In The Daily Beast, William Simon, author of the new book, “Great Catholic Parishes,” has some fascinating insight into how Pope Francis is transforming parish life: While there is no “silver bullet” for doing great parish ministry in the Catholic church today, our study revealed that vibrant Catholic parishes have four essential practices in common: –        Shared leadership:  Their pastors understand that by deploying all the human resources available to the parish they are better equipped for... Read more

An act of mercy on a bridge. At a moment when the headlines are trumpeting stories of cops taking lives, watch this brief video about an encounter with a cop that saved a life. Give thanks to God that there are men and women like this on the job, every day. https://www.facebook.com/lovewhatreallymatters/posts/1247847701904292 Photo: Pixabay Read more

Details:  It’s a common sight in at a city intersection. A man or a woman holds a cardboard sign: “Homeless, Hungry. Please Give. Anything Helps.” Most motorists, stopped at the light and eager to move on, just ignore the person. But what should you to do before the light changes? The Denver-based urban ministry Christ in the City offers some advice. “Ask the person’s name,” said the group’s tip sheet. “One of our friends on the street told us he... Read more

Years ago, when I was first ordained, one of our parish priests told me about his months as a transitional deacon and how he would use “Aunt Rose’s sweater clip” to turn a priest’s stole into a deacon stole. He thought a sweater clip might be handy for a deacon and offered to dig through his sock drawer to find the one he used. I politely declined. But not long after that, I found myself serving Mass at the Monastery of... Read more

It’s happening more and more and The Washington Post takes a closer look at just what entails: For observers of Washington’s real estate scene, the trend has been impossible to miss: As churches’ congregations move to the suburbs and D.C. property values soar, increasing numbers of religious institutions are selling their properties in the city, usually with plans to move closer to their congregants. Some of the churches are demolished, but those with architectural merit are often adapted by developers... Read more

From Vatican Radio:  Meeting with the assembled Italian journalists in the Vatican’s Clementine Hall on Thursday, Pope Francis told them that there were few professions that have “so much influence on society like that of journalism.” He noted that they are usually the ones who are there to record what he called,  the “first draft of history”, “the building of the news agenda and introducing people to the interpretation of events.” He also noted that the journalistic profession was one... Read more

From Vatican Radio:  Pope Francis has expressed his sadness for the killing of two Mexican priests and has sent a telegram of condolences assuring their diocese and families of his prayers. Father Alejo Nabor Jimenez Juarez  and Father José Alfredo Suarez de la Cruz were abducted from their Church in the State of Veracruz’s northern city of Poza Rica on Sunday.  Their bodies, with bullet wounds, were found the following day. The telegram, which was sent by Cardinal Secretary of... Read more

From Philly.com: Republican presidential nominee Donald J. Trump, who has struggled with Catholic voters in some polls, on Wednesday named an advisory council of respected conservative Catholic leaders. The list of 33 advisors includes prominent Pennsylvanians, such as former Republican Sen. Rick Santorum, who ran for president in 2012 and 2016; Faith Whittlesey, former U.S. ambassador to Switzerland and a high-ranking political official in the Reagan White House; and U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, Republican of Erie. Trump, who expressed support... Read more

The subhead for this story puts it succinctly: “What Tim Kaine and Mike Pence say about the diluted identity of the American Church.” From Emma Green in The Atlantic:  There are lots of ways to be a Catholic public leader in the United States. But the only path that’s impossible, it seems, is to advocate policies that fully follow the Church’s teachings on Jesus. Politicians of both parties have to pick and choose their theology, sticking to party lines that... Read more