News
Priest chaplain nurtures soldiers’ faith in Afghanistan deployment
ALLENTOWN, Pa. (CNS) — After more than a year of preparation, Father Christopher Butera has made his way to Afghanistan, serving as chaplain to an Army unit helping train Afghan soldiers as the U.S. presence in the mountainous country winds down. A priest of the Diocese of Allentown, Father Butera began his deployment in mid-August. […]
Black Catholics felt the need to be at March on Washington anniversary
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The presence of Catholic priests and religious was unmistakable at the first March on Washington in 1963; their clerical collars and full habits with wimples stood out even among the black-and-white images of the day. Clergy and religious weren't as visible at the first of two major anniversary events in 2013, but African American Catholics were in attendance, just as they were a half-century earlier. There was, they said in interviews with Catholic News Service, no place else they could imagine being on Aug. 24.
Hawaii bishop urges Catholics to mobilize against same-sex marriage
HONOLULU (CNS) -- Bishop Larry Silva of Honolulu urged Catholics across the island state to oppose same-sex marriage in an "urgent request" to pastors. In a letter that was included in parish bulletins the weekend of Aug. 24-25, Bishop Silva asked Catholics to pray the rosary daily over the next several weeks, "if possible" while walking around the state Capitol block, "so that just as God tumbled down the walls of Jericho, he will be able to do so through the prayers and action of his beloved people."
Egypt’s Christians proud of history traced to Jesus, St. Mark
CAIRO (CNS) --The Coptic Orthodox Church of the Virgin Mary sits in a tiled courtyard a few miles outside Cairo, on the left bank of the Nile as the river bends south toward Upper Egypt. The structure's front doors overlook the famed river, which Egyptian Christians who pray and worship here are convinced transported Mary, Joseph and their small boy, Jesus, to safety from persecution back home.
Pope to meet Jordan’s king, discuss ongoing strife in Middle East
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — As international leaders increasingly discussed the possibility of some form of armed intervention in Syria, the Vatican announced Pope Francis would interrupt the last week of his summer break in order to meet Aug. 29 with Jordan’s King Abdullah II. Jordan and Syria share a border, and Jordan is hosting some […]
Fear of Egyptian violence doesn’t stop nuns’ hospital work
The Egyptian army's takeover in early July has led to deadly clashes with militants throughout Egypt, including within ear-reach of the century-old Italian Hospital in Cairo, where nuns from five different Catholic orders live and work. But fears of what is outside the hospital gates -- including a spike in attacks on the country's Christian institutions -- appeared to interfere little with the sisters' chores inside the historic medical facility built by Egypt's one-time vibrant Italian community.
Msgr. D’Angelico, pastor of Southampton parish, dies at age 66
Msgr. Anthony J. D’Angelico, 66, pastor of Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish in Southampton, died Aug. 22. Born in Philadelphia, the son of the late Anthony and Madeline (Perrucci) D’Angelico, he attended Resurrection of Our Lord School in Philadelphia and Bishop Egan High School in Fairless Hills before entering St. Charles Borromeo Seminary. He was ordained May 18, 1974 by Cardinal John Krol at the Cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul and his first assignment was as parochial vicar at St. Donato Parish, Philadelphia.
We remember: Brooklyn parish’s sculpture recalls 9/11
A sculpture of Jesus embracing the twin towers of New York's former World Trade Center is seen outside St. Ephrem Church in the Dyker Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn in New York. The sculpture honors the nine members of the parish who died in the 9/11 terrorist attacks. This year marks the 12th anniversary of the attacks that claimed the lives of nearly 3,000 people in New York, at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pa.
Scottish archbishop says cardinal blocked plans for abuse investigation
MANCHESTER, England (CNS) -- A disgraced Scottish cardinal halted a plan to allow independent investigators to examine church child abuse files, said a retired archbishop. In a letter to the British Catholic weekly The Tablet, retired Archbishop Mario Conti of Glasgow said that Cardinal Keith O'Brien, who earlier this year admitted to acts of sexual misconduct, prevented case files from being reviewed.
Healing Mass on feast of the Exaltation of the Cross
In celebration of the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Sept. 14, a special Mass for healing, including the sacrament of the anointing of the sick, will be celebrated Saturday, Sept. 14 at 10 a.m. at SS. Philip and James Church, 107 North Ship Road (Lincoln Highway), in Exton.