News
Seeing the face of Jesus
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John told us all about what Jesus said and did, but not one of them mentioned what He looked like. The vaguely European-featured Jesus with a brown beard and hair was pretty much the standard for most of history, at least until Rembrandt Van Rijn, the greatest painter, draftsman and printmaker of the Dutch Golden Age came along. In the mid-17th century he and his students at his Amsterdam studio painted a series of at least eight heads of Christ which set the liturgical art world on its ear.
Change can bring spiritual lift, fresh outlook
PHILADELPHIA (CNS) —When Nancy Frankowski walks to church, she is confronted with scaffolding covering much of her beloved Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul so that workers can refresh the exterior of Philadelphia's 147-year-old Catholic structure. While it's a temporary eyesore, the Philadelphia Catholic says she is looking forward to seeing the building restored to its original grandeur. She is also looking for a renovation of sorts for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia when it welcomes Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, formerly of Denver, who succeeds the retiring Cardinal Justin Rigali Sept. 8.
Preparing for excellence in math at Archbishop Ryan H.S.
Students from Archbishop Ryan High School are preparing for the new academic year. But there is a group of students that began preparing earlier than most. They attended the Advanced Statistics Institute held at Ryan Aug. 29 to Sept. 2.
Immigration status not measure of human dignity, says Catholic Social Services administrator
Mark Shea, administrator of the Immigration Program at Catholic Social Services in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, testified before the House State Government Committee in Harrisburg Aug. 31 regarding the impact “attrition through enforcement” has on immigrant families, particularly children. A number of legislative proposals are being considered in Pennsylvania that address immigration.
Mission: Help the poor
The poverty in Haiti was unlike anything Lindsay Ward had ever seen. Children as young as 8 years old lined up with teens and adults along the fence at Port-au-Prince International Airport to beg for money or food. At a local school, lessons were conducted in a shack. Las Cayes General Hospital was a concrete building with a room in each wing assigned for various purposes — the emergency room, the operating room, the recovery room and pediatrics.
Taking care of ballpark business
Even though he was only 8 years old, Sal DeAngelis vividly remembers attending his first Phillies game. “It was in 1985 against the Cubs,” he said. “I fell in love with the game right then and there.” Now 34, DeAngelis and baseball are inseparable. Not only does the graduate of Nazareth Academy grade school, Archbishop Ryan High School (class of 1995) and Holy Family University maintain the same passion and loyalty for arguably the most popular franchise in Philadelphia, he is employed by the Phillies in a very important position that literally affects every fan who slips through the turnstile to enjoy three hours of professional baseball.
Hurricane Irene slams East Coast
Irene, every wordsmith knows, means “peaceful.” Hurricane Irene wasn’t exactly peaceful, although the strongest wind was the media hype rained upon us ad nauseam this past weekend. But if you were affected by power outages, basement or ground floor flooding, fallen trees, flooded roads, or just living in a riverfront community, it was definitely no fun. Bristol happens to be a Delaware River community, and at St. Mark’s, while there was no church flooding, they were without power, and only those who actually live in Bristol Borough could make it to church because most roads were closed.
Memorials for 9-11 planned
This year Sept. 11 has special significance because it is the 10th anniversary of the killing of so many innocent people, and because it is a Sunday, a day on which many churches will commemorate it during their liturgies.
Talks with teachers’ union continue
Negotiations between the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the union representing Catholic high school teachers continued this week ahead of a possible strike vote on Tuesday. While the contract with the Association of Catholic Teachers Local 1776 expired Aug. 31, talks with representatives of the archdiocesan Office for Catholic Education were progressing.
Pilgrims leave for World Youth Day in Spain
Auxiliary Bishop Michael J. Fitzgerald gathered Aug. 10 with 30 young people from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary before departing on a 12-day pilgrimage that concludes at World Youth Day with Pope Benedict XVI in Madrid, Spain from Aug. 16-21. Bishop Fitzgerald and more than 200 young people from across the […]