From The Chicago Tribune: Grey skies and muddy grounds didn’t keep Yolanda Gamboa from quietly praying at a service for 63 of Cook County’s unclaimed miscarried or stillborn fetuses at Chicago’s Mount Olivet Catholic Cemetery Thursday. “I heard about it on the radio this morning, and it just touched my heart,” said Gamboa, an Oak Lawn resident, adding that the issue hit close to home: “I miscarried my first child, and this brought it all back.” Gamboa, who said she... Read more
From CatholicPhilly.com comes this profile of one local couple—and a conversation that will be familiar to many deacons and their wives: I was stunned when my husband, Donald, mentioned he was considering becoming a permanent deacon in the Catholic Church. This really took me by surprise. Donald was raised in the South as a Baptist! He is now a convert to Catholicism. Donald has always been a considerate, loving husband and an excellent father of our four children, but I... Read more
From John Allen in Crux comes this excellent glimpse into the work of Catholic Near East Welfare Agency (CNEWA), where I work: Founded by Pope Pius XI in 1926, CNEWA is an agency of the Vatican sustained primarily by the Church in the United States and Canada. Its first president was a legendary American Jesuit priest named Edmund Walsh, who was also the founder of the prestigious Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. CNEWA’s mandate is to support the Eastern churches... Read more
From The Detroit Free Press: An Ann Arbor Catholic priest has urged his parishioners to arm themselves and attend classes at Christ the King parish to earn a concealed pistol license (CPL). In a letter sent to Christ the King parishioners recently, the Rev. Edward Fride explained why he believed it was necessary to get concealed pistol licenses because of recent crime in the area. During a Palm Sunday mass last month, Fride announced that the parish would be holding... Read more
While reading the bulletin for Christ the King Catholic Church in Ann Arbor (see here for more on that story), I spotted this item: Peter James Lawrence from this parish is scheduled to be ordained as a transitional Deacon on May 16, 2015, for service to the Diocese of Lansing. Anyone knowing a serious reason which impedes his Ordination should make this known to Rev. John Linden, Director of Seminarians, Diocese of Lansing, 228 North Walnut, Lansing, MI 48933, no... Read more
Our group gathered for a final farewell dinner at our resort last night. We were joined by Fr. Nabil Haddad, whom we first met last Saturday, at his Melkite parish’s Easter Vigil. [img attachment=”74570″ align=”alignnone” size=”medium” alt=”IMG_1543″ /] Fr. Nabil gave each of us a little remembrance of our visit: those red and white keffiyehs, or scarves. Some background: A traditional Middle Eastern headdress fashioned from a square scarf, usually made of cotton…it is typically worn by Arabs, Kurds and... Read more
[img attachment=”74555″ align=”alignnone” size=”medium” alt=”IMG_1553″ /] Up bright and early for breakfast, and then a final goodbye to our incredible hotel, as we board the bus for the airport in Amman. [img attachment=”74554″ align=”alignnone” size=”medium” alt=”IMG_1558″ /] Yes, Max Lindenman was sleeping again, in the lobby, with an open book on his lap. [img attachment=”74552″ align=”alignnone” size=”medium” alt=”IMG_1556″ /] The Amman airport is beautiful, bright and manageable. Even our exit through security went smoothly. They search your carry-ons VERY... Read more
Up bright and early for breakfast, and then a final goodbye to our incredible hotel, as we board the bus for the airport in Amman. Yes, Max Lindenman was sleeping again, in the lobby, with an open book on his lap. The Amman airport is beautiful, bright and manageable. Even our exit through security went smoothly. They search your carry-ons VERY thoroughly; I had to take out every item, and even had to open my laptop so they could look... Read more
Our group gathered for a final farewell dinner at our resort last night. We were joined by Fr. Nabil Haddad, whom we first met last Saturday, at his Melkite parish’s Easter Vigil. Fr. Nabil gave each of us a little remembrance of our visit: those red and white keffiyehs, or scarves. Some background: A traditional Middle Eastern headdress fashioned from a square scarf, usually made of cotton…it is typically worn by Arabs, Kurds and some Jews, Indians and Turks. It is commonly found in arid regions as it provides protection from sunburn, dust... Read more
This little bit of news broke late last year, but it is finally finding its way onto my Facebook feed. From The Independent: People are choosing to make their final farewell an upbeat affair, as Monty Python’s “Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life” has been named the most popular song played at funerals. A study by The Co-operative Funeralcare found that the tune has superseded Frank Sinatra’s “I Did It My Way” for the first time in a... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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