A terrific appreciation of priests—and a tremendous affirmation of hope—by Jeffrey Tucker in Crisis: What an extraordinary act of courage to become a priest! It means embracing to the fullest extent the very thing that the world today completely rejects: the possibility for holiness to exist in any form. I don’t mean just the possibility that a person can become holy. Priests have the same moral struggles as anyone else. There are saints and sinners among them. What I mean... Read more
With all the raised eyebrows and dropped jaws over recent statements on priestly celibacy, some people may think it’s time to redecorate the rectory to make it ready for the pastor’s new bride when they return from their honeymoon. Deep breaths, people. There’s less to this than meets the eye. And there are many unanswered questions. A few observations: The statement by Archbishop Parolin didn’t really say anything new. He restated something most Catholics should already know:... Read more
From today’s homily, Pope Francis offers a message I really need to take to heart: He who speaks ill of his neighbor is a hypocrite who lacks the courage to look to his own shortcomings. Speaking during his homily at morning Mass at the Domus Sanctae Marthae, Pope Francis focused on the fact that gossip has a “criminal” side to it, because every time we speak ill of our brothers, we imitate Caine’s homicidal gesture. The seed of Pope Francis’... Read more
Earlier this week, the pope got a new set of wheels. And now CNS has collected some priceless reaction: Leave it to the slapstick brothers, Tom and Ray, at Car Talk to have a field day with the news of Pope Francis’ recent present: a lovingly used 30 hp 1984 Renault 4. As soon as the now-retired radio hosts heard the news, they went on Facebook and Twitter and let the witticisms and quips rip. The Pope buys a 1984 Renault…... Read more
Details: Pope Francis has stopped granting priests the honorary title of “monsignor” in advance of an October meeting with several cardinals on possible reforms in the Catholic Church, the London-based Catholic weekly The Tablet is reporting Thursday. According to the Tablet‘s Rome correspondent Robert Mickens, Francis first made the decision in April shortly after his election as pope. The decision was also reported by the Rome daily Il Messagero today. The title monsignor is an honorific of sorts normally granted to priests as a reward for service... Read more
A couple weeks back, I posted on the surge in vocations in Little Rock. Now the local secular media is also reporting on the seminarian boom. See the video below. Read more
You can’t make this stuff up: Orange County deputies said a man accused of trying to rob the gift shop at the Catholic Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe didn’t get far, thanks to a wardrobe malfunction. Deputies said Anthony Garcia, 31, walked into the gift shop at the shrine, on Vineland Avenue in south Orlando, around 1:30 p.m. and demanded the cashier hand over all the money in the drawer. Investigators say Garcia grabbed... Read more
From Catholic News Service: While a military-backed dictatorship in Argentina was conducting a clandestine war on suspected dissidents, then-Father Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the future pope, masterminded a secret strategy to save those being targeted, according to a new book. Titled “Bergoglio’s List: Those Saved by Pope Francis; Stories Never Told,” also includes the transcript of the then-cardinal’s testimony during a nearly four-hour court interrogation in 2010. A panel of judges was investigating suspected human rights violations committed during the 1976-1983... Read more
As the Vatican’s Greg Burke noted in a tweet for this picture: Girl looks a little excited #PapaFrancisco Great photo from Paul Haring @CatholicNewsSvc pic.twitter.com/jjTCho5IA3 Read more
He’s one of the eight cardinals—the “Super 8” or “Gang of 8”— advising Pope Francis, and evidently made his comments in response to a complaint about a sermon. From Hindustan Times: The Archbishop of Bombay, Cardinal Oswald Gracias, assured the city’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender ( LGBT) community that he would advise priests to be more sensitive while referring to homosexuality during their sermons or in their public statements, a month after Pope Francis, the head of the Roman... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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