Memorial Day began as Decoration Day. In 1868, Major General John A. Logan, commander in chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, proclaimed the first official Memorial Day.
Tag: Christians
Declining number of Christians in the Holy Land face many challenges
Many people think of the Vatican as the “Mother Church” of the Catholic Church, but Jeffery Abood points out that the true Mother Church is in the Holy Land.
Who are the Christians of the Holy Land?
MADISON — Is your mental image of the Holy Land a collage of Christmas card images of palm trees and mangers with a heavy overlay of news reports of conflict?
Do you know more about the conflict between Palestinians and Jews than you do the history of the Christians who continue to live our faith under harsh conditions?
Untangling and clarifying who these Christians are and how they bravely continue the more than 2,000 years of practicing the faith is a journey you will not want to miss.Parish mission on forgiveness, mercy
PORTAGE — For the first time in a decade, the parishes of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Portage and St. Mary Help of Christians in Briggsville will be hosting a parish mission the evenings of March 5 to 8 in Portage.
Presented by native son, Fr. John Meoska, OSB, the theme for the mission is “Mercy and Faithfulness Have Met” based on Psalm 85:10. Father Meoska’s presentations will focus on the mercy and faithfulness which God shows His people and our call to answer Him in the same way.
What we can do to help end Christian genocide
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For many of us who strive to seriously practice faith in Jesus Christ, and to extend that practice out into the marketplace, the political square, and society at large, persecution rarely means more than being ridiculed, verbally harassed, and to a certain degree socially and politically marginalized.
But for so many other Christians throughout the world who courageously refuse to deny Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior — with all that means — persecution means torture, rape, enslavement, and death.
Global war on Christians
In his well-researched book, The Global War on Christians, Catholic journalist John Allen, cites studies that indicate the number of Christians killed for the faith every year ranges from 7,300 to 100,000 worldwide.
ISIS, genocide, and us: West should respond
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The Monuments Men was a disappointing movie, but one of its most chilling scenes sticks in my mind as an analogue to the appalling wickedness underway in the Middle East.
In the film, SS Colonel Wegner supervises the destruction of art works plundered by the Nazis: treasures intended for Hitler’s fantasized Fuehrer Museum in Linz, Austria.
Destroying paintings
But as the Allies close in on Germany in 1945, Hitler decides that, if he and his goons can’t have these masterpieces, their rightful owners — and the future — won’t have them, either.
Honoring St. Philomena at shrine in Briggsville
BRIGGSVILLE — On Sunday, Aug. 9, there will be a day honoring St. Philomena at St. Mary Help of Christians Church, N565 Highway A. The day will begin with Mass at 11 a.m. and a prayer service afterward at the outdoor National Shrine of St. Philomena. A community picnic will follow, put on by parishioners of St. Mary Help of Christians. It will be a time for sharing with fellow devotees and honoring St. Philomena. Religious items from Italy will be available for sale.
Papa Francesco’s words of wisdom: Share joy of God’s love with others, especially the poor
Papa Francesco. That’s the name on the PDF document of the apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), written by Pope Francis. I went to the Vatican website and downloaded my own copy to read (readers might do the same at www.vatican.va).
The name Papa Francesco seems like such an appropriate way to think of our Holy Father. He speaks to us as a devoted parent, sharing his words of wisdom, just like a loving father would talk with his children.
Noise of the world drowns out God’s voice
Even though this is an upbeat document, Pope Francis — like the Holy Father he is — shows us where we are falling short as disciples of Christ. He observes that we often don’t share the joy of the Gospel with others. He also chastises Christians for letting God’s voice be drowned out by the noise of the world.
He says, “The great danger in today’s world, pervaded as it is by consumerism, is the desolation and anguish born of a complacent yet covetous heart, the feverish pursuit of frivolous pleasures, and a blunted conscience. Whenever our interior life becomes caught up in its own interests and concerns, there is no longer room for others, no place for the poor. God’s voice is no longer heard, the quiet joy of his love is no longer felt, and the desire to do good fades.”
Can’t have one without the other: Faith and good works are both essential
Over the years, Christians have had discussions — sometimes very heated arguments — about the primacy of faith or good works.
For Catholics, it’s really not one or the other that takes precedence. It’s both. In fact, according to Scripture and Church teaching, you can’t have one without the other.
As we begin the season of Lent, it seems an appropriate time to reflect on the connection between faith and good works. Traditionally Lent is a time when prayer, fasting, and almsgiving take centerstage.
Reconciliation shows us God’s boundless mercy
A college student wrote in her college newspaper that sometimes she wished that she were a Catholic. Then, like her Catholic friends, she could confess her sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Through the absolution of the priest, she would be assured of God’s forgiveness.
God’s merciful forgiveness is expressed in the words of absolution: “God, the Father of mercies, through the death and the resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to Himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”