Fr. Mario Majano by Pete Baklinski / LifeSiteNews From LifeSite News: When he was a young boy, Fr. Mario Majano, 28, used to think a hero was someone out of an action comic book, a “flash, bang, superpower” kind-of-person. As he grew older, Fr. Majano believed a hero to be someone who put themselves in harm’s way for others, he said during the Verizon Center Mass for Life in Washington, D.C. Attended by Cardinals Donald Wuerl and Timothy Dolan, and papal... Read more
Rick Santorum prays at a fundraiser in 2012 by Gage Skidmore / Wikipedia Commons From Bloomberg: It is a new era for the Roman Catholic church, much to the dismay of three of its Republican members who are poised to run for president. On issues ranging from climate change, lifting the U.S. embargo on Cuba, and the demotion of an anti-gay American bishop, Pope Francis has shown himself to be more liberal than many of the men who will likely seek the GOP presidential nomination, including... Read more
Dachau entrance, 1945, from National Archives / Wikipedia Lest we forget: Seventy years ago today, the concentration camp at Auschwitz-Birkenau was liberated. Many countries mark this date as Holocaust Memorial Day. My blog neighbors Kathy Schiffer, Diane von Glahn and Marge Fenelon have written poignantly about this singular moment, with Marge noting the special connection of Catholic priests to another notorious camp, Dachau: Priests. seminarians, and lay brothers were sent to Dachau, where the Nazis held their most hated political enemies. They were starved, beaten, physically... Read more
It happened in Rhode Island: The storm has forced multiple businesses and schools to shutdown, including Moses Brown School in Providence. Head of School Matt Glendinning made a creative cancellation announcement by reworking Frozen‘s smash hit “Let It Go” into a snow day anthem. Aptly dressed in mittens, a beanie, and a scarf, the principal steps in front of a green screen that displays icy shots of a winter wonderland while singing his version of the Grammy-winning track. N.B., According to a credit... Read more
This is a scream. From the mischievously creative mind of Fr. Darryl Millette, from the Diocese of Saskatoon—who obviously has far too much time on his hands. Enjoy! Read more
Jack Maguire, Social Media Coordinator at Ascension Press, dropped me a line today: Ascension Press just released a vocations video featuring Fr. Joshua. I thought you may be interested in sharing this as a followup to your initial post. The video goes into greater detail on Fr. Joshua’s conversion and his journey to the priesthood. Put simply, this may be the best vocations video produced, ever. Check it out below and share it with others. Spread it around. Spread the word.... Read more
You may remember that Bishop James Conley of Lincoln, Nebraska announced he would celebrate Mass at the cathedral during Advent ad orientem, facing liturgical East. Here’s an interesting follow-up from a priest in Philadelphia, who reports some reaction he received to the experiment: A number of other parishes in the Diocese—probably on the order of 15 to 20—adopted the same practice of facing East during Advent. This was accompanied by explanation & catechesis, and the practice was met with considerable... Read more
A follow-up on this story from last week, from SF Gate: The Rev. Joseph Illo, pastor at Star of the Sea Church since August, said he believes there is an “intrinsic connection” between the priesthood and serving at the altar — and because women can’t be priests, it makes sense to have only altar boys. “Maybe the most important thing is that it prepares boys to consider the priesthood,” he said. The Richmond District parish is now the only one in the Archdiocese... Read more
From The Washington Post: There are reports in Spanish publications that Pope Francis has accepted a transgender person into the Vatican — and embraced him — after the man who was once a woman wrote him an anguished letter last year. The Vatican hasn’t corroborated the accounts, but it hasn’t denied them either.According to the Huffington Post, the Holy See said it didn’t have any information on the alleged gathering. But if the accounts are true, it would be another stunning overture to another... Read more
That was the three-word assessment from our doorman this morning when I went outside to take a look. While places further east and north got more, we were lucky in Queens; we didn’t get as much as they predicted. I’ve seen worse. We may end up with a foot or so, but not much more. (It’s still coming down.) But the streets are not bad. I saw a few dog walkers and people dusting off their cars and sanitation trucks with... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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