This is a great start:  Never have Aleppines found the markings on their sidewalks more beautiful. The Franciscan parish in the large city in Northern Syria decided to restore the city’s colors. Aleppines could not believe it when on Sunday, 18 June, they saw scout brigades repainting their sidewalks for the first time. A little black and white paint was enough to give color to the neighborhood around the parish of St. Francis of Aleppo. A municipal sign indicated to... Read more

From CNA:  Last week, members of a terrorist group destroyed a Catholic chapel, desecrating consecrated hosts and religious icons, during a nine-hour long attack on the town of Malagakit in southern Philippines. The June 21 attack was reportedly carried out by about 300 gunmen of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, known as BIFF, which has pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. In the siege they also robbed houses and stores at gunpoint, causing the displacement of hundreds of residents. Residents... Read more

This pointed and powerful short video says a lot with very little. It comes from the students at East Catholic High School in Manchester, Connecticut. Read more

From CNS:  Indonesian Catholics have made a greater-than-usual effort to help Muslims celebrate Eid al-Fitr this year amid heightened religious tensions in the country, reported ucanews.com. It said Jakarta’s recent tumultuous election — which saw hard-line Muslim groups orchestrate the defeat of a Christian governor — as well the discovery of several terror plots have increased fears of growing intolerance in the country. As a result, the Christian community sought to counter intolerance by making a greater effort to foster... Read more

Details:  The vocation of the permanent deacon flows from love, Bishop Edward Weisenburger told three men prior to ordaining them June 10 at Sacred Heart Cathedral.  “We can only serve when we first love,” he told the three married men. “On some level, our vocation to diakonia has welled up from a prior sacrament of marriage. Neither you nor your wives could have ministered that sacrament to each other had you first not loved, and not just loved but loved... Read more

The Irish may not be ordaining many from their native land, but there is this notable news:  The “immense contribution” the Filipino community has made to society in Northern Ireland has been celebrated at a historic ordination. Family and friends of Rev Manuelito Muga Milo gathered at St Peter’s Cathedral in west Belfast yesterday as he was ordained into the Diocese of Down & Connor. He is the first non-national to be ordained into a diocese in Ireland. Born in... Read more

The snapshot here shows the newest deacons for the Archdiocese of Washington, ordained yesterday by Cardinal Donald Wuerl. The press release:  Cardinal Donald Wuerl, archbishop of Washington, ordained eleven men as permanent deacons for the Archdiocese of Washington at a Mass of Ordination today at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. The new deacons come from a variety of backgrounds, and include several who have retired from the armed forces, a medicinal chemist for the National... Read more

I first posted this back in 2013, but I thought it both timely and worthwhile.  (For another take on advice to the newly ordained, check out David Mills’ advice to priests in Aleteia today.) This was sent to me from my friend, Redemptorist Fr. John McKenna of Brooklyn. He was excited to share with me the news that a friend of his from a previous parish was about to be ordained a deacon for the Diocese of Wilmington. (The deacon is... Read more

What a great idea:  When Joshua Coombes got off the bus at Union Station in Washington, D.C., this past February, he didn’t set off for the usual tourist attractions along the Mall. Instead, the London-based hairdresser headed for the marble fountain where homeless people gather outside. Most travelers walk by without a second glance. So what Coombes did next may well have surprised them: He chatted with them, pulled out his scissors and gave them haircuts, free of charge. Whether in... Read more

It’s the first ordination of deacons in the diocese in more than a decade:  Fifteen years ago, a group of men set out on a journey to be ordained as permanent deacons. It was a process that should have taken five years to complete. However, the untimely death of Bishop Kevin Britt in 2004 changed all that. As they neared ordination, the men were notified the permanent diaconate program was being suspended indefinitely. Although disappointed, these men used the turn... Read more