Commentaries
In a culture of fear, there are 3 ways to cope
At the root of the disturbing rise in suicide is fear, writes Father Eugene Hemrick. Once it is embedded in us, it is difficult to uproot, but an examination of conscience can identify and help eliminate it.
If parish is ‘dictatorship,’ what’s a member to do?
Father Ken Doyle answers an irate reader's questions about parish structure. This priest who works 12 hours a day (plus weekends) takes issue with being characterized a 9-to-5 worker not worth his pay.
Come to the cathedral, meet your new priests
Everyone is invited to witness the ordination of four new priests for the Philadelphia Archdiocese on Saturday. CatholicPhilly.com editor Matthew Gambino takes a look at the ceremony and the road ahead for these men.
How much should you give to the needy? Give more
Writer Effie Caldarola notes two essentials for Catholic stewardship: giving of time and talent should come off the top, not from what's leftover; and our giving should be sacrificial, not just from our surplus.
Go ahead and celebrate, but not too much
When Maureen Pratt was asked to "celebrate" lupus, the disabling disease she's been living with for 15 years, or to celebrate celiac disease or vitamins or pets, she pondered what it means to truly celebrate.
Listen up: We’re in life as a team
It's not easy being a teenager, writes Erick Rommel. It's also not easy being a preteen, toddler, or senior citizen. Life is not easy. So it's a good thing we belong to a never-ending stream of teams.
Dinner with young family comes with a big helping of noise
In their Marriage Matters column, Deacon Paul and Helen McBlain offer coping skills to two young parents sitting down for dinner with typical, but rammy, children.
If priest is infirm, shouldn’t deacon distribute the Communion host?
Father Ken Doyle answers a reader who wants to know why a deacon is distributing the Precious Blood but not the host, in absence of the priest. Father Doyle also digs into a pile of religious items in the mail.
Prince and his unique journey toward God
Prince wasn't afraid to talk about God or religion in his music, writes Father John Catoir. While the aging priest admits he didn't notice Prince's creativity, he could not miss the outpouring of love for the artist.
Motherhood, fatherhood at heart of America’s founding principles
Narberth parishioner Ellen Giangiordano is incensed over a sperm donation ad she saw on a local train. The severing of a child’s biological roots, she writes, is tyrannical.