MADISON — For the second time this month, the auditorium inside the Bishop O’Connor Center in Madison was packed with a Friday night audience. Back on November 1, All Saints Day, hundreds gathered to hear Fr. Michael Gaitley talk on 33 Days to Morning Glory and the consecration to Jesus through Mary.
Day: November 20, 2013
Catholic Charities holds 18th annual Faith in Action Celebration
MIDDLETON — In 2006, Andrew Ziehr’s life began unravelling because he was drinking too much. He got divorced, lost custody of his children, and lost his housing, his job, and his health.
Fortunately for Ziehr, he came to the Chris Farley House in Madison, which helped him transition back into the community after treatment for alcohol abuse.
Honoring veterans: Janesville school observes Veterans Day
It’s not uncommon for a pastor to greet parishioners in a gathering space prior to Mass or a prayer service. On this particular day, the pastor’s presence took on a special meeting.
Church living in midst of confrontation
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| This column is the bishop’s communication with the faithful of the Diocese of Madison. Any wider circulation reaches beyond the intention of the bishop. |
Dear Friends,
Last week at the meeting of the Bishops’ Conference in Baltimore, our Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, who serves as the personal representative of Pope Francis in the United States, addressed us bishops on behalf of Pope Francis.
In the first place, I thought it was interesting that a great deal of his address to us was focused on quotations from Pope Paul VI and Blessed John Paul the Great.
This is a sure sign that Pope Francis wishes to be seen in continuity with his venerable predecessors, a fact which he made clear recently as he affirmed Archbishop Agostino Marchetto’s account of the hermeneutic of continuity as a proper interpretive key for the Second Vatican Council.
But, I want to focus on one particular thought that Archbishop Viganò raised.
Thanks for publishing conference testimony on mascot legislation
To the editor:
We want to thank you and the staff at the Catholic Herald for devoting considerable space in the paper to print the Wisconsin Catholic Conference testimony concerning the pending legislation on the mascot law.
At present the bill has passed both the Assembly and Senate, but it still needs the governor’s signature to make it law.
The new law would definitely reduce the opportunity for dialogue in those communities with race-based mascots, so it could damage the progress in Wisconsin for their removal.
Holiday traditions sometimes need to be changed
Q: This is my least favorite time of year. I want to look forward to the holidays, but I dread them.
It just brings up memories of the gatherings we used to have but no longer can. My parents are still living, but dad has a type of dementia and mom has a bad heart along with many other medical conditions. They are now in an assisted living facility.
My siblings all make it a point to come home for Thanksgiving and Christmas, but honestly it causes so much stress I wonder if it is worth it. It is just not the same and I think it makes mom feel bad that she can no longer host the traditional gathering.
My siblings are very set in their ways and don’t want to give up the appearance of a happy family celebration, even though it is far from happy for any of us.
How can I help my family realize we need to change the way we celebrate these holidays? (from a daughter in Cross Plains).
The Sacrament of Matrimony
By Abbot Marcel Rooney, OSB
This is the last article in the Abbot’s special Year of Faith series on the seven sacraments.
Rooted in scriptural images
The Catechism of the Catholic Church notes: “Sacred Scripture begins with the creation of man and woman in the image and likeness of God and concludes with the vision of the ‘wedding-feast of the Lamb’” (CCC 1602; Rev 19:7, 9; Gen 1:26-27).
No wonder that the Church’s theology of the Sacrament of Matrimony is deeply rooted in sacred Scripture.
Sex, truth, and the illumination of our guilt
Guilt has gotten a lot of bad press recently. We live in an age where guilt is practically always something bad, something to get past with the help of a shrink.
Particularly when discussing sex, people will declare that religion and morality do nothing more than make people feel guilty.
Andrew Aaron, a sex and marriage therapist in New Bedford, Mass., seems to subscribe to this view: “Through centuries,” he writes, “religious education has associated sex with what is wrong and sinful rather than what is sacred. Instead of an expression of the divine, sex is suspiciously regarded as weakness of the flesh. The result of this influence is that sexuality, a natural part of being human, is tainted with shame, guilt, and ambivalence.”
Juvenile justice reform is long overdue
Ninety-eight percent of all 17-year-olds arrested in Wisconsin committed non-violent crimes, usually underage drinking, disorderly conduct, marijuana possession, or property crimes.
Yet, since 1995, all these 17-year-old offenders are handled by the adult correctional system and, if incarcerated, are placed with the adult prison and jail population.
A gift that will last a lifetime
KIELER — The fourth graders at Holy Ghost-Immaculate Conception School in Kieler each received their own Bible. The Bibles were a very generous gift from the Knights of Columbus Cuba City Council. The students were very excited to receive a gift that will be used throughout their life.