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Our World Is A Picture Book of God's Best Handiwork | ||||
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July 2, 2009 In this edition:1. Leadership inseparable from effective communication.2. Interactive Web site will promote discussion and learning among priests. 3. Benefits of new communications technology for the church. 4. Tony Blair's address in Philadelphia: A church that communicates. 5. Bishop Kicanas outlines church communications challenges. 6. Grasping the moment and filling the vacuum - authentically. 7. How to communicate - and how "not" to communicate. (Click on the title for the rest of this newsletter) |
June 19, 2009 In this edition:1. Is laughter still good medicine?2. Church communications: Understanding those one hopes to reach. 3. Current quotes to ponder: a) The threat of unchecked hatred. b) Twitter away. 4. Pivotal moment in hemisphere's history of migration. 5. The new archbishop of post-Katrina New Orleans. 6. The Year for Priests. 7. Encyclical on work and the economy coming soon. (Click on the title for the rest of this newsletter) |
St. Ignatius’ Own Story: As told to Luis Gonzalez de CamaraTranslated by William J. Young, S.J. Loyola University Press. Chicago. 1980. Pp. 138 An Excerpt from the Introduction Here is St. Ignatius’ own story, with the authentic tone and clear strength which characterize the direct statements of the Saints. Reading it, we see the man in his true quality and watch the molding of his firmly knit nature into the great lover of Christ and loyal knight in his service which divine grace produced by its strange, sure ways. Brief as it is, this account creates a memorable picture of Inigo Loyola, the spirited Basque nobleman who left to himself would have been perhaps a soldier honorably remembered in a small sector of the Pyrenees, but who in fact gave up the opportunity. What he did accomplish shook his generation and went on to change the course of history by the powerful action of a current he set up, a force which mingled with many others but guided them too, an impact which is still shaping the human drama. An excerpt from the book To a Man Who Was Tempted The recipient of this letter is unknown. He apparently had some connection with the community in Padua. He wished to return to his homeland or remain in the house at Padua, without however being a member of the community. This St. Ignatius refused to permit. In words that breathe of affection for the tempted man, Ignatius persuades him to leave the Society’s house, but not to return (Click title to read more) |
This prayer was found on the body of Aspirant (Lieutenant) André Zirnheld, killed in action in Libya, in July 1942, during a raid behind enemy lines. A college philosophy professor before the war, Aspirant Zirnheld served in one of the very first companies of the famed British S.A.S.
Although Zirnheld never served in the Foreign Legion, his prayer has been adopted by all French Paratroopers, the Legion included. I bring this prayer to You, Lord, For you alone can give What one cannot demand from oneself. Give me, Lord, what You have left over, Give me what no one ever asks of You. I don’t ask You for rest, Or quiet, Whether of soul or body; I don’t ask You for wealth, Nor for success, nor even health perhaps. That sort of thing You get asked for so much That You can’t have any of it left. Give me, Lord, what You have left over, Give me what no one wants from You. I want insecurity, strife, And I want You to give me these Once and for all. So that I can be sure of having them always, Since I shall not always have the courage To ask You for them. Give me, Lord, what You have left over, Give me what others want nothing to do with. (Click title to read more) |
When what is precious is taken from youBy Ron RolheiserPerhaps the reality that is hardest of all to accept in life is the unalterable fact that everything that is precious to us will, in some way, eventually be taken away. Our kids grow up and leave home, friends move away, loved ones die, we lose our health, and eventually we die too. Moreover even what is precious to us in terms of our faith and values suffers in the same way: things change, thoughts and feelings shift, rock foundations that once anchored us unassailably give way, doubt creeps in, the bottom falls out, and we are left wondering what we really believe in and what really can be trusted. Happily this is only half the equation: Everything we lose is eventually given back to us, and in a deeper way. Our kids become wonderful adults who begin to parent us, new bonds of friendship form across distance, we reconnect in a deeper and more permanent way to our loved ones who have died, we find something deeper and more permanent than physical health, death opens us up to the infinite, and the bottom falling out of old beliefs sends us free-falling to a place where we land on bedrock, on a foundation so secure that it can never be shaken again. We see the pattern for this in scripture in the story of the Jewish community and the Babylonian exile. This is the background: After arriving in Palestine ("the Promised Land") it took a number of generations to establish control over the land, unite all the various tribes into one nation, and build a temple in Jerusalem as center for worship. The great kings, David and Solomon, accomplished this and the people were left with a great sense of security, (Click title to read more) |
