News
After Sandy, parishes will try to go forward step by step, priest says
ROCKAWAY BEACH, N.Y. (CNS) -- After Hurricane Sandy swept through the East Coast, leaving untold destruction behind, cleaning efforts were under way at St. Rose of Lima Church in Rockaway Beach. "Step by step, we will try to go forward," said Father Wladyslaw Kubrak, parochial vicar, as he shoveled leaves and branches off the church driveway.
Catholic-owned Michigan company wins injunction against HHS mandate
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (CNS) -- A federal district court judge in Ann Arbor granted a Michigan business, Weingartz Supply Co., a temporary injunction from the Health and Human Services' contraceptive mandate. In the Oct. 31 ruling, Judge Robert Cleland of the Eastern District of Michigan said the "loss of First Amendment freedoms, for even minimal periods of time, unquestionably constitutes irreparable injury." He did not rule on the mandate's constitutionality, but his decision keeps the company from having to comply with the mandate until the constitutional claims are resolved.
‘VatiLeaks’ trial of Vatican computer tech begins
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — A Vatican computer technician charged with aiding and abetting the papal butler in stealing confidential documents went on trial amid legal arguments over the definition of the charge and questions about the “anonymous source” who reported him to officials. As the trial began Nov. 5, the lawyer for Claudio Sciarpelletti, 48, […]
Lansdale Catholic girls fight hard for soccer title, but lose to Ryan, by inches
A few inches. They ultimately leave almost every competitor in a post-game collective embrace, but for completely different reasons. Because in virtually every sport, just a few inches literally provide the difference between a celebrating champion and a lamenting runner-up. Cheers or tears. Indeed, a few inches can literally design an entire landscape. “We came […]
Pa.’s Catholic bishops: Democracy depends on people fighting for what they believe
Election Day, Nov. 6, offers “a critical opportunity for Catholics … to exercise our civic duty and fulfill our social responsibility in a way that becomes us as aspiring saints,” the Catholic Bishops of Pennsylvania said in a statement Nov. 2. “Because politics is the place where competing moral visions of a society meet and struggle,” […]
Clerical changes announced
Most Reverend Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap., Archbishop of Philadelphia, announces the following appointments effective November 1, 2012, unless otherwise noted: PAROCHIAL ADMINISTRATOR Reverend David M. Vidal, I.V.E., to Parochial Administrator, Saint Hugh of Cluny Parish, Philadelphia, while continuing as Pastor, Saint Veronica Parish, Philadelphia SPECIAL MINISTRY Reverend Monsignor J. Michael Flood, to Administrator, Regina […]
Anger management vital for clergy and religious, Jesuit journal says
ROME (CNS) — Anger awareness and management are vital for priests and members of religious orders because they are called to be people of dialogue, fraternity, service, peace and justice, and to treat others with charity, said an influential Jesuit magazine. If clergy and religious don’t have “an adequate integration of aggression, they can become […]
November a month to remember the dead, also celebrate life, says priest
BROWNSVILLE, Texas (CNS) — Death does not mean the end. “Life is changed, not ended,” said Father Gregory Labus, coordinator of the Office of Liturgy and Worship for the Diocese of Brownsville. November, he pointed out, is the month dedicated to remembering the dead. [hotblock] On All Saints’ Day, Nov. 1, Catholics honor the saints, […]
Vatican to begin trial of computer tech accused of helping papal butler
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — A second criminal trial opens Nov. 5 in the little courtroom on the ground floor of the Vatican’s tribunal building, located just behind the apse of St. Peter’s Basilica. Claudio Sciarpelletti, a computer technician in the Vatican Secretariat of State, is to be tried on charges of aiding and abetting Paolo […]
Priest says prayers, rosary got him across triathlon finish line
LOS ANGELES (CNS) — After California priest Father Thomas Baker finished a grueling triathlon in Hawaii, he acknowledged that parts of the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike race and a 26.2-mile marathon were tough. That’s when, he said later, he “used the rosary, my mantras and the faces of all those praying for me to help […]