2016-09-30T15:55:01-05:00

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:55 pm   By

The annual Christmas Commercialization Controversy is kicking in a day early in 2013.  That’s because this year retailers across the country, clamoring for bigger profits, have extended the shopping season by one day—announcing that they will remain open on Thanksgiving Day.  That means that Thanksgiving Day, many dinners will be eaten on the fly, as mothers and their working teenage children head to the mall to shop or, conversely, to work at their retail jobs in stores where the shoppers... Read more

2016-09-30T15:55:01-05:00

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:55 pm   By

Things are bustling today at the Basilica of San Silvestro, the entry point to the catacombs of St. Priscilla. For the past five years, archeologists have been excavating and restoring the paintings inside the catacombs and the basilica where Pope Silvestro is buried.  Today, their findings will be announced by the Pontifical Commission for Sacred Archeology. And as evidence of the Vatican’s expanding interface with the modern world, the catacombs of Priscilla can now be found on Google Maps, notably... Read more

2016-09-30T15:55:01-05:00

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:55 pm   By

Detroit’s historic St. Josaphat Church, which dates back to 1901, suffered serious damage in the storm which blasted through the area on November 17.  A breaking story by Mike Stechschulte in The Michigan Catholic shows the badly damaged main steeple tilting in the wind. Located on East Canfield along the I-75 service drive just north of downtown, St. Josaphat is one of Detroit’s most visible Catholic landmarks.  The Archdiocese of Detroit’s 300-year anniversary commemorative book, Make Straight the Path, features... Read more

2015-01-14T06:04:25-05:00

Last updated on: January 14, 2015 at 6:04 am   By

I’ve gotten completely lost in this book.  Picked it up, read three pages.  Put it down, turned out the light.  Turned on the light, read just two more pages….  Laughed out loud.  Really, I can’t stop reading, laughing, crying, can’t stop myself from sharing stories with my husband or whoever will listen. I’m talking about Brian Doyle’s newest book, The Thorny Grace of It: And Other Essays for Imperfect Catholics.  Not a weighty tome, it’s a carefree book of essays... Read more

2015-01-16T05:00:55-05:00

Last updated on: January 16, 2015 at 5:00 am   By

Oprah Winfrey thinks that old white people in the South have to die, before racism can be annihilated. She also thinks that if you don’t like Obama, it’s because he’s black.  I mean, what other reason could there be? *     *     *     *     * Oprah played the race card in an interview Friday with Will Gompertz on the BBC. Winfrey was there to talk about her new film “The Butler” which, she claims, shines a spotlight on what she perceives... Read more

2015-01-14T15:52:08-05:00

Last updated on: January 14, 2015 at 3:52 pm   By

Warning:  This. Makes. Me. Cranky. Look, I’m as concerned as the next person about the safety of children.  I believe sexual perpetrators should be prosecuted and imprisoned.  I think that Church leadership should take strong measures to ensure that priests who betray their sacred trust are removed from ministry. The media can play an important role in safeguarding the public trust, when Church and community leaders fail to do their job. What has happened in the Twin Cities, though, goes... Read more

2015-01-16T04:59:58-05:00

Last updated on: January 16, 2015 at 4:59 am   By

Pope Francis has a cold. Therefore, he has cancelled all morning appointments, according to the Holy See Press Office.  Father Federico Lombardi, S.J., director of the press office, told journalists this morning that the Holy Father has cancelled four appointments with heads of dicasteries within the Curia.  Since all four of the individuals reside in Rome, rescheduling will be easy—and so the Pope decided to rest, in preparation for activities later in the day. *     *    ... Read more

2016-09-30T15:55:01-05:00

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:55 pm   By

Sarah Palin has taken to social media to issue an apology for her recent criticism of Pope Francis. On Tuesday, November 12, Palin spoke with CNN’s Jake Tapper about her new book, Good Tidings and Great Joy: Protecting the Heart of Christmas.  During the interview, the former Alaska governor and 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate admitted she was “taken aback” by some of Pope Francis’s remarks as reported in the press.  “He’s had some statements,” she said, “that to me... Read more

2016-09-30T15:55:01-05:00

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:55 pm   By

Earlier today, I reported on a story which appeared in the Catholic Herald, quoting Italian magistrate Nicola Gratteri.  Gratteri believed that the Pope’s life was in danger due to his recent criticisms of organized crime. Now, though, the Vatican has addressed Gratteri’s fears directly and has dismissed the judge’s concerns.  Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican Press Office, told ABC News, There is no concrete reason that would lead us to worry.  There is no reason to fear alarmism. ... Read more

2016-09-30T15:55:01-05:00

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:55 pm   By

This from the Catholic Herald, the London-based Roman Catholic newspaper: Pope Francis has angered crime bosses in the ‘Ndrangheta, the most powerful crime syndicate in Italy, to the extent that his life is in danger. The warning comes from Nicola Gratteri, a magistrate in the city of Reggio Calabria, in Italy’s southernmost point where the crime syndicate is centered.  The Catholic Herald quotes Gratteri as saying, “I don’t know if organised crime is in the position to do something, but... Read more

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