Here’s part of the message, from the Vatican website: Communication is part of God’s plan for us and an essential way to experience fellowship. Made in the image and likeness of our Creator, we are able to express and share all that is true, good, and beautiful. We are able to describe our own experiences and the world around us, and thus to create historical memory and the understanding of events. But when we yield to our own pride and... Read more

Does the pope follow baseball? Details:  A Catholic priest from a Houston church devastated by Hurricane Harvey is reportedly set to present gifts to Pope Francis, including a necklace of Astros-themed rosary beads, an Astros cap, a hand-made ornament from a parishioner and a pen made from the warped wood of the damaged parish. Maria Esther Aguilera, a parishioner at Annunciation Catholic Church across the street from Minute Maid Park, said she began making the rosaries at the beginning of... Read more

This Q&A caught my eye, via Zenit:  Q: A few weeks ago, in a Sunday Mass, the priest asked the congregation to leave the church and go outside in order to bless a motorcycle. Then he gave us the final blessing. Many people got angry. I know he can bless a motorcycle. My question is, can he do that during the holy Mass? – A.A., Luque, Paraguay A: I would say that the priest went too far in involving the... Read more

The video above shows some of the violence. From RNS:  Protests against the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo have resulted in the arrest of 10 Catholic priests — a sign of the government’s willingness to defy church authorities at the forefront of the movement to oust its authoritarian leader. The protests against President Joseph Kabila on Sunday (Jan. 21), called by the church’s Lay Coordination Committee, began after Mass and resulted in clashes in which six people were killed and... Read more

An interesting question, with some equally revealing answers: When Selena Miller, a practicing Catholic, applied to DePaul, she had no idea it was a Catholic university. Damita Meneves, another practicing Catholic, said she has met only one other Catholic student in her first year at DePaul. DePaul is the largest Catholic University in the country. But the inauguration of President A. Gabriel Esteban marks the first time in history that DePaul has had a president that is not a Catholic... Read more

Yesterday, I posted on the women who have taken the Vail. How about a little something on priests who ski? The BBC was only too happy to oblige, from the slopes in Poland. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ej6H38u-Xn0 Photo: Pixabay Read more

Now for something altogether different. This was posted on the Catholic University of America Alumni Facebook page:  On January 15, 2018, a group of seven nuns ventured from The Catholic University of America to Ski Liberty Mountain to go skiing and snowboarding. The group consisted of five skiers, one snowboarder, and one observer. Of the six participants, three had experience and two had never been on the slopes before. “I never dreamed I would ever go skiing again,” one of the sisters exclaimed as... Read more

That’s how Deacon Daniel Gordon Dozier described this wonderful video, from St. Paul’s Antiochian Orthodox Church in Brisbane, Australia. From what I can gather, from the church’s Facebook page, it depicts part of the celebration of the Sunday after Theophany, January 7th. The fellow in the cage pictured above was finally able to take flight. Deacon at work: helping the Spirit take off (and giving a little help to the priest…) https://www.facebook.com/lillo.kh/videos/g.39382733358/10155016929787601/?type=2&theater&ifg=1 Read more

I don’t imagine I’d ever do this, and I don’t recommend it, but I’m not from Philadelphia: When Lane Johnson walked off Lincoln Financial Field wearing a dog mask, he likely did not know how far the ‘underdog’ phenomenon would spread. As the Philadelphia Eagles prepare for their matchup against the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC Championship Game, the city has embraced its ‘underdog’ status. Now, religious figures are getting in on the fun. During mass at St. Rose of Lima Eddystone on... Read more

Christ the King Parish in Chicago reported a whopping 64% increase in parish attendance last fall. What did they do? Catechist’s Journey quotes a note from the pastor, Father Larry Sullivan, who wrote that he took a multi-faceted approach : Sent weekly e-mails to all of our parishioners inviting them to celebrate the Eucharist. Put a flyer in everyone’s mailbox. Each week, at one of the Masses, we had a well-known parishioner give a short presentation on “What CK Means to... Read more