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The Ministerial Counseling Role: Guidelines for Ethical BehaviorAuthor: Thomas B. Drummond The Plains Group, Inc., Carson City, Nevada. 2001. Pp. 61 An Excerpt from the Preface: The following is intended for the minister with no formal training in how to intervene in another person’s life. It is also for counselors trained to a relatively low level of competency. Those are counselors who believe that they can, and should, substitute their own views, beliefs, prejudices and politics for those of their clients. They are also counselors who believe that they can pursue the fulfillment of their needs for affection and love through their clients. There are many such counselors who have not worked through their own life’s issues. Accordingly, they desire their clients to meet the counselor’s needs or adopt the counselor’s perspectives of abuse, or of men, or of women as a means of therapeutic change. To recruit a client to one’s own views is to live vicariously through the client. The well-trained counselor understands that they may never exploit their clients. They may never prove their own rightness by requiring their clients to feel the same way as they do. (Click title to read more) |
Church social teaching confronts world problems with Gospel powerBy Carol GlatzCatholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- For more than 100 years, Catholic social teaching has tried to help people face the world's social, political and economic challenges with the power of the Gospel. Pope Benedict XVI announced June 29 that he had signed his first formal contribution to the list of papal encyclical letters on social themes and that it was titled "Caritas in Veritate" ("Love in Truth"). Although dated June 29, the letter was not expected be released for another week. The pope said his letter would look at modern problems in the field of promoting development, and he asked for prayers for "this latest contribution that the church offers humanity in its commitment for sustainable progress in full respect for human dignity and the real needs of all." Instead of focusing on theological beliefs, the social encyclicals written by most modern-day popes have tried to shape the way Christians and all people of good will can better serve the common good. Each social encyclical was unique in that it sought to respond to the most pressing social realities at the time. (Click title to read more) |
Sociologist, panelists discuss how to unite varied church generationsBy Nancy Frazier O'BrienCatholic News Service WASHINGTON (CNS) -- A leading scholar on the sociology of religion and Catholics of four different generations held a lively discussion June 26 about how to bring together those who see the church as an institution and those who see it as a collection of people who choose to join. Both groups "value Catholic identity, affirm core Catholic beliefs and stress the importance of the sacraments," said James D. Davidson, professor emeritus of sociology at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., in a talk on "How American Catholics Think About the Church." But the two groups -- described by Eugene Kennedy in his 1988 book, "Tomorrow's Catholics, Yesterday's Church" as Culture I and Culture II Catholics -- can differ dramatically on other aspects of Catholic beliefs and practices, Davidson said. Culture I Catholics see the clergy as the church's authority figures, place a high value on obedience and agree with the church even on peripheral beliefs, he said, while Culture II Catholics see the laity as leaders, value thinking for themselves and often disagree (Click title to read more) |
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Pace of parish closings in US has quickened over past 20 yearsBy Mark PattisonCatholic News Service WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Parish closings are nothing new in the history of the U.S. Catholic Church, but the pace of closures and mergers has accelerated over the past 20 years, as several factors have converged. One factor has been the shrinking population base of many parishes. Catholic families in the city and country have fewer children now than they did two generations ago. In urban areas, the post-World War II baby boom, accompanied by economic expansion, led people to forsake crowded city neighborhoods for new suburban developments. And in rural areas, as economic opportunities dried up, younger generations found them in metropolitan areas. (Click title to read more) |
