Month: September 2019

On
Bishop Robert Barron

Cardinal Etchegaray, Fr. de Lubac, and Vatican II

On September 4, Cardinal Roger Etchegaray passed away. Perhaps his was not a household name, but this very decent man made a substantive contribution to the life of the Church, serving in a number of different capacities over the years and collaborating closely with Pope John Paul II.

I had the privilege of meeting him in the mid 1990s when he visited Mundelein Seminary, where I was serving as professor of theology. The Cardinal wanted to address the community, but his English was a bit shaky, so I translated for him. But I recall that his smile and evident joy in the Lord needed no translation whatsoever.

Read More
On
By Rachel Dietzman and Amy Lachuk, Catholic Charities of Madison

Hope Haven prepares for new facility

MADISON — In February 2020, Catholic Charities will be opening a new, state-of-the-art Hope Haven facility on the former grounds of the Chris Farley House, a 15-bed facility once located on Olin Ave., off Park St.

This modern facility will allow Hope Haven to meet the demand for affordable, individualized residential treatment due to the opioid epidemic and increased alcohol consumption.

Read More
On
Bishop Donald J. Hying, Bishop of Madison

Go forth and make disciples!

Bishop Donald J. Hying's column

When I became a bishop back in 2011, I attended a nine-day conference in Rome for new bishops from all over the world, put on by the Vatican.

The best part of the experience was meeting the other participants, 16 other Americans, 25 from Brazil, and one bishop from Iraq whose predecessor had been murdered by terrorists. The informal conversations were often more interesting than the scheduled talks.

Dealing with declining Church

At lunch on the third day, I sat with a newly appointed bishop from a diocese in the southern Netherlands. He told me that Mass attendance there hovered at about two percent, mostly elderly people; he had no seminarians, so there was no future for the priesthood. It wasn’t so much that the Church had collapsed as that it had evaporated!

I asked him where he was going to start in such a daunting situation. How do you begin when everything seems so hopeless? What he said did not surprise me, but it has stuck with me.

Read More
On
Kevin Wondrash

Catholic Charities to hold annual Faith in Action Celebration

MADISON — Catholic Charities Madison will celebrate the accomplishments of its programs, volunteers, program participants, and members of the community at its 24th annual Faith in Action Celebration.

This year, the annual Faith in Action Celebration will be held on Thursday, Nov. 7, at the Madison Marriott West. Registration and cash bar open at 5 p.m. Dinner begins at 6:30 p.m., followed by the awards presentation concluding at 8:30 p.m.

Read More