The good people at the BBC have put together a documentary on the legendary King’s College Choir, and one of the tidbits they reveal is that the young soloist for the opening hymn is selected just seconds before the annual Christmas concert is broadcast: The choirboys at King’s College Chapel in Cambridge have a more nerve-wracking Christmas than most. One of them will be picked to sing the solo for “Once in Royal David’s City” in the Nine Lessons in... Read more
Details: Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee have questioned a candidate for the federal bench over his membership of the Knights of Columbus, with some calling the group’s Catholic views on abortion and same-sex marriage “extreme.” Senators also questioned if belonging to the Catholic charitable organization could prevent judges from hearing cases “fairly and impartially.” Senators Mazie Hirono (D-HI) and Kamala Harris (D-CA) raised membership of the Knights as a point of concern during the Senate Judiciary Committee’s consideration of... Read more
Yesterday, I received an email from Deacon Jim Lee, from Eagle River, Alaska. His parish church, St. Andrew’s, was hit hard by the massive earthquake that rocked the region on November 30 — by cruel coincidence, the feast of St. Andrew. As you may recall, Alaska was hit by a 7.0 earthquake: Alaska Gov. Bill Walker (I) issued a disaster declaration after the quake and said he spoke to President Trump Friday morning. Walker said Trump told him, “we will... Read more
After all the controversy swirling around the funeral homily for a young man in Detroit, reading this homily was like a balm. Letitia Adams posted this on her blog, and it cannot have been easy. It’s the funeral homily delivered by Father Jonathan Raia last year, after Letitia’s son Anthony took his life. I encourage you to read the whole thing at her blog. It is nothing less than breathtaking — pastoral, wise, merciful, illuminated by truth and grounded in... Read more
The Los Angeles Times has the details: The Archdiocese of Los Angeles knew for at least 13 years that one of its bishops had been accused of sexual abuse at a parish but did not inform the public until this week, despite repeated vows to disclose such information. The archdiocese, which over the years has paid out a record $740 million in settlements to victims of priest abuse, had promised to publicize the names of clergy accused of wrongdoing. But... Read more
From the In My Backyard Desk, some news from a historic parish, the first in the United States named for St. Gerard Majella: A brazen thief walked into a church in Queens and walked out with two guitars. “They took two of our guitars from our choir, one of which was a family heirloom from our music director,” said Father Joseph Jude Gannon. “She’s had it for 30 years since her father gave it to her who’s since now passed... Read more
And it was done, in large part, because of a parish in Florida. Details: Religious history is set to be made in Cuba thanks to the efforts of Tampa’s St. Lawrence Catholic Church. On Jan. 26, the first new Catholic church will be inaugurated on the island since the Cuban Revolution 60 years ago ushered in an era of atheism. St. Lawrence, at 5225 N. Himes Ave. in Tampa, led the effort to raise the $95,000 needed to build the... Read more
Via The New York Times: The Catholic Church in Illinois withheld the names of at least 500 priests accused of sexual abuse of minors, the state’s attorney general said Wednesday in a scathing report that accused the church of failing victims by neglecting to investigate their allegations. The preliminary report by Attorney General Lisa Madigan concludes that the Catholic dioceses in Illinois are incapable of investigating themselves and “will not resolve the clergy sexual abuse crisis on their own.” Cardinal... Read more
From CNS: Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of 69-year-old Auxiliary Bishop Alexander Salazar of Los Angeles after the archdiocese’s independent Clergy Misconduct Oversight Board recommended he not be allowed to minister because of an allegation of sexual misconduct with a minor in the 1990s. The Vatican announced Dec. 19 that Pope Francis had accepted his resignation, although the Vatican did not explain the reason for his stepping down. In a letter to the people of the archdiocese, Archbishop Jose... Read more
Slate takes a look at of the controversy surrounding that homily delivered at the funeral for a teenager who committed suicide. The piece makes some good pints, concluding that part of the problem in this case (and in others like it) lies with the expectation of the people in the pews: “The church is very clear that [homilies] are not to be eulogies,” said Michael Heinlein, a columnist for the Catholic publication Our Sunday Visitor. “The problem is that’s what... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In