MADISON — “I love ‘Freshly Brewed.’ Topher, Lindsay, and Sara are the perfect combination.”
Like most trends and anything else that is “cool,” the youth, like the one quoted above, are on top of the latest creation of awesome for teens in the Diocese of Madison.
To the editor:
Regarding the article, “Challenges to feeding, thinking about the hungry” (November 20 issue, Catholic Herald), the topic of world hunger is important and deserves more attention; however, this article implies that GMO (genetically modified organisms) crops may provide healthier food products.
There is no scientific evidence that GMO crops are healthier. The opposite is likely true.
To the editor:
On January 22, 1973, the great scourge of legalized abortion was thrust upon our country with the enactment of Roe v. Wade.
Hundreds of thousands of American Christians from across the country make the annual pilgrimage each January to the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court as a reminder that the killing of innocent children is very wrong and grieves our dear Lord.
BELOIT — Our Lady of the Assumption (OLA) Parish will celebrate Lessons and Carols on Saturday, Jan. 3, beginning at 7 p.m. in the church, 2222 Shopiere Rd.
The 30-voice OLA Parish Choir, under the direction of Randy Gracyalny, will be joined by instrumentalists from the parish and area to provide an uplifting prayer and musical experience.
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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,
The timing of this column falls into one of those awkward periods that comes with the schedule of our weekly publication.
As I write, we are still at the height of preparation for Christmas, yet this will likely be the edition of the Catholic Herald that is in your homes on Christmas Day. As such, I’m going to look forward joyfully and reflect upon the goodness that is “already, but not yet.”
I suppose it’s appropriate to be stuck in this place of anticipation, as it does speak to our lives each and every day, and it’s made especially clear at Christmas.
At Christmas we celebrate and rejoice in the reality of eternal life made possible for us by God’s coming into the world.
We celebrate that everything is now changed for humanity. We celebrate God with us, a light in the darkness, the Word made flesh, God’s Kingdom at hand.
And yet, we remain in a period of waiting and of laboring. The world is not right. We may be redeemed, with hope for forgiveness, but we still fail, and falter, and sin.
When Jesus came into the world, it meant redemption from sin and the hope of an eternity of joy, but it did not mean mankind would be unable to choose otherwise, it did not mean everything would be peachy for us at all times.
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Every time a baby is born, there is new hope for the human race. I learned this as a high school sophomore when my baby brother was born.
What a miracle of grace! As I studied his perfectly formed hands and feet, I was filled with awe and hope. I wondered who he would grow up to be.
I hoped that he would be bigger, stronger, more athletic, and more intelligent than I was. My sister hoped that he would grow up to be a gentleman.
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It is very difficult indeed to watch the documentary Bully without experiencing both an intense sadness and a feeling of helplessness.
The film opens with the heartbreaking ruminations of a father whose son committed suicide after being brutally bullied by his classmates.
We hear similar stories throughout the film, and we also watch and listen as kids are pestered, belittled, mocked, and in some cases, physically assaulted, just because they are different.
PINE BLUFF — “I should get up when and drive where for what? For Mass?!? But it’s a Saturday!”
There is a centuries long tradition during Advent called the “Rorate Mass.” These Masses are generally offered during Advent on Saturdays, the customary day to honor the Blessed Virgin.
Mass begins in the darkness before dawn. Remember, Advent is a penitential season after all.
One of the most commonly-used words during the Advent season, as everyone looks ahead to Christmas, is “tradition.”
MADISON — Preserving a long-standing tradition recently in doubt, the Madison Diocesan Choir returns to the Bishop O’Connor Catholic Pastoral Center Sunday, Dec. 21, for a Festival of Lessons and Carols, a joyful celebration featuring wind instruments and reaffirming the choir’s music ministry in service to the diocese.
Months ago, the choir and its director, Dr. Patrick Gorman, were in search of a new home, a daunting challenge. With plans to convert the former seminary into a housing development, the choir required not only a place to store its music, but one large enough for weekly rehearsals. The choir has more than 70 active members from parishes throughout the diocese.
