Year: 2016

On
Jean Mueller

Checking on parents during extended holiday visit

Q My husband and I are traveling to his parents’ home for the Christmas holiday. We are not sure what to expect. His parents are both in their mid-80s and we have not seen them for several months as we live on the East Coast.

My husband is an only child so we rely mostly on phone calls with his parents to inform us of their well-being. Each time we speak they assure us they are fine but it seems that our conversations have become less detailed. We have also noticed that they often repeat the same information during our conversations.

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On
Bishop Robert Barron

‘Arrival’ and understanding God’s speech

Like E.T., Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Starman, Independence Day, and a host of similar films over the past 30 years, Arrival explores the theme of an alien visitation to earth.

In this iteration, Louise Banks (played by Amy Adams) is a linguistic expert, who is called upon by the U.S. military to facilitate conversation with visitors from another world, whose space-crafts have landed (actually not quite landed, for they hover a few feet off the ground) at a number of locations around the globe.

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On
Mary C. Uhler, Catholic Herald Staff

Warming Center for Homeless seeks volunteers

MADISON — Catholic Charities Madison is partnering with Bethel Lutheran Church to operate the Warming Center for the Homeless in downtown Madison this winter.

The center is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Catholic Charities has committed to working at the center on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, said Derrick L. Smith, director of strategic planning and special projects for Catholic Charities. Bethel Lutheran is covering Tuesdays and Thursdays.

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On
Bishop Robert C. Morlino, Bishop of Madison

Enter Christmas season with joy, patience, and love

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,

I greet you all, and hope and pray that your times of preparation for Christmas have been filled with blessings.

The Church continues to challenge us — a challenge given by our Lord, Himself — to grow and to change as we prepare once again to renew our welcoming of the Lord into our lives.

In the Gospel of this past Sunday we hear Jesus say, “. . . the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed . . . and blessed is the one who takes no offense at me (MT 11:5-6)!”

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On
Bill Dagnon

Support scientists in protecting our planet’s health

To the editor:

Thank you for publishing the December 1 article on Pope Francis’ November speech at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. Pope Francis said, “I would say that it falls to scientists, who work free of political, economic or ideological interests . . . ” to build a cultural model to confront the challenge of climate change.

American Catholics must also support our scientists. U.S. bishops could hold a similar science summit. This would be an opportunity to teach Catholics and public leaders and explain the Catholic principle of stewardship of our earth in human solidarity.

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On
Mary C. Uhler, Catholic Herald Staff

Godspeed, John Glenn

When astronaut John Glenn made his first orbit around the earth in 1962, I was in the seventh grade.

At that time, I was very interested in space exploration. In the sixth grade, I remember writing an essay about why it was important that we discover what was happening in the “final frontier.”

First to orbit earth

It was exciting to learn about Glenn’s experiences as one of our country’s first seven astronauts. He was the first to orbit earth aboard the Mercury Friendship 7 capsule. He traveled around the globe three times in a flight that lasted just under five hours on February 20, 1962.

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