Opinion
Be strong and take heart
This is a time of distress among God’s people in the Philadelphia Archdiocese. A time of confusion, emotional pain, even anger over the scandal of child sexual abuse by members of the Church, including priests.People have witnessed it before. Not just in recent memory, given revelations of the scandal that has affected much of the […]
Jesus forsaken: Our key to unity
By Msgr. Michael K. Magee In the present crisis that the Church is experiencing because of the sins of some of her members and the suffering of others that those sins have caused, it is important for us to reflect on the everlasting source of the Church’s unity and holiness that remains untainted by anything […]
To speak the truth
“The Church needs to open the doors,” said Patricia Byrne, a faithful member of Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish in Bryn Mawr. “(W)e must speak the truth, no matter how painful.” She is one of the numerous Catholics who spoke with CS&T reporters following Mass Feb. 27 or wrote a letter to the editor […]
Handing on the faith
The Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced this week that seven Catholic grade schools will close at the end of the school year. Many parishes in the Archdiocese face the same prospects as these schools: too few prospective students live in a given area to keep enrollment at a sustainable level; costs of maintaining a large building, […]
Religious sisters rendered tender mercies of service to both sides during Civil War
By Ed Dybicz This year commemorates the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the American Civil War. It is also a time to reflect on those who provided help and mercy. During the Rebellion, there were more than 600 nuns from 21 separate religious communities ministering to soldiers of both the North and the South, […]
Faith is rooted in no one but God
By Father Leonard Peterson Note: Father Peterson spoke the following to his parishioners at St. Maria Goretti Parish, Hatfield, at all weekend Masses Feb. 12-13. Dear Parishioners, We have learned, through events sad and joyful, that a week can embrace great changes. Consider all the positives for the people of Egypt that came about in […]
We are sorry
We are sorry. We, the Church, are the lay men, women and children; the religious who pray for us and work with us; the deacons, priests and bishops who lead us and bring us the divine graces of the Catholic sacramental system. We, the Church, are sorry for the sexual abuse suffered by our brothers […]
Working through a hard death
By Father Tad Pacholczyk Caregivers and health care professionals can and often do greatly assist those who are suffering and dying. Even with careful pain management and comfort measures, however, the dying process can still be agonizing and difficult. Each death has a unique and particular trajectory, but even the most difficult and unpleasant deaths […]
The painful process of restoring trust
A 2005 Philadelphia grand jury report blasting the Church in Philadelphia with sordid details of hundreds of cases of sexual assault of minors by clergy in the Archdiocese was bad enough at that time. Catholics here may well remember the shock and outrage over horrific stories of violations of children by some priests. Many people […]
What is a Deacon in the Church?
Msgr. Michael K. MageeThe Challenge of Jesus today Four weeks ago the front page of the Catholic Standard & Times featured an article announcing the re-opening of admissions to the program of formation for permanent deacons in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. This announcement provides an occasion to reflect on this important ministry that takes us […]