Church Management Roundtable Focuses on Effective Church CommunicationNational Leadership Roundtable on Church ManagementWharton School of the University of Pennsylvania Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair addressed a gathering of Catholic leaders June 25 in Philadelphia on the complex demands of communicating effectively in today’s “transformed world” – a world that in communications terms has become “a different planet almost.” Blair spoke to Catholic bishops and pastors, leaders in business and finance, educators, philanthropists and others attending the National Leadership Roundtable on Church Management’s annual meeting at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. “Clarity of direction” and strong, but not arrogant, belief serve (Click title to read more) |
Cardinal urges Boston priests to be united in sacramental brotherhoodBy Sarah M. BarrettCatholic News Service BURLINGTON, Mass. (CNS) -- Priests today must be inspired by the ministry of St. John Vianney, their patron saint, which was characterized by love and prayer, Boston Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley said. He urged priests to forge a renewed fraternal unity that celebrates their shared missions of serving Christ and being shepherds for his people. The cardinal made the comments at the Boston Archdiocese's 2009 Presbyteral Convocation, held June 10 to help archdiocesan priests prepare for the Year for Priests, which opened June 19. Pope Benedict XVI announced the church's yearlong focus in March in an effort to further appreciation and support for priests around the world. (Click title to read more) | |
Our One Great FidelityBy Ron RolheiserIn one of his sermons on the Eucharist, Ronald Knox, made this observation: Throughout two thousand years of history, Christians, both whole churches and individual believers, have consistently been able to ignore many of Jesus' key commandments and invitations. We have either been too weak to follow his counsels or we have rationalized them away in some way. And so, to a large extent, we have exempted ourselves from the demand to love our enemies, to turn the other cheek when attacked, to forgive 70 times 7, to leave our gift at the altar and first go and seek reconciliation with our brother before we worship, to place justice on the same level as worship, to see mercy as more important than dogma, to not commit adultery, to not steal, to not call someone a fool, to not tell lies, to not give in to jealousy. We have, in virtually every one of these areas, individually and collectively, a history of infidelity and rationalization. But we have, for the most part, been faithful and consistent throughout all the years to one of Jesus' commands, to celebrate the Eucharist, to meet together in every circumstance and share his word and break bread and drink wine in his memory. (Click title to read more) |
When parishes close, there's more to deal with than just logisticsBy Dennis SadowskiCatholic News Service WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Charles Zech and Robert Miller have some advice for parishes going through what some have characterized as the greatest period of change in the history of the American Catholic Church brought on by the recent closing and merging of hundreds of parishes across the country. First, they said, it's important to recognize that people who lose their parishes are experiencing a trauma that can be as great as the loss of kin. Second, Zech and Miller advised that when people come together in a new parish the dynamics that emerge are similar to those that surface when a man and a woman with children from previous marriages get married and face blending two family units into one. Merging parishes involves not just making sure individuals get along and minimizing the appearance of favoritism, but especially requires integrating the experiences, culture and history of both communities into a new Catholic community, said Zech, director of the Center for the Study of Church Management at Villanova University School of Business in Pennsylvania. (Click title to read more) |
The list of dioceses experiencing closings and mergers in recent years is growing, according to Catholic News Service reports: -- Boston: 65 of 267 parishes closed or merged in 2004 and 2005. -- Camden, N.J.: 56 of 124 parishes to merge starting in 2009. -- New York: 10 parishes closed and 11 others merged in 2007. -- Syracuse, N.Y.: 36 of 173 parishes closed since 2006, with another 17 set to close as pastors retire. -- Allentown, Pa.: 47 of 151 parishes closed in 2008. -- Greensburg, Pa.: 15 of 100 parishes closed in 2008. -- Scranton, Pa.: more than 100 parishes closing or merging between 2008 and 2012. Overall, data compiled by the Official Catholic Directory show that the number of parishes peaked in 1992 at 19,971. In the 2009 edition of the directory, which reflects information gathered in 2008, there were 18,674 parishes, a decline of 1,297 (6.5 percent) in 15 years. (Click title to read more) | |
