here it is anyway. Ladies and gentlemen: the Shaving Helmet. (Gotta have one? There’s a website for that.) Read more
What a powerful witness. Seminarian Philip Johnson — diagnosed with brain cancer — shares his story. H/T Deacon Brad Watkins, whose blog remains the definitive vocations resource on the internet. Read more
That’s the terrific, inspiring message from the video below, courtesy Msgr. Charles Pope, who has some thoughts on how we all need one another over at his blog. The video, meantime, shows the legendary Catalan Castles, built of courageous (or crazy) human beings every two years in Tarragona, Spain. It’s awesome. And surprisingly uplifting. Just watch. Read more
The Deacon's Bench
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In