Vatican Announces “Ninety Minutes for Peace” Charity Soccer Match – UPDATED

Last updated on: September 30, 2016 at 3:53 pm By Kathy Schiffer

UPDATE: It’s over! Victors in the “Ninety Minutes for Peace” charity soccer match September 1 in Rome were Javier Zanetti’s Pupi Foundation. The foundation–as well as the opposing team Scholas Occurrentes, which was organized by the Vatican–raised funds to support educational programs for at-risk kids. The highlight of the game, according to the Associated Press, was Maradona’s lobbed pass which set up the winning goal by Roberto Baggio. The Pupi Foundation players had been down by two goals at halftime, but... Read more

145 Unclaimed Bodies Laid to Rest in Archdiocese of Detroit

Last updated on: January 8, 2015 at 6:13 pm By Kathy Schiffer

The seventh corporal work of mercy is to bury the dead. Usually, we fulfill that work by attending a funeral liturgy and praying for the deceased. We help a bereaved friend or loved one who is grieving, listening to her stories and drying her tears, helping her to find peace and to pass through the emotional turmoil of loss. In the Archdiocese of Detroit, though, the command has taken on added significance this week as 145 unclaimed bodies have been laid to rest at... Read more

How Would You Like to Be Married by Pope Francis?

Last updated on: December 28, 2014 at 7:15 pm By Kathy Schiffer

The Vatican has announced that next month, Pope Francis will officiate at his first wedding ceremony since his election to the papacy. On September 14, Pope Francis will marry not just one, but 20 engaged couples from the Diocese of Rome. The nuptial Mass will take place in St. Peter’s Basilica, just a few weeks before the start of the extraordinary synod of bishops on the family. According to the Catholic Herald, this will be the first time since 2000... Read more

Little Flowers from Pope Francis: 50 Inspiring Anecdotes, Gathered by Andrea Tornielli

Last updated on: August 30, 2014 at 11:38 am By Kathy Schiffer

Since he first stepped out onto the balcony at the Apostolic Palace and waved a quiet and simple “Hello!”, Pope Francis has captured the hearts of people from around the world. Since that time, he’s made us think (and often made us smile) with his twist of a phrase, his witty aphorisms and common-sense logic. Now, veteran reporter Andrea Tornielli, Vatican correspondent for the Italian newspaper La Stampa, has gathered up fifty of the popular Pope’s anecdotes in a single volume titled... Read more

If Augustine Could Sing, He Might Sound Like This….

Last updated on: August 26, 2014 at 12:49 pm By Kathy Schiffer

Sam Rocha is a talented guy: a professor of philosophy of education, and a darned good writer, to boot. He’s written some college textbooks, and Sam’s blog is making waves here at Patheos. I didn’t know until a few months ago, though, that Sam Rocha is also an accomplished guitarist and vocalist. Sam has combined two of his interests—his music and his Catholic faith—in a new CD, Late to Love. Based on the Confessions of St. Augustine, Late to Love... Read more

….And Jesus Wept

Last updated on: August 26, 2014 at 7:27 am By Kathy Schiffer

Mary therefore, when she came where Jesus was, and saw him, fell down at his feet, saying unto him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping who came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled, and said, Where have ye laid him? They say unto him, Lord, come and see. Jesus wept. John 11:32-35 Jesus knew, as he approached the tomb where his... Read more

Joseph Bottum’s “AN ANXIOUS AGE”: He Had Me at ‘Hello’

Last updated on: August 23, 2014 at 11:16 am By Kathy Schiffer

Joseph Bottum’s important new book An Anxious Age: The Post-Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of America, has been sitting on my bedside table for a few months, just begging to be opened and sampled. I read a lot of books; I enjoy them, I often report on them. I just hadn’t gotten around to this one. Yet. In fact, I’m not too proud to admit that it took a Comcast line breaking in our front yard (and the resultant loss... Read more

The Queenship of Mary Is Deeply Rooted in Scripture

Last updated on: January 19, 2015 at 8:03 am By Kathy Schiffer

Today Catholics celebrate the Memorial of the Queenship of the Virgin Mary. Pope Pius XII established August 22 as the Memorial of the Queenship of Mary in 1954; but Mary’s role as queen over the universal Church finds its roots in the Scriptures. At the Annunciation, the archangel Gabriel announced that Mary’s Son would rule forever on the throne of David. At the Visitation, Elizabeth calls Mary the “mother of my Lord.” The Old Testament foreshadows this queenship of Mary, by... Read more

R.I.P. Cardinal Edmund Szoka. Detroit and the World Have Lost a Great Leader.

Last updated on: August 21, 2014 at 1:13 pm By Kathy Schiffer

Sad news today from the Archdiocese of Detroit, where former Detroit archbishop and former President of Vatican City State Edmund Cardinal Szoka has gone to his eternal reward. According to the Archdiocese of Detroit website: With sadness and great hope in the Resurrection we share news of the death of Cardinal Edmund Casimir Szoka, who served as Archbishop of Detroit from 1981 until 1990 and went on to oversee the government of the Vatican City State under Pope John Paul II... Read more

Dean Koontz’ “THE CITY” May Be His Best Novel Yet

Last updated on: August 21, 2014 at 10:48 am By Kathy Schiffer

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you may know that I am a huge fan of Dean Koontz. I’ve written before about his best-selling mystery novel Innocence–and, at the same time, told you of my affection for Odd Thomas, Koontz’ 19-year-old fry cook whose story has become a popular series and a film. I believe, though, that Koontz’ newest novel, The City, has the potential to overtake even his blockbuster Odd Thomas series in popularity. That’s because The City is perhaps the... Read more