Parish LifeTom RobertsNCR Editor at Large When Iwanowski arrived as pastor at age 46, the average age of parishioners was between 65 and 70. The church had no readers, no Eucharistic ministers and no music program. "It was just going through the motions and acting as if it was 1950, but it was now 1995. They really did not see what was going on around them. It was a matter of trying to get people to see what was there and to make the changes that were necessary." "This little church is within easy commuter distance of New York City. The church is a few hundred feet away from the intersection of Sussex and Warren streets in Jersey City. Iwanowski bounds into the intersection to show a visitor that if you look straight South on Warren it looks like the Statue of Liberty is floating there, right at the end of the street. Look east on Sussex, and you can see the emptiness in the Manhattan skyline that used to be the towers of the World Trade Center. The larger point perhaps, beyond the geographical curiosity, is that this little church is within easy commuter distance of New York City and, like nearby Hoboken, (Click title to read more) |
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The Year of the PriesthoodBy John AllenThe National Catholic Reporter On Tuesday, I spoke to a day-long gathering of priests in the Chicago archdiocese. The event was held in a big dining hall, and I was feeling fairly good about the turnout until someone showed me a letter of invitation the priests had received from their boss, Cardinal Francis George. "Your presence and participation are very important," George had written, "and I expect that you will make every effort to attend." Alas, the crowd size thus probably had more to do with George's not-too-subtle exhortation than my meager star power. For the record, the priests couldn't have been more gracious, whatever they may have thought privately about giving up a morning to listen to me pontificate. While the bulk of my presentation was devoted to a review of major trends shaping the Catholic future, I began with a note I always try to strike when speaking to priests, and which I'll repeat here. It's no secret that these are not the easiest of times to be a Roman Catholic priest. Clergy shortages mean priests are pulled in a thousand different directions, the sexual abuse crisis has given the priesthood a black eye, and on and on. Despite all that, what I pick up repeatedly as I move around the Catholic world is a deep sense of gratitude for the service and sacrifice that so many good priests provide. People know that despite all the challenges, the vast majority of priests still get out of bed (Click title to read more) |
Year for Priests: Pies, prayers not enough; clergy need love, supportBy Cindy WoodenCatholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) --Each and every one of the world's 408,000 priests should feel loved, respected, valued and supported in his vocation to bring the Gospel to an increasingly secular -- but still open -- world, said Cardinal Claudio Hummes. The Brazilian cardinal, prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, said the 2009-2010 Year for Priests, which begins June 19, must recognize the new challenges and possibilities Catholic priests face. Pope Benedict XVI called for the special year to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the death of St. John Vianney, who was famed for his priestly ministry. The aim, however, is not to organize a historical commemoration, but to look realistically at the world in which priests live and work and to recognize that the horrible abuse perpetrated by some priests has harmed the reputation of all priests, Cardinal Hummes said. "Many priests in the world have been wounded by what has happened in recent times -- pedophilia and other crimes that the media has publicized and that are true and extremely serious, especially pedophilia in which the victims are minors whose lives often are damaged forever," Cardinal Hummes told Catholic News Service in early June. "These are terrible crimes that must be judged and punished," he said. (Click title to read more) |
WASHINGTON—The U.S. Bishops’ Secretariat for Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations has set up a Web site to mark the Year for Priests, to be celebrated June 19, 2009-June 19, 2010, throughout the world. Pope Benedict XVI has designated the year-long celebration to begin on the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a day of prayer for the sanctification of all priests. The pope also has designated St. John Vianney as the Universal Patron of All Priests on the occasion of the 150th Anniversary of the saint’s death. The saint, who also is known as the Cure of Ars, is the patron of parish priests. The Year for priests Website can be found at http://www.usccb.org/ Elements of the site include Pope Benedict’s message for the occasion and the announcement of the plenary indulgence in both English and Spanish in conjunction with the celebration. Additional elements include prayers that have been commissioned for both priests and laity. PDF documents of these prayers (English/Spanish) can be downloaded and printed for diocesan and parochial use. During the year, the Secretariat will provide monthly articles by prominent Catholic women who will write about their faith and trust in the priesthood. Other activities for the Year for Priests will include a gathering of priests in Rome for the culmination of the Year for Priests, as well as retreat on the national level. Information on the retreat will be provided through the Web site. (Click title to read more) | |
