A priest friend posted the following image on Facebook this morning, describing it as “artsy church decor for Lent.” “This is a bit much,” I commented. “Lent is about stripping away, not adding on. It’s distracting, too. You don’t know where to look.” I was curious about what guidelines, if any, the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM) provides for decorating the altar during Lent. It notes: 305. Moderation should be observed in the decoration of the altar. During... Read more
Vatican Radio has just posted its translation of a wide-ranging interview Pope Francis has done with Valentina Alazraki, from the Mexican broadcaster Televisa,to mark the two-year anniversary of his election as pope. The pontiff covers a wide range of topics. In the section below, he describes the night of his election: The journalist asks if it is true that in the previous conclave he had obtained forty votes and the Pope immediately responds no. She insists on the point saying that... Read more
The latest on the St. Patrick’s Day parade story: On Thursday afternoon, the Knights of Columbus Virginia State Council posted an updated statement to its website: It said the state council “reaffirms the longstanding policy of the Knights of Columbus not to invite or bestow honors on public officials who do not support the legal protection of unborn children. … The State Council deeply regrets the violation of this policy by a council in Norfolk for its St. Patrick’s Day... Read more
A local TV station reports: At Christ The King’s midday Mass Wednesday, there was a sense of peace that transcended all negativity surrounding the Archbishop’s once lavish lifestyle in Buckhead. “It was a strategic mistake that perhaps I should have seen in advance,” Atlanta Archbishop Wilton Gregory said. Gregory told CBS46’s Scott Light exclusively last July that he moved into this mansion under Pope Benedict and had to backtrack under Francis, a more frugal leader. “I failed to understand what... Read more
He’s also relatively young, 48. The press release: Today, at 12-noon Rome time (7 a.m. EDT) Pope Francis appointed Conventual Franciscan Father John Stowe as the Third Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lexington. A press conference will be held at The Catholic Center, 1310 W. Main St. in Lexington at 10 a.m., Thursday, March 12, 2015. The date and time of the ordination and installation of Bishop-elect Stowe remain to be announced. The Lexington diocese was left vacant, when... Read more
The answer: Rhode Island is still the most Catholic state in the U.S., a new study has found. A total of 44% of Rhode Islanders identified as Roman Catholic in a survey of nearly 53,000 Americans conducted last year by the Public Religion Research Institute, a five-year-old nonprofit organization based in Washington. The results are similar to a 2008 Trinity College survey that showed 46% of Rhode Islanders identified as Catholic, down from 62% in 1990. That study also showed Rhode Island with the... Read more
From Vatican Radio: Pope Francis will visit inmates and staff of a Rome prison on Holy Thursday, April 2. The Prefecture of the Papal Household reports that the Pope will visit the new complex of the Casa Circondariale Rebibbia in the Rome suburbs, and celebrate the liturgy of the Lord’s Supper at the “Padre Nostro” church at 5:30 pm Rome time. The Pope will wash the feet of a group of male prisoners and female inmates from the... Read more
You got that right. Read the whole account. Pita bread? From Redemptionis Sacramentum: 1. The Matter of the Most Holy Eucharist [48.] The bread used in the celebration of the Most Holy Eucharistic Sacrifice must be unleavened, purely of wheat, and recently made so that there is no danger of decomposition. It follows therefore that bread made from another substance, even if it is grain, or if it is mixed with another substance different from wheat to such an extent that... Read more
Lifesite News has the scoop: A Virginia Knights of Columbus council is pressing forward with plans to honor pro-abortion, pro-homosexual “marriage” Gov. Terry McAuliffe by having him as grand marshal of its St. Patrick’s Day Parade. In response, the parish priest has strongly reproached the council and cut ties. Norfolk Knights of Columbus Council 3548, which has organized the Norfolk Saint Patrick’s Day Parade since 1967, had secured McAuliffe as grand marshal, apparently keeping the choice from the pastor of Holy Trinity Parish, where... Read more
Via NCR: Slain Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Romero, the murdered prelate of the people whose sainthood cause languished under previous pontiffs but has been fast-tracked by Pope Francis, is to be beatified May 23 in San Salvador. News of the date of the ceremony — which puts Romero one step away from sainthood — was made in a report Wednesday morning by the Italian daily Avvenire, which is published by the country’s bishops’ conference. Full story here. Read more
The Deacon's Bench
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In