Thousands sign petition asking that fired pregnant teacher be rehired

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

Details from USA TODAY: More than 20,000 people from across the USA have called on the Catholic diocese here to reverse its decision to fire an unmarried middle school teacher who is pregnant. Supporters delivered a petition Thursday to Bishop George Leo Thomas of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Helena, calling the Jan. 10 decision to fire Shaela Evenson of Butte Central Elementary-Junior High School hypocritical. “Firing an unmarried teacher for becoming pregnant is cruel and hypocritical,” said the petition from Faithful... Read more

“Trust is your relationship to the unknown”

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

This is pretty remarkable: a visual representation of an idea I was trying to get across in my homily for this weekend. It uses two performers from Cirque du Soleil to illustrate the notion of trust. And if you are wondering: yeah I look just like that guy. Sure. Uh huh. Read more

Boom: young Texas diocese has grown nearly 70% in a decade

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

Details: Whether it’s the charitable acts of Pope Francis, the church’s emphasis on family or the promotion of worldwide unity, Bishop Plácido Rodriguez of the Lubbock Diocese believes there’s a lot to love about the Roman Catholic faith. A recent study released by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University revealed the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lubbock grew 69.5 percent between the last two censuses — from 80,472 in 2000 to 136,894 in 2010. The latter... Read more

Homily for March 2, 2014: 8th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 4:32 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

Back in the 1950s a popular game show was called “Who Do You Trust?” It’s best remembered now as the show that first introduced Johnny Carson. These days, if you asked the question “Who Do You Trust?” the answer might be: no one. In 1972, half of Americans surveyed – 50% — said they believed most people could be trusted. Today, that number has dwindled to a third. Last year, a poll found that Americans are overwhelmingly suspicious of each... Read more

C.Y.A. (Cover Your Ark): Film “Noah” will now carry a disclaimer

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

From The Los Angeles Times: In a move clearly aimed to appease potential religious critics, Paramount Pictures is adding a disclaimer to marketing materials for “Noah,” writer-director Darren Aronofsky’s drama about the great flood. The studio announced late Thursday that the “explanatory message,” as Paramount calls it, will read: “The film is inspired by the story of Noah. While artistic license has been taken, we believe that this film is true to the essence, values, and integrity of a story... Read more

“Not yet, Daddy still here”: Man declared dead wakes up in body bag

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

Memo to self: leave explicit instruction to make sure they DOUBLE CHECK before carting me off to the funeral home. Meantime, I would not want to be the guy who saw this fellow “kicking inside the body bag.” Incredible: A Mississippi man woke up in a body bag as funeral home workers prepared to embalm him, ABC affiliate WAPT reported. Walter Williams, 78, of Lexington, Miss., appeared to have died at his home Wednesday night. The coroner came to the house... Read more

Deacon found guilty of child porn

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

From The Catholic Register in Canada: William Kokesch, a deacon in the Montreal archdiocese, plead guilty in court on Feb. 21 to the possession, manufacturing and distribution of child pornography. Court heard that 99,000 still images of children and 2,000 child porn videos, many of which showed the sexual exploitation of young girls, were found on the computer of the former director of communications for the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. After receiving complaints from the public, on Dec. 21,... Read more

Purdue rejects memorial plaque because of the word “God”

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

From the Indianapolis Star: A Purdue University alumnus alleges his First Amendment rights were violated by his alma mater over a donation to the college. When Michael McCracken and his wife made a $12,500 donation to Purdue’s School of Mechanical Engineering in 2012, Purdue asked the engineering graduate to provide an inscription for a conference room dedication plaque, which would be installed in the recently renovated Herrick Laboratories. But the words McCracken chose, in honor of his parents, turned out to be... Read more

Pope Francis says Church must accompany, not condemn, those whose marriages fail

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

Vatican Radio reports on his homily this morning: Pope Francis celebrated Mass in the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta residence in the Vatican this morning. In remarks following the readings of the day, the Holy Father focused on the beauty of marriage and warned that the Church must accompany – not condemn – those who experience failure in married life. He explained that Christ is the Bridegroom of the Church, and therefore you cannot understand one without the Other.... Read more

California’s Jerry Brown credits Dominican nuns and the Jesuits in his re-election announcement

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:58 pm By Deacon Greg Kandra

An alert reader sent this my way, from the governor’s announcement, which was posted on his website today: At this stage of my life, I can say–without any hesitation–that I am prepared and excited to tackle these challenges and the many others that lay before us. In fact, there is nothing I would rather do. So today, I have taken out the papers to run for re-election. If you had asked me 40 years ago–when I first ran for governor–what... Read more