Few surprises, but some glimmers of hope in new US church statisticsby Nancy Frazier O'BrienCatholic News Service WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Statistically, there are few surprises in the 2009 Official Catholic Directory. The number of patients served in Catholic hospitals and the number of clients assisted by Catholic charitable agencies went up. Fewer baptisms, first Communions, confirmations and marriages were performed in Catholic churches last year. The number of Catholic parishes and elementary schools in the U.S. continues to decline. But here and there, there are signs of hope in the statistical summary that is designed to present a snapshot of what the U.S. Catholic Church looked like on Jan. 1, 2009. The totals for priests, permanent deacons and diocesan seminarians each experienced a small increase in the 2009 book. There were more students in Catholic colleges and universities; in private, Catholic-run high schools and elementary schools; and in high school religious education programs. And at 68.1 million, an increase of nearly 1 million over the 2008 directory, Catholics continue to make up 22 percent of the U.S. population. The more than 2,100-page Official Catholic Directory, also known as the Kenedy directory after its New Jersey publishers' imprint, P.J. Kenedy and Sons, is due out June 17. Catholic News Service obtained an advance copy of the statistical summary compiled from annual reports provided by the nation's 209 (Click title to read more) |
The Light of Eden: A Christian WorldviewAuthor: Harold C. Raley John M. Hardy Publishing. Houson and Alpine. 2008. Pp.194 An Excerpt from the Jacket:
An Excerpt from the book: St. Augustine believed at one point in his life that as the failing Roman government slid into chaos the Church might have to assume political responsibility for Hippo and the surrounding province. It may come to that point for us again under conditions of political fragmentation unthinkable at the moment. For the world — Christian and pagan, democratic and dictatorial — is becoming ungovernable. The time may come when the Church will be the only remaining organized body capable of assuming responsibility for the fate of people. If it happened tomorrow, would the Church be ready? Or would our disunited churches vanish also in the general social and governmental collapse? Pray that such a time (Click title to read more) |
Priestly and
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The Wine of Certitude: A Literary Biography of Ronald KnoxAuthor: David Rooney Ignatius Press. San Francisco, CA. 2009. Pp. 427 An Excerpt from the Jacket:
Rooney examines the full range of Knox’ writings including apologetics, detective fiction, satire, novels and other genres and offers an intellectual portrait that is both fascinating and engaging. The author includes many samples of Knox’s own writings throughout the book. Rooney thus uses a mosaic approach that makes the works and the person of Knox emerge from the pages in a vivid and lively way. Knox was a prolific author who wrote over seventy-five books, as well as many articles and homilies. He utilized many genres including satire, novels, spirituality, and detective stories. His literary works include The Hidden (Click title to read more) |
Grass, Sky, Song - A Moral Voiceby Ron RolheiserGood writing, like good art, is moral without being moralizing, expresses deep sentiment without being sentimental, challenges without inducing false guilt, and is mature without being cynical. No easy formula. With this in mind, I would like to highlight a new book by a Canadian writer, Trevor Herriot, Grass, Sky, Song, Promise and Peril in the World of Grassland Birds., It walks that fine line: powerfully moral without a trace of bad moralizing, mature without a hint of cynicism, a book about death that leaves its reader with hope. On the surface, it is a book about grassland birds declining and disappearing in the Canadian and American prairies, but it is a book about more than birds, much more. It's about our relationship to the earth, all of us, whether we live in the country or in the city, and how unconsciously, no matter how innocent our intentions might be, our grip on nature is slowly tightening so as to threaten to suffocate the very life forces that support us. But it might be a little ahead of its time. Its narrative is a little like Nietzsche's Madman a hundred years ago. He smashes a lantern in the market square to get peoples' attention, but then announces that he has probably proclaimed an urgent message too early. The evidence needed to convince people will only come later, when they begin to feel the (Click title to read more) |
