What a story, via Rome Reports: Ibrahim was a water polo player in Syria. He began swimming as a child, and was encouraged by his father. However, his career came to a halt when he lost a leg in a bomb explosion in 2011. He made the best of his situation and is now part of a wheelchair basketball team. He fled his city, Deir ez-Zor, one of the most affected by the war, and has been living in Greece... Read more

Details:  Italian authorities arrested four people suspected of extremism on Thursday and issued arrest warrants for two more operating in Syria, according to the Milan prosecutor. Authorities said one of the suspects is a Moroccan-born national living in Italy who had received orders from the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) to conduct an attack in Rome during the Holy Year, a period announced by Pope Francis that lasts from December 2015 to November 2016. The man, who authorities named as... Read more

From the BBC:  A new musical about the life of Pope John Paul II will open in Poland early next year, the first to be produced in the late pontiff’s home country. Hundreds of tickets have already been sold for the show, entitled “Karol,” which will make its premiere in Krakow in February, Radio Poland reports. Born Karol Wojtyla, he was archbishop of the city for more than a decade prior to being elected Pope in 1978. The production will... Read more

From the In My Backyard Desk, this news release went out this morning, bringing the number of auxiliaries in Brooklyn to six:  With thanksgiving to Almighty God, the Diocese of Brooklyn announced today the news of the appointment of Bishop Neil Tiedemann, C.P., by the Holy Father, Pope Francis, as an auxiliary bishop of Brooklyn. Bishop Tiedemann returns to his hometown diocese after serving as bishop of the Diocese of Mandeville, Jamaica. “We in the Diocese of Brooklyn are delighted... Read more

Details:  The denial of a playground resurfacing grant to a Lutheran school empowers religious discrimination, not constitutional principles, the U.S. Catholic bishops said in a Supreme Court brief. “Missouri’s religious discrimination not only contravenes the First Amendment, it is profoundly demeaning to people of faith,” the U.S. bishops said in their April 21 amicus curiae brief. The brief backs Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Mo. in its suit against the Missouri government. The church’s learning center had sought a state... Read more

A thoughtful dissection by Dan Guernsey, Ed.D., of the Cardinal Newman Society: Working with students who have these sexual inclinations is complex, especially since a Catholic school is called to serve everyone who has the capability and desire to partake in its mission. It must also be clear that all students are expected to follow the same school policies, and not work against the school’s mission, or its moral and religious standards and ends. …A comprehensive, mission-based approach ensures that students... Read more

The trend seems to spreading:  The big screen at Bernie’s Tap Room in Waukesha flickers with a baseball game between Texas Christian University and Dallas Baptist. The players are nearly life-size. But the action on-screen is lost to the 15 people seated at two long tables in front of the game. They are deep in conversation about Jesus, church and life, stopping occasionally for a sip from the pint glass at hand. Jesus + Beer is in session. In and... Read more

Details: Pope Francis may soon offer the Society of St. Pius X regular canonical status within the Church, without requiring the acceptance of certain texts of the Second Vatican Council with which they disagree. It also appears the SSPX may itself be poised to take such a historic step, urging that “perhaps only Pope Francis is able to take this step, given his unpredictability and improvisation,” according to an internal SSPX document that was leaked to the press in recent... Read more

Details:  When Archbishop Gregory Aymond ordains men as permanent deacons, he always is careful to identify what the church sees as the deacons’ primary responsibility: They are to serve. That call to service has resonated with Deacon Ray Duplechain, director of the Office of the Permanent Diaconate for the Archdiocese of New Orleans since 2010, who recently was elected director of the National Association of Diaconate Directors (NADD), an umbrella group representing the 18,000 permanent deacons in the United States.... Read more