Cardinal: Christians, Muslims “still don’t know each other well enough”

Last updated on: May 21, 2015 at 1:38 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

From CNS: “Despite 50 years of ‘Nostra Aetate,’” the Second Vatican Council’s document on interreligious relations, “we still don’t know each other well enough,” said French Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue. Speaking May 19 about Catholic-Muslim relations, Cardinal Tauran added, “Most of the problems we face are problems of ignorance.” Cardinal Tauran made his remarks in a keynote address at the conference “‘Nostra Aetate’: Celebrating Fifty Years of the Catholic Church’s Dialogue With Jews... Read more

Must-see video: the future pope gets in trouble

Last updated on: May 20, 2015 at 1:59 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

I’ve said it before: this guy slays me. From today’s audience, a great yarn about his childhood that imparts a little truth about our times. Video is from CNS. Read more

A promise kept: high school QB takes friend with Down syndrome to the prom

Last updated on: May 20, 2015 at 1:44 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

Details: A high school quarterback has fulfilled his childhood promise to a friend with Down syndrome. Back in the fourth grade, Ben Moser promised his friend Mary Lapkowicz, who has Down syndrome, that he would one day take her to prom. Seven years later, he kept his word, even though the two friends now attend different schools. Ben even surprised Mary with a “promposal.” “Mary’s the coolest person ever,” Ben said of his prom date. “She’s so easy to get... Read more

The time Mike Wallace sat on my couch and didn’t laugh—and other favorite memories of Letterman

Last updated on: May 24, 2015 at 9:44 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

I was working at CBS when the president of the network, Howard Stringer, did something utterly audacious: he bought a legendary New York theater and gave it to David Letterman as his own personal playpen. That was what happened when CBS invested in what was christened The Ed Sullivan Theater—now a veritable landmark and tourist magnet—on an easily overlooked strip of Broadway in the mid-50s. That Stringer did such a thing in an effort to woo Letterman was pretty ballsy. And it... Read more

The diaconate grows in Brooklyn: 19 to be ordained Saturday

Last updated on: May 20, 2015 at 10:21 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

Can I hear an “Amen!”? As our diaconate director says, it’s the most diverse group ever for the “diocese of immigrants.” The news release: On Saturday, May 23rd, the Most Reverend Nicholas DiMarzio, Bishop of Brooklyn, will ordain 19 men to the Order of Deacon at 11 a.m. at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph, 856 Pacific Street, Prospect Heights. “These 19 faithful men are a clear representation of the Church in Brooklyn and Queens,” said Bishop DiMarzio. “I am profoundly... Read more

Must-see video: the future pope gets in trouble

Last updated on: May 20, 2015 at 1:35 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

I’ve said it before: this guy slays me. From today’s audience, a great yarn about his childhood that imparts a little truth about our times. Video is from CNS. Read more

A promise kept: high school QB takes friend with Down syndrome to the prom

Last updated on: May 20, 2015 at 1:31 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

The time Mike Wallace sat on my couch and didn’t laugh—and other favorite memories of Letterman

Last updated on: May 20, 2015 at 1:28 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

The diaconate grows in Brooklyn: 19 to be ordained Saturday

Last updated on: May 20, 2015 at 1:24 am By Deacon Greg Kandra

Historic: Muslim imam earns masters in theology at Catholic Seattle University

Last updated on: May 19, 2015 at 2:58 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

From The Seattle Times: The premise of Abdullah Polovina’s story sounds like the start of a bar joke: A Muslim imam walks into a Catholic university … Except it’s true. Polovina, who leads a congregation of Bosnian Muslims in Portland, did just that. And in June, he’ll walk out to “Pomp and Circumstance.” The 41-year-old recently completed a master’s degree at Seattle University’s School of Theology and Ministry, where he was the first Muslim ever to enroll. “I was looking... Read more