Remarkable congruence' between pope and president on IslamBy John L Allen JrThe National Catholic Reporter — Please support this newspaper and its outstanding reporting! If anyone is still puzzled about why the Vatican sat out the fuss over President Barack Obama's appearance at Notre Dame -- and more generally, why the Vatican has refused to allow its relationship with Obama to be defined by obvious differences over abortion -- the president's speech to the Muslim world yesterday in Cairo should go a long way toward clearing things up. Seen through Catholic eyes, perhaps the most striking thing about Obama's speech is what Fr. James Massa, the U.S. bishops' top official for inter-faith dialogue, called its "remarkable congruence" with Benedict's own message to Muslims during his May 8-15 trip to Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Territories. The coincidence of Benedict and Obama both visiting the Middle East at roughly the same time, and both delivering much the same pitch, hints at a beguiling geopolitical prospect: That just as John Paul II and Ronald Reagan joined forces a quarter-century ago to vanquish Communism, so a pope and president might stand shoulder-to-shoulder once again, this time to engineer a historic rapprochement between Islam (Click title to read more) | |
In Internet age, church cannot avoid debate, Vatican spokesman saysBy John ThavisCatholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Recent Vatican communications controversies have shown that in the Internet age the church cannot avoid debate and in fact must be prepared to explain its teachings more convincingly through new media, the Vatican's spokesman said. "In a world such as ours, we would be deluding ourselves if we thought that communication can always be carefully controlled, or that it can always be conducted smoothly and as a matter of course," the spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, said in a lecture May 18 at the Westminster seminary in London. Father Lombardi said that, like any great institution today, the Catholic Church is going to come in for frequent criticism. Thanks in large part to the Internet, the "chorus of voices" that takes part in such debates is larger and more diverse, he said. The church's strategy should be to enunciate its positions, evaluate criticism, and then give a clearer and more penetrating response, he said. "It is a mistake to think that we ought to avoid debate. We must always seek to conduct debate in a way that leads to a better understanding of the church's position -- and we must never get discouraged," he said. Father Lombardi cited three of Pope Benedict XVI's actions that have drawn what he called "sensational" media-driven criticism: his speech on Islam in Regensburg, Germany, in 2006; his lifting of the excommunication of Bishop Richard Williamson, who had denied the extent of the Holocaust; and his more recent comment that condom distribution is not an effective way to stop the spread of AIDS. (Click title to read more) |
[N.B. Read the results of the CARA Special Report on our website for more insights on how retired priests feel about retirement and the benefits they receive] The Archdiocese of Boston, facing a clergy pension system that will run out of money in 2011 without a financial rescue, is now taking its first concrete steps to limit benefits and raise revenue to shore up the fund. Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley's "decree of promulgation" is raising concerns among some sick priests, who fear a loss of benefits. Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley has mailed to all priests a legalistic 17-page "decree of promulgation" that is raising concerns among some sick priests because it says that they will receive only 60 percent of their stipend, in addition to their healthcare coverage, if they are on health leave. Also in some cases it will require them to submit medical and tax documents to the archdiocese in order to "demonstrate need." The policy also requires priests on health leave for more than six months to seek state and federal government assistance, such as Social Security Disability Insurance, which is a break from past practice. The policy affects only the 40 priests who are currently "unassigned" because they are sick, disabled, or on a leave of absence, but it signals the archdiocese's willingness to make difficult and unpopular decisions as it attempts to address its most serious financial challenge. Two priests on health leave expressed concerns about the policy in separate interviews last week, but neither would allow his name to be used, citing fears that the archdiocese would limit their benefits. (Click title to read more) |
