All of our parishes are hearing the call to reach out to those many people who are spiritually lost, wounded, or confused. All of us know people, including friends and co-workers, who are no longer practicing their faith.
Month: January 2009
Ecumenical service marks Week of Prayer
An ecumenical prayer service, commemorating the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, will be celebrated on Sunday, Jan. 18, at 6 p.m. at Assumption Orthodox Church, 11 N. 7th St. (northeast corner of E. Washington Ave.).
Lucha por la Libertad del Acto de Escogencia
Estimados amigos,
En el momento que ustedes puedan leer esta columna, habré comenzado mis vacaciones en climas más calidos. El Obispo Bullock me ha enseñado muy bien lo recomendable que es tomar vacaciones en esta época del año, y, además de muchas otras buenas cosas, estoy agradecido con él para este pedacito importante particular de sabiduría. Pido sus oraciones de salud y seguridad durante esta época de vacaciones y, más importante, el crecimiento en la fe. Éste es muy la misma oración que elevo de mi corazón para cada uno de ustedes, todos los días.
Bishop Morlino’s letter to priests
6 January 2009
Dear Brother Priests,
I pray that this letter finds you well and enjoying a blessed Christmas Season. During this time of year, when we celebrate the light of Christ coming into the world, it is necessary to consider an area of darkness in our country — the continued practice of aborting our unborn brothers and sisters.
Fighting Freedom of Choice Act
Dear Friends,
By the time you are able to read this column, I will have begun my vacation in warmer climes. Bishop Bullock has taught me well how advisable it is to take vacation at this time of year, and, along with so many other good things, I am grateful to him for this particular important bit of wisdom. I beg your prayers that I will have health and safety during this time of vacation and, most importantly, grow in faith. This is the very same prayer that rises up from my heart for each one of you, each day.
You will find, below, a letter which I have sent to my brother priests with regard to a national effort which is being made in every diocese in the United States, spearheaded by Cardinal Rigali of Philadelphia, chair of the Pro-Life Committee of our national bishops’ conference.
Redefining the ‘vocation crisis’
Articles about the shortage of priests and religious men and women in the Church, particularly in Europe and North America, are common these days. Many international congregations like my own, the Sisters of the Holy Cross, are still getting new members but in lands other than the United States.
Whenever I read or hear about this subject, I often think about an article I read several years ago that has really stuck with me. Dolores Leckey, a laywoman who wrote a column for Catholic newspapers, entitled her article, “What Vocation Crisis?”
Stop the radical Freedom of Choice Act
The Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) has been surfacing for years, so why are dioceses across the country mounting a massive postcard campaign now?
The urgency is that President-Elect Obama has promised to sign this radical legislation. In speaking to the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, July 17, 2007, Senator Obama said, “The first thing I’d do as president is sign the Freedom of Choice Act. That’s the first thing that I’d do.”
The Freedom of Choice Act might appear under a different name, but under whatever title, it is one of the most radical anti-life pieces of legislation to be promoted. It is important that this legislation NEVER reach the desk of the president.
Catholic Schools Planning Core Teams
Nearly 100 people from across the diocese gathered on January 7 to carry forward the work of Catholic Schools Planning as members of one of the four Core Teams.
The evening opened with introductions, prayer, a brief background of the project, and an explanation of the process. In a letter of welcome to all of those gathered, Bishop Morlino conveyed his “deep gratitude and constant support” for the work of the Core Teams saying, “What a true blessing that so many of you have gathered to offer your time and talent as we plan for the future of our Catholic schools.”
St. Ambrose Christmas dinner
Hundreds of staunch supporters of Catholic education and St. Ambrose Academy flocked, or rather, skated, to the Bishop O’Connor Catholic Pastoral Center on December 19 after a huge snowstorm for Christmas Dinner With the Bishop, the school’s major fundraiser of the year.
Four parishes sponsor series on St. Paul
Last summer, Pope Benedict XVI announced a year of celebration in honor of St. Paul the Apostle to run from June 28, 2008 (feast day of the Conversion of St. Paul) to June 28, 2009. The Vatican has encouraged Catholics around the world to study St. Paul in Scripture to “revitalize our faith in the light of his teachings and life.”