At 7:30 this morning, the Bishops gathered for Holy Mass before moving on to a breakfast sponsored by Catholic Relief Services, and regional meetings. The General Session begins soon, and there will be a lot of business to take care of and information reports to be heard. I look forward to this morning’s report by the National Advisory Council, followed by the Presidential Address by His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan (who gave me a big Irish hug this morning). Also... Read more
The Bishops and Bloggers Meeting was a blast! The meeting began with a presentation of the just-released report by CARA (the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate), entitled “Catholic New Media Use in the United States, 2012.” The researchers interviewed 1,047 self-identified Catholics in September 2012 on the topic of their media use. There was some concern that the Church may not be connecting with its public as well as it might be. As evidence, presenter and study author Dr.... Read more
Day Two in Baltimore. Well, that depends on how you look at it: The U.S. Bishops’ 2012 Fall General Assembly doesn’t officially convene until tomorrow. This weekend, though, the bishops are busy in committees and subcommittees and liturgies, finalizing the reports which will be brought before the full Assembly in the next couple of days. The media office has not yet opened, and I’ve not received the full schedule of activities; but I can give you a quick “heads up”... Read more
Does anyone know where the love of God goes When the waves turn the minutes to hours… --Gordon Lightfoot, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” Read more
It took me a few days to admit this: Obama has prevailed, and he will remain our President for four more years. One of the less globally significant results is that since the election, my TV has remained off. I haven’t wanted to risk seeing his scowling face, recognizing his hubris, hearing him sneer “Let me be clear” or “Make no mistake” or “It won’t happen overnight.” I was disheartened—too disheartened to write the “pick-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps” kind of encouraging words I... Read more
He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. –Colossians 1:17 Laminin is the building block of the human body, the glycoprotein which holds all together. And what does this glycoprotein look like? Yes, we are fearfully and wonderfully made. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=F0-NPPIeeRk Read more
As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches and we prepare to celebrate with family and friends the bountiful gifts we’ve received from Almighty God, I offer this reminder to retailers and advertisers everywhere: Read more
The times, they are a changin’. In recent years, we’ve seen the demise of print media including once-popular news/feature magazines such as Life and Newsweek, decorating magazines like Country Home and Cottage Living, computer tech magazines such as PC Magazine, online gaming magazines like PlayStation, kids’ magazines like Disney Adventure. And there are newspapers which have downsized, gone online, or completely folded: the Rocky Mountain News, the Baltimore Evening Sun, and some 200+ other papers have ceased publication since 2009.... Read more
LORD GOD, as the election approaches, we seek to better understand the issues and concerns that confront our city, state, and country, and how the Gospel compels us to respond as faithful citizens in our community. WE ASK FOR EYES that are free from blindness so that we might see each other as brothers and sisters, one and equal in dignity, especially those who are victims of abuse and violence, deceit and poverty. WE ASK FOR EARS that will hear... Read more
Yves Congar was a complex man. The New York Times, in his obituary, called him a “vigorous ecumenist” and a “promoter of the laity.” His life in the Church toggled between acclaim and rejection. So who was this controversial figure who played such a large role in the Second Vatican Council? Ordained to the priesthood in France in 1930, Congar served from 1931 to 1954 as chair of theology and apologetics at the Saulchoir, the Dominican seminary just south of... Read more
Select your answer to see how you score.
Seasons of Grace
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In