News
Increasingly on their own, women migrants face special dangers
ROME (CNS) — Increasing numbers of women are migrating alone, a situation that makes them vulnerable to violence and exploitation, but one that often shows their courage and commitment to making a better life for their families, said speakers at a conference in Rome. About 214 million people live outside their country of origin, and […]
Father Eugene Cusick, pastor emeritus of St. Bede Parish, dies
Father Eugene G. Cusick, pastor emeritus of St. Bede the Venerable Parish in Holland died Sunday, May 20. The Reception of the Body will be held at Saint Bede the Venerable Church, Holland, on Friday, May 25 at 4 p.m., followed by a viewing. A parish Mass will be celebrated at 7 p.m. Auxiliary Bishop […]
Six men ordained as priests for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia
Saturday, May 19 was a beautiful, sun-filled day. But even if there had been a roaring hurricane, it would have been a beautiful day inside the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul, because that was the date and place where six men, after years of study and discernment, received ordination to the priesthood at […]
NATO summit, protests provide some lessons for Catholic school students
CHICAGO (CNS) — With world leaders descending on Chicago for the May 20-21 NATO summit, some Catholic school teachers were incorporating lessons about the political-military alliance for their students. And with thousands of people coming to the city to demonstrate and draw attention to focus on issues ranging from war to the environment to poverty, […]
Franciscan University drops student health insurance plan
WASHINGTON (CNS) — Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, is discontinuing its student health insurance plan in the upcoming school year in opposition to the Obama administration’s mandate requiring most religious employers, including colleges, to provide no-cost contraceptive and sterilization coverage in its health insurance plans. The school made the announcement to its students in mid-April […]
Obama ‘accommodation’ offers no fundamental change, USCCB attorneys say
WASHINGTON (CNS) — Although the Obama administration’s proposed “accommodation” for religious employers to the mandate that contraceptives and sterilization be included in most health plans “may create an appearance of moderation and compromise,” it does not change the administration’s fundamental position, attorneys for the U.S. bishops said in comments filed May 15. “We are convinced […]
Prosecution rests its case in clergy trial; conspiracy charges dropped
For weeks the words of Msgr. William J. Lynn in testimony before a 2004 Philadelphia grand jury investigating clergy sexual abuse were used against him by state prosecutors. They intensified their use of the testimony and a trove of hundreds of archdiocesan memos and letters, narrated by Philadelphia police detectives and assistant district attorneys along […]
Father Michael Heim, 55, parochial vicar at St. Dominic Parish, dies
Father Michael J. Heim, 55, a parochial vicar at St. Dominic Parish in Philadelphia, died May 4. Born in Levittown, the son of the late William Heim and the late Sophia Rydzewska Heim, he attended St. Joseph the Worker School and Bishop Egan High School before entering St. Charles Borromeo Seminary. He was ordained May […]
Charles Madden, local artist, dies at 78
Charles L. Madden, 78, a noted area artist proficient in various media, died May 7. Born in Philadelphia Madden had an interest in art from an early age, and he earned a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the Philadelphia College of Art in 1956. He immediately began his career as co-founder of Madden, Baron […]
Mexican priest who helps migrants takes break after increased threats
MEXICO CITY (CNS) — A Mexican priest known for sheltering undocumented Central American migrants — and defying organized criminal groups and corrupt politicians — has withdrawn from his work temporarily due to threats, but says he will return. News of the threats came the same day officials in the northern state of Nuevo Leon found […]