Mystical Images for Our Religious QuestBy Ron RolheiserThere are few things as powerful as a poetic image. The nation with the best poets will ultimately triumph because poetry is more powerful than armies. An army can beat a nation into submission, but only a poetic image can change a people's vision. That's not an exaggeration. To offer a small example: Centuries ago, Leonardo da Vinci painted a picture of the Last Supper. No historian in the world would suggest that the actual Last Supper of Jesus looked anything like da Vinci's painting, but his image of the Last Supper has so branded and stamped itself into our universal consciousness that today we cannot not picture the Last Supper, except as he painted it. With this in mind, I want to highlight two images from the Gospel of John, mystical images that we would do well to brand into our consciousness, like a da Vinci painting. They are images for the religious quest, for true pilgrimage, for discipleship. Unlike the other Gospels, where Mary, the mother of Jesus, is presented as the ideal disciple, John's Gospel gives Mary a different role, that of being Eve, the mother of all creation. It then gives us two powerful images of discipleship, one male and one female: The Beloved Disciple and Mary of Magdala. The Beloved Disciple, whom we commonly, though perhaps naively, identify with John himself, offers one image of what means to be a disciple of Jesus. John presents this figure in various guises, but all have this in common: The Beloved Disciple has a unique intimacy with Jesus. Perhaps the single most powerful picture of this is that of the Beloved Disciple reclining at the Last Supper with his head on Jesus' breast. (Click title to read more) | |
Pope says simplicity, sobriety, sacrifice aren't just for monksBy Sarah DelaneyCatholic News Service During his weekly general audience May 27 in St. Peter's Square, the pope used the example of the Byzantine monk St. Theodore the Studite to explain how the virtues that monks and nuns strive for should be emulated by all in everyday life. St. Theodore, who was born in 759, emphasized the ideals of "renunciation of private property, freedom from material things, sobriety (and) simplicity," the pope told the crowd of about 14,000 people. "This extreme form is valid for monks, but the spirit is valid for everyone," he said. St. Theodore, who was born to a noble family and entered the monastery at age 22, led the opposition to the Iconoclastic movement that called for the destruction of religious images deemed to promote idolatry. (Click title to read more) |
An Excerpt from the Jacket:
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Laypeople must share responsibility for church, pope tells delegatesBy Cindy WoodenCatholic News Service ROME (CNS) -- Laypeople are called not simply to help their priests run their parishes, but to share fully in the responsibility of building up the church, Pope Benedict XVI told delegates to the annual convention of the Diocese of Rome. "This will require a change of mentality, especially regarding laypeople -- to move from considering them to be the clergy's collaborators to recognizing them as truly sharing responsibility for the existence and action of the church," the pope said May 26 during an evening talk at the Basilica of St. John Lateran. The pope's speech about the identity of the church and the role of its members launched a three-day meeting by diocesan delegates to assess pastoral services and come up with ideas for strengthening the participation of Catholics in the life of their parishes and the diocese. The first step, the pope said, should be to improve education efforts so that people would (Click title to read more) |
Our inspiration for the National Institute for the Renewal of the Priesthood stems from a longstanding friendship with Father John Klein, a priest of the
Our work is made possible in part by grants from the Catholic Church Extension Society, the Paluch Family Foundation and Our Sunday Visitor. We are also grateful for the prayers of the Madonna House. In addition, The Arthur J. Schmitt Foundation has generously provided us with a grant in honor of Monsignor Ken Velo, a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago who has been an inspiration to so many for so many years. If there is any way that I can be of service to you, I hope you will take advantage of the link below to send me an email. I would enjoy hearing from you with any comments or questions you may have. Father Gene Hemrick
The National Institute for the Renewal of the Priesthood Washington Theological Union 6896 Laurel Street, Northwest Washington, D.C. Dedicated to energizing the spiritual and intellectual life of the priesthood
through an ongoing dialogue via the Internet. This Web page was created and is maintained by the National Institute for the Renewal of the Priesthood.
Please send comments to Father Hemrick by clicking on his name.  .Last updated July 3, 2009 |
