News from around the 11 counties of the Diocese of Madison.
MADISON — In an area high school first, the Edgewood High School drama department is staging the Disney and Cameron Mackintosh Broadway version of Mary Poppins.
A huge ensemble cast and lead roles that have been double-cast means that the show involves more than 100 students on stage and behind the scenes.
A range of emotions were seen on the faces of more than 120 soon-to-be full members of the Catholic Church on Sunday, Feb. 22, at St. John the Baptist Church in Waunakee.
MADISON — “It’s the best thing ever.”
“I love it. I can’t get enough.”
Those are just a couple of the verbally-expressed emotions from 27-year-old Tina Saviano from Madison as she is just a few weeks away from becoming a member of the Catholic Church.
MADISON — Bishop Robert C. Morlino of Madison will be honored at the Relevant Radio 1240 AM Christ Brings Hope Award Dinner on Thursday, March 19, with the inaugural Christ Brings Hope Award.
Relevant Radio Executive Director Fr. Francis J. “Father Rocky” Hoffman said, “Bishop Morlino has certainly brought much hope and inspiration to the Diocese of Madison and beyond by his steadfast dedication, loving service, and fearless defense of the Catholic Church and her teachings.
MCFARLAND — Mary’s Rosary Assemblers at Christ the King Parish in McFarland is hosting Rosary sales after the Masses on selected weekends.
This Lent, the Rosary Assemblers invite all to Christ the King Parish on Saturday and Sunday, March 7 and 8 and 14 and 15, to their Lenten Rosary Sale.
MADISON — Ann Walsh was selected as the Irish Person of the Year by the Dane County Shamrock Club. She will be honored at the club’s Irish flag ceremony in the Capitol rotunda, 2 E. Main St., at 12 noon on Sunday, March 15; at the St. Patrick’s Day parade following the flag ceremony; and again at the club’s St. Patrick’s Day dinner on March 22. These events are open to the public.
REEDSBURG — To support local growers and educate the public about sustainably-grown and locally produced foods, the Justice and Peace Commission of diocesan cluster 350 is holding its fifth annual Food Fair and Farmers’ Market on Saturday, March 7, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Sacred Heart School gym, 624 N. Willow St. in Reedsburg.
There will be vendors with everything from beef, chicken, pork, lamb, and fish to vegetables, mushrooms, seeds, preserves, cheese, bakery goods, maple syrup, honey, chocolates, and much more.
MADISON — Pregnancy […]
FENNIMORE — “To enrich the faith of the user.”
That’s part of the mission statement of the Embrace the Cross pillows.
Company owner Vince Lease said, “In times of rest, users feel the spiritual, emotional, and physical love for God by embracing the cross pillow.”
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| Frs. Eric Nielsen and Mark Miller distribute ashes at St. Paul University Catholic Center on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. Ash Wednesday is the busiest day of the year at St. Paul’s with over 1,900 students attending Mass. (Contributed photo) |
MADISON — The marquee on Library Mall read, “Get your ash to Mass.” And get to Mass they did.
When Ash Wednesday comes around at St. Paul University Catholic Center on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus, it’s all hands on deck.
Our liturgical rotation on Ash Wednesday included three priests, five sacristans, eight altar servers, 10 lectors, dozens of choir members, and 17 ashes-distributors for our five Masses.
We needed all the hands we could get. With students typically going back home for Christmas and Easter, Ash Wednesday is by far the busiest day of the year in the St. Paul’s chapel.
This year, over 1,900 students came through our doors to be told that they are dust and to dust they shall return. That number is about double the attendance of a typical Sunday.
We’re still not sure what makes this day more popular than any Sunday or holy days of obligation.
Apparently, being repeatedly asked the question, “Excuse me, did you know you have dirt on your face?” at every class throughout the day is no deterrent to these students.
More likely, it’s an incentive. The fact that so many hundreds of students on campus would sooner claim Catholicism as an identity than to practice it by, for example, fulfilling the Sunday obligation is an indication that the Catholic brand is alive and well here.
This has major implications for the New Evangelization. It means that more people of the Millennial generation than we might think are willing to give the Catholic faith a chance, but have never discovered a reason to become fully alive in that faith and to actively seek a nearer approach to God.
