From the vault, here’s part of a homily from Advent in 2008, with some thoughts on the feast we celebrate on March 25: +++ How many of us have been blindsided by events we never expected – a twist on life’s path that we never saw coming, for better or for worse — and asked ourselves, in fury or despair or bewilderment: How can this be? And here Mary is told, simply: “Nothing is impossible with God.” And that is... Read more
I look forward to reading more of the pope’s comments today on the media and on clericalism—but this jumped out at me: The Pope spoke of clericalism as “one of the evils of the Church.” Priests are tempted to “clericalize the laity,” but “so many laity, on their knees, ask to be clericalized, because it is more convenient, it is more convenient!” The lay vocation, which derives from baptism, should not be “sold” or “negotiated.” In Argentina, the future Pope... Read more
Well, at least the best video of a brother going to visit his sister—ever. Watch how a guy in Guatemala decided to surprise his sister back home in France for her birthday. You will smile. You will laugh. You may even cry. It’s sweet. Take a look. Read more
And he receives a special gift from one of them: a toy dinosaur. Watch below. Read more
He will be ordained a deacon on Tuesday, and become a priest in June. From The Quad-City Times in Iowa: The 29-year marriage of Chris and Jody Young will continue, even after he is ordained as a priest in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport this summer. “I get to keep my wife, and I am keeping my wedding band on,” Chris Young says. Although the Catholic Church historically has prohibited priests from marrying, the 53-year-old Davenport man is joining... Read more
The mind boggles. Details from the Daily Mail: A high-profile Catholic priest has been suspended after a Mail on Sunday investigation discovered he was in a sham ‘gay marriage’ to help a Pakistani immigrant stay in Britain. Father Donald Minchew – a former Anglican who converted to Catholicism after attacking the Church of England’s loss of traditional values – admitted entering into a civil partnership as a favour to a family friend desperate to work in Britain. Last night the... Read more
According to USA TODAY, it’s this guy: Details: If you were to see Cardinal Seán Patrick O’Malley walking around in his characteristic brown smock, with a small ego but a big laugh, you might not even realize that he is the single most important American prelate. As one of the eight cardinals Pope Francis famously selected to advise him in April 2013, and the only one from the United States, O’Malley has the ear of the pope. As Francis stirs... Read more
Longtime Vatican observer John Thavis, author of the best-selling memoir “The Vatican Diaries,” talks with The Christian Science Monitor about Pope Francis and what some people in Rome think of him: Q: Is there an internal old guard that’s working against the Pope in the Vatican bureaucracy known as the Curia? A: There is an old guard at the Vatican which encompasses much of the Curia, and they’ve lost control of the papacy. I’ve been back to Rome quite often... Read more
This looks excellent, coming up in April on Salt + Light. (And I’m not just saying that because one of the people featured prominently is my boss, CNEWA‘s Msgr. John Kozar.) You can read more about it here. Read more
Ahead of the president’s meeting with Pope Francis, a little backstory, from The New York Times: In a meeting room under Holy Name Cathedral, a rapt group of black Roman Catholics listened as Barack Obama, a 25-year-old community organizer, trained them to lobby their fellow delegates to a national congress in Washington on issues like empowering lay leaders and attracting more believers. “He so quickly got us,” said Andrew Lyke, a participant in the meeting who is now the director... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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