This is the story of a big brass bell. The bell, which stood three feet tall and weighed more than 850 pounds, first chimed at St. Casimir Catholic Church in Detroit, reminding Polish immigrants in the neighborhood of the start of Mass or the noonday Angelus. (St. Casimir’s was founded in 1882 and but the church building was completed in 1889. The bell would have begun its ministry of welcome shortly after that.) When St. Casimir closed its doors in... Read more
Father Theodore Hesburgh is one of “four great Americans”—along with Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln. At least, that’s what Cardinal McCarrick says. The Cardinal, speaking at a tribute for the priest who served as the president of the University of Notre Dame from 1952 to 1987, said of Father Hesburgh’s contributions that he had helped change the course of U.S. history, and described his service to those who faced discrimination as well as his work at the... Read more
I have known Vinny Flynn for years. I’ve seen him at the Catholic Marketing Network and various other events in the Catholic world. I’ve prayed with Vinny and his family, leading the Divine Mercy Chaplet from their post in the front pew on EWTN. But I’ve never read any of his books—until now. Flynn, the best-selling author of 7 Secrets of the Eucharist, has just released a very helpful guide to Eucharistic adoration, called 21 Ways to Worship: A Guide... Read more
Within twenty-four hours of the Boy Scouts’ big announcement that they will open the membership to openly gay Scouts, fathers and concerned citizens are stepping up with plans to organize new ways to gather young males around the campfire for marshmallows and song. I thought it would happen—but I’m amazed, frankly, that it’s happening so soon. I was going to tell you about two of the existing boys’ groups, which have a well-defined mission statement and a history of successful... Read more
“People don’t want to pay for other people’s abortions.” That’s Barbara Listing, president of Right To Life of Michigan, explaining to reporters why the pro-life organization is sponsoring an initiative which would require health insurance companies to offer elective abortion coverage in an optional rider, not in the basic health insurance policy. Individuals and businesses would be able to select abortion coverage under all private and public insurance plans, but would not be required to purchase it as part of... Read more
Would you send your 12-year-old son on a camping trip with a gay troop leader? I wouldn’t. Just as parents would not send their pubescent girls to sleep in tents with men who are physically attracted to them, parents of boys should be just as wary of exposing their sons to the possibility of abuse. Nor would I permit my 7-year-old son to join an organization where one of the questions they’d ask is his sexual orientation. Boy Scouts are... Read more
Human cloning is finally here—but the scientific community and the popular media are reluctant to tell the story. According to Wesley J. Smith, Senior Fellow at the Discovery Institute’s Center for Human Exceptionalism, an international group of scientists have successfully created scores of cloned human embryos. The team of scientists claimed, in the prominent peer-reviewed journal Cell, that they had allowed four of these cloned embryos to develop to the blastocyst stage (that is, about 150 to 200 cells). Talking with Al... Read more
UPDATE: Your help is needed to keep this great Ministry of Coffee open! St. James Coffee opened last July and has struggled financially; they now have about 8-10 weeks of funds at their current numbers. Sales are improving; expenses are being reduced. Their events are varied, successful and fruitful. But without some help, the store will need to reduce their hours or even close. Please consider how you could help to keep this innovative Catholic coffee shop perking! *... Read more
Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim. We sometimes take it for granted, this Feast of Pentecost. We know about the upper room, the tongues of fire, the preaching, the conversions of many…. But what an incredible story! Pentecost (that’s Greek for “fiftieth”) has... Read more
In this Marian month, I continue my weekly focus on Mary, the Mother of God. This week: the Rosary. “The holy Rosary is a powerful weapon. Use it with confidence and you’ll be amazed at the results.” – Saint Josemaria Escriva I confess: I’ve sometimes had a difficult time praying the Rosary. I could try to persuade you that I prefer a more intense, less repetitive form of prayer. But you’d see through that in a second: Devout Catholics pray the familiar... Read more
Seasons of Grace
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