News
First-ever overtime Catholic League title snatched by La Salle
The word “classic” is not the same as simply being “exciting” or “entertaining.” It means that, in years to come, it is a spectacle that will stand the test of time. And so, years from now, those who witnessed the Catholic League AAAA Division football championship Nov. 10 at Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School will have carte blanche to say they indeed saw a bona fide classic.
Priest projections, study of parish life undergird parish planning
Given current trends, somewhere between 2020 and 2025 the Archdiocese of Philadelphia will have more parishes than it has available priests. That fact in itself goes a long way toward explaining why there will be parish consolidations as part of the ongoing Archdiocesan Strategic Planning process.
Bishops’ economic letter fails; foes urge more consultation
BALTIMORE (CNS) -- The U.S. bishops' effort to send a pastoral message of hope in trying economic times came up short of the votes needed Nov. 13, after concerns were raised about its limitations, its expedited process and whether it actually was something that they would use to reach out to people.
Eastern Catholics explain tradition, value of married priests
ROME (CNS) — In Eastern Christianity — among both Catholics and Orthodox — a dual vocation to marriage and priesthood is seen as a call “to love more” and to broaden the boundaries of what a priest considers to be his family, said Russian Catholic Father Lawrence Cross. Father Cross, a professor at the Australian […]
Sisters, bishops begin discussions on LCWR doctrinal assessment
BALTIMORE (CNS) -- Officials of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious met with three U.S. bishops charged with overseeing the organization's reform Nov. 11 in Baltimore prior to the U.S. bishops' annual fall general assembly. "The discussion was open and cordial and those present agreed to meet again to continue the conversation," according to a brief statement issued Nov. 12 by Franciscan Sister Florence Deacon, LCWR president, and Seattle Archbishop J. Peter Sartain, who was assigned by the Vatican to provide "review, guidance and approval, where necessary, of the work" of LCWR.
Church must ‘redouble’ efforts on marriage, SF archbishop says
BALTIMORE (CNS) — Just shy of a week after laws permitting same-sex marriage passed in three states and voters in a fourth rejected an amendment to define marriage as a union of one man and one woman, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone said, “Tuesday was a disappointing day for marriage.” The chairman of the […]
Efforts to promote religious liberty will not end, archbishop says
BALTIMORE (CNS) — The work of defending religious liberty will continue more robustly and without end in the face of growing challenges, said the chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty. Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore, told his fellow bishops during the fall general assembly of the U.S. Conference of […]
Proposed text ties sacrament of penance to new evangelization effort
BALTIMORE (CNS) — The U.S. bishops Nov. 12 began consideration of an exhortation that would be issued in their name encouraging Catholics to take advantage of the sacrament of penance, also known as reconciliation. The text — presented on the first day of their annual fall general assembly in Baltimore — was prepared by the […]
Catholic religious help South Sudan train badly needed nurses, midwives
WAU, South Sudan (CNS) — Catholics from around the globe are playing a key role in building a health care system in the world’s newest country. It’s a daunting task: Following decades of war, South Sudan is only halfway through its second year of independence. There is little infrastructure. Trained health personnel are few. The […]
Document developing on bishops’ use of new technologies
BALTIMORE (CNS) — The chairmen of four U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ committees will begin work soon on drafting a document that reiterates the teaching authority of local bishops while urging them to use new technologies to share Catholic theology. The end result is expected to complement a 20-year-old document on the teaching authority of […]