One of the many devotions that the deacon may lead is Benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament or, as it’s simply known, “Benediction.” As the Catholic Encyclopedia describes it: It is ordinarily an afternoon or evening devotion and consists in the singing of certain hymns, or litanies, or canticles, before the Blessed Sacrament, which is…

Here’s a shocking thought for you. It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Oh, we aren’t getting catalogs – not yet, anyