Features
Promoting peace and forgiveness
The Institute for Forgiveness and Reconciliation at Chestnut Hill College, which is headed by St. Joseph Sister Catherine Nerney, works “for the forgiveness of divisions within and among human persons and communities by providing forgiveness and reconciliation at every level of life.” All things considered, that is something very much needed in the Archdiocese of […]
Capsule movie reviews
NEW YORK (CNS) — The following are capsule reviews of movies recently reviewed by Catholic News Service. “Battleship” (Universal) Feel-good nonsense about a rowdy naval officer (Taylor Kitsch) who has to grow up fast when he’s called upon to save the world from a seemingly invincible force of invading aliens. He’s aided, initially, by his […]
Penn Relays: a Philadelphia track tradition
It is a fascinating spectacle that attracts thousands of athletes from hundreds of different schools from all across the nation. It entices celebrities to descend upon Philadelphia for almost an entire week. It is the Penn Relays, and from April 26 through April 28, the University of Pennsylvania’s Franklin Field played host to what was […]
Ainsley a positive role model for young people
If a teenager’s merit is judged by his positive influence on youngsters, Holy Ghost Preparatory School senior Jeff Ainsley is way ahead of the curve. Take the reaction of those he helps coach during summer basketball camp. “The kids love Jeff,” said longtime Holy Ghost athletic director Jim Stewart. “Their eyes light up when he […]
Priest shared life’s wisdom with former student
“Green Bananas: the Wisdom of Father Bill Atkinson” really sounds like a weird title for a book about a deceased priest. You have to know the context. As author Steve McWilliams explains in his introduction, when Father Atkinson was approached by Villanova University to receive an honorary degree and speak, he wrote back, “I never […]
Archbishop’s new book sees ‘the next America’
Archbishop Charles Chaput’s 2008 book “Render Unto Caesar” was, in his own words, “about the importance of Catholics witnessing their faith vigorously in public life — not simply as a matter of good citizenship, but also as an obligation to the Gospel.” Now in a shorter eBook, “A Heart on Fire: Catholic Witness and the […]
A proper burial — 180 years in the making
They emigrated to the United States in the early summer of 1832 from Donegal, Tyrone and Derry Counties in Ireland. Hired off the docks in Philadelphia to work on a stretch of tracks on the Pennsylvania & Columbia Railroad (which later became the Reading and Columbia Railroad) between Philadelphia and Lancaster County, 57 Irish immigrants […]
Father-daughter duo bond through basketball
Sports can sometimes be a family affair. This has been the case for the Creighton family as Archbishop Carroll head basketball coach Chuck Creighton and his daughter Meghan, a senior and All-Area Team point guard at Carroll, have shared a long road of basketball together. Their basketball journey dates back to when Meghan was 6 […]
Accepting disability with faith in God
Hereditary Spastic Paraparesis (HSP) is classified as a rare disease with only a handful of people per 100,000 contracting it. That’s not much comfort to Helen Kienlem, because the first word is operative — it runs in families. The seventh of the eight children of Joan and John Kienlem, she is one of six in […]
Bishops call for day of prayer and fasting
7 de marzo de 2012 Hermanos y hermanas en Cristo: El ataque del gobierno federal a la libertad religiosa, constitucionalmente garantizada, continúa. Nuestra preocupación y alarma surge a partir de un mandato del Departamento de Salud y Servicios Humanos (HHS, por sus siglas en inglés) que castiga a la Iglesia por sus creencias firmemente sostenidas […]