Local News
Head back to school with our special online guide
Catholic school students are getting ready to head back to school next week. CatholicPhilly.com’s 2013 Back to School supplement shows what Catholic school students have been doing over the summer, and the plans being made for the fall term at Catholic high schools, regional elementary schools and parish grade schools.
In a first, Catholic Charities to benefit from ticket sales at Phillies’ game
The Phillies and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia are teaming up to offer a fun night of baseball at Citizens Bank Park to benefit a good cause: the annual Catholic Charities Appeal. The first-ever Catholic Charities Night at the Phillies will be Sept. 17, and $8 from each ticket purchased will go toward the appeal. The night will have a Catholic flair when Bishop Timothy Senior, rector of St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, throws out the ceremonial first pitch before the game against the Florida Marlins beginning at 7:05 p.m. And the choir of St. Cyprian Parish in West Philadelphia will sing the National Anthem.
Salesians send out three local young adults among 28 lay missionaries
Natalie Baker of Springfield, Delaware County, Matthew Pirrall of Schwenksville and Patrick Sabol of Wayne were among three of the 28 mostly young women and men commissioned Aug. 17 as lay missionary volunteers by the Salesians of Don Bosco. They will serve in five countries and the United States.
West Chester woman takes vows as Franciscan sister in Aston
Sister Sara Marks professed her first vows as a Sister of St. Francis of Philadelphia Aug. 11. The profession took place during a Mass at Our Lady of Angels Convent, the congregation’s motherhouse in Aston.
St. Francis-St. Joseph Homes’ alums plan anniversary party
Alumni of St. Francis-St. Joseph Homes for Children will celebrate the 125th anniversary of the founding of what were then separate institutions on Sunday, Sept. 8, rain or shine, at the main campus, Route 13 and Street Road, Bensalem. Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. followed by a picnic. St. Francis was founded in […]
Father Chuck Pfeffer’s vision of leadership lives on at CLI
Catholic Leadership Institute, based in Wayne, has recently announced the formation of the Father Chuck Pfeffer Society as a part of their annual fund.The society honors the memory of Father Charles Pfeffer (1951-2004), a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, by recognizing donors for their leadership and support through gifts of at least $1,000 to the Catholic Leadership Institute.
Haitian people buoyed by gifts in memory of Father Chuck Pfeffer
Try to imagine what it would be like to be a member of one of 57 families living in shacks on a narrow, isolated beach, literally cut off from civilization. Welcome to St. Mary Fishing Village, located on the Island of Gonave off the coast of Haiti. Gonave is relatively large, about 283 square miles, but the terrain is harsh.
Archdiocese considering sale of Catholic nursing homes
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia, as part of its ongoing effort to achieve financial stability, intends to market six nursing homes and one assisted-living facility for possible sale, it was announced Aug. 20. The archdiocese will also seek to outsource management or lease the 11 active archdiocesan cemeteries and two cemetery sites reserved for future use.
Parishes make new friends, evangelize through Facebook, Twitter
The Catholic Church sees the imperative of employing every technology, especially social media sites, to reach out to the young and the young at heart. Mary, Mother of the Redeemer Parish in North Wales is just one parish in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia to take advantage of new ways of reaching out to people with the Gospel message.
Local Catholics asked to take a hike on autumn pilgrimage to Cathedral
This fall it will be time to lace up some comfortable shoes and start stretching, because on Sunday, Oct. 13 the Archdiocese of Philadelphia will host a Pilgrimage of Faith to the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul in celebration of the Year of Faith. Parishes from all over the Archdiocese are expected to participate, either by walking to the center city cathedral or taking transportation.