Now here’s an angle of the Kennedy assassination I hadn’t seen before: WHO WAS BLACK JACK? Most of you at least will have seen a photo of JFK’s funeral procession. In those photos, you always see that marvelous riderless black horse who carried a saddle with boots turned backwards in the stirrups. This magnificent horse was Black Jack. WHERE DID HE COME FROM? The origins of Black Jack seem to be a bit muddled. They know when he was foaled,... Read more
From The New York Times: They’re an august alumni association, the Mouseketeers of “The All New Mickey Mouse Club,” which ran from 1989 to 1996 on the Disney Channel. Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake top the charts. Keri Russell was Felicity. Christina Aguilera stars with CeeLo Green on “The Voice.” Ryan Gosling starred with his own abs in “Crazy Stupid Love.” But Teo Bishop, while keeping up a career in pop music, accomplished something less predictable and altogether curiouser. Beginning about three years... Read more
A fascinating look at his faith, from CNN’s Belief blog: When John F. Kennedy was a boy, his mother counseled her children on Good Fridays to pray for a peaceful death. Young Jack joked that he’d rather pray for two pet dogs instead. If you’re looking for the CliffsNotes version of Kennedy’s Catholicism, that anecdote touches on the key themes: the pious Irish mother, the casual irreverence, the ever-present prospect of death. But there’s much more to the story. In... Read more
Most people may not realize it, but the feast we celebrate this Sunday, the Feast of Christ the King, is a very new one on the church calendar. It was added by Pope Pius XI in 1925. He created this feast as a reaction against the prevailing attitudes of his day – a way to refute the growing threats of communism and secularism. Two “isms” that sought to make man, not God, the most powerful force in the world. Within... Read more
I love this. Check out this amazing gallery of reactions, compiled last year by Reddit. See if it doesn’t make you smile and, just maybe, wipe away a tear. Read more
Details: A good number of Pope Francis’ followers on Twitter are overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) concentrated in Islam-dominated Middle East, a Vatican official said on Thursday. “When the Pope went on Twitter. We can see where in the world the Pope has followers,” Msgr. Paul Tighe, among the Pope’s advisers managing his Twitter account @Pontifex, said in a Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines report. “We were surprised to see that in the Middle Eastern countries and Gulf states, there... Read more
From the blog for the Anglican Ordinariate: On Friday, Nov. 15, after the conclusion of the USCCB Fall Assembly, there was a wonderful ordination to the priesthood of Fr. Albert Scharbach. Fr. Al was ordained by his boss, Bishop Denis J. Madden, auxiliary of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, in what has been called “America’s most historic place of worship.” Fr. Scharbach had previously served as curate at the Church of the Good Shepherd, Rosemont, before his reception into the Catholic... Read more
From The Catholic Standard in Washington: Altar servers play an important role in the Church’s celebration of the “mystery of God with us,” said Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl in his homily during a Mass to honor archdiocesan altar servers from parishes in Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties and the District of Columbia. “Every time you do your part, when you bring your gifts to the altar, the Mass is all the more beautiful,” the cardinal told more than 500 altar... Read more
From The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: They stand among the most eloquent words that John F. Kennedy never said. Instead, they exist in writing only — forming the speech Kennedy was scheduled to deliver at the Trade Mart in Dallas to influential business and research leaders early in the afternoon of Nov. 22, 1963. Kennedy was assassinated en route to the gathering, and the words hovered in obscurity amid the panic and devastation that followed… …For those who continue to ruminate on... Read more
From The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: A federal judge today granted a preliminary injunction to organizations associated with the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh and the Diocese of Erie against Affordable Care Act requirements that their insurers cover contraception and similar services. The decision is almost certain to be appealed to the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, but it marks an important early win for the church groups in their case against federal officials and agencies. The Affordable Care Act requires that... Read more
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