Here’s something you don’t see every day: in a letter, a priest nearing his 80th birthday explains his decision to leave both the priesthood and the Jesuit order after nearly half a century. Details: In a lengthy, moving letter to friends and colleagues, veteran Jesuit priest Bert Thelen explains his reasons for leaving the order and the priesthood and returning to the lay state. Thelen, who is almost 80 years old, has served as parish priest, provincial staff member and... Read more
One of the newly ordained dropped me a note about this today. It happened on Saturday. The Catholic Messenger had some details last week: Twelve men will be ordained to the permanent diaconate and two men to the transitional diaconate for the Diocese of Davenport during Mass July 13 at Sacred Heart Cathedral. Permanent deacons are men not planning to be ordained to the priesthood while transitional deacons are preparing for the priesthood. Because of the number of deacons being... Read more
If they’re looking for a third musketeer, I think I’d fit right in. Read more
Sunday morning in the rectory kitchen, we scanned the headlines. Someone asked me what I thought of the Zimmerman story. “There are no winners,” I said. “It’s awful for everyone.” I really have nothing else to say about this story that hasn’t already been said by people a lot smarter than I. But reading and watching some of the reaction over the weekend, I thought these words below from Robert F. Kennedy, delivered the night Martin Luther King, Jr. was... Read more
Details: The issue of Christian missionaries proselytizing in India has taken a bizarre turn after a church in the eastern state of Jharkhand installed a statue of Mother Mary and Baby Jesus depicted as “tribals,” the indigenous people of the state. With dark brown complexions and sporting traditional Indian tribal clothing (white sari with red border, etc.), the statue in a church in the village of Singhpur has sparked outrage from local Hindus and other non-Christians who have called for... Read more
From Vatican Insider: Francis’ alarm clock goes off at 4:45 every morning in room 201 in St. Martha’s House, when everything is still pitch black. Such an early start to the day means Francis has to have a siesta after lunch. Juan Perón called this time of rest an “almost liturgical must” which made it possible for him to fit “two mornings” into his day. The first few hours of Francis’ day are dedicated to prayer and meditation on the... Read more
One of the newly ordained dropped me a note about this today. It happened on Saturday. The Catholic Messenger had some details last week: Twelve men will be ordained to the permanent diaconate and two men to the transitional diaconate for the Diocese of Davenport during Mass July 13 at Sacred Heart Cathedral. Permanent deacons are men not planning to be ordained to the priesthood while transitional deacons are preparing for the priesthood. Because of the number of deacons being... Read more
A fascinating detail from his early life: The Italian daily Il Cittadino has unearthed the story of Father Enrico Pozzoli, a Salesian missionary from the province of Lodi who baptized young Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who is today Pope Francis. The newspaper published an account of various episodes in the life of Bergoglio, including his baptism, which occurred on Christmas night at the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians and Saint Carlos in Buenos Aires. According to Il Cittadino, Father Pozzoli... Read more
That’s the provocative question at the heart of this piece over at CNN’s Belief blog: There are obvious differences between a Catholic pontiff and a princess. But watching Francis’ first few months in office, it’s hard not to notice that he seems to have taken a page from the late Princess Diana’s playbook. The Princess of Wales knew where she went, the media followed. Her activism brought global attention to homelessness, HIV/AIDs, and, most prominently, land mines. Just as Diana... Read more
A great story of a group of sisters setting out to build a Catholic community in Kansas, from the Wichita Eagle: It was on faith that the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary of Wichita broke from their California order and came to Wichita in 1976, and it’s on faith that they’re now endeavoring to establish their first permanent home here. “It’s a beautiful story,” said Bronwen Lewis, a Catholic who is helping the sisters raise money to end... Read more
The Deacon's Bench
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