Happy Fourth of July: According to a new PRRI/RNS report, nearly six in ten Americans think America was a Christian nation in the past but is not one now (45 percent) or have never thought the U.S. was a Christian nation (14 percent). Only about one-third (35 percent) of Americans still believe America is and has always been a Christian nation—a notable drop from 2010, when 42 percent said the same. There are substantial generational divisions on this issue. Young adults (age... Read more
Details: Oregon Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian finalized a preliminary ruling today ordering Aaron and Melissa Klein, the bakers who refused to make a cake for a same-sex wedding, to pay $135,000 in emotional damages to the couple they denied service. “This case is not about a wedding cake or a marriage,” Avakian wrote. “It is about a business’s refusal to serve someone because of their sexual orientation. Under Oregon law, that is illegal.” In the ruling, Avakian placed an effective... Read more
Somehow, I missed this little item in last Sunday’s New York Times. A reader sent it my way: Patrick Anthony Bergquist and J. Patrick Hornbeck II were married Saturday in Manhattan. The Rev. Matthew J. Moretz performed the ceremony at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, where he is an associate rector. Mr. Bergquist, 35, is the director of children, youth and family ministries at St. Bartholomew’s. He graduated from Anderson University in Indiana and received a master’s degree in theology from... Read more
Details: Pope Francis appealed on Friday to faithful from all Christian churches to put divisions aside and concentrate on what unites them amid the persecution and slaying of Christians in parts of the world. “The blood of today’s martyrs makes us one,” Francis told some 30,000 people in St. Peter’s Square. He cited the slaying of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians by Islamic militants in Libya in February. “When those who hate Jesus Christ kill a Christian, before killing him, they... Read more
Happy Fourth of July: According to a new PRRI/RNS report, nearly six in ten Americans think America was a Christian nation in the past but is not one now (45 percent) or have never thought the U.S. was a Christian nation (14 percent). Only about one-third (35 percent) of Americans still believe America is and has always been a Christian nation—a notable drop from 2010, when 42 percent said the same. There are substantial generational divisions on this issue. Young adults (age... Read more
Details: Oregon Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian finalized a preliminary ruling today ordering Aaron and Melissa Klein, the bakers who refused to make a cake for a same-sex wedding, to pay $135,000 in emotional damages to the couple they denied service. “This case is not about a wedding cake or a marriage,” Avakian wrote. “It is about a business’s refusal to serve someone because of their sexual orientation. Under Oregon law, that is illegal.” In the ruling, Avakian placed an effective... Read more
Somehow, I missed this little item in last Sunday’s New York Times. A reader sent it my way: Patrick Anthony Bergquist and J. Patrick Hornbeck II were married Saturday in Manhattan. The Rev. Matthew J. Moretz performed the ceremony at St. Bartholomew’s Episcopal Church, where he is an associate rector. Mr. Bergquist, 35, is the director of children, youth and family ministries at St. Bartholomew’s. He graduated from Anderson University in Indiana and received a master’s degree in theology from... Read more
Hot on the heels of the announcement that some deacons will serve as parish administrators, the the Diocese of Pittsburgh has rolled out its pilot program in the experiment: Bishop David Zubik has announced a “team ministry” pilot program that includes a deacon administrator for five parishes in Greene County as part of new, innovative ways to serve the people of God. Father J. Francis Frazer, currently pastor of St. Ann Parish in Waynesburg and St. Thomas in Clarksville; Father... Read more
From Trenton comes this story of a former permanent deacon recently ordained a priest: Father Jim Grogan Sr. is gregarious and warm. He laughs easily and often. He is also a man completely at peace with his life and where it’s headed. When he lost his wife to ovarian cancer eight years ago, the goals he once had changed. His mind and focus became further fixed on God and service. Grogan, 58, had traveled the world in his job in... Read more
Hot on the heels of the announcement that some deacons will serve as parish administrators, the the Diocese of Pittsburgh has rolled out its pilot program in the experiment: Bishop David Zubik has announced a “team ministry” pilot program that includes a deacon administrator for five parishes in Greene County as part of new, innovative ways to serve the people of God. Father J. Francis Frazer, currently pastor of St. Ann Parish in Waynesburg and St. Thomas in Clarksville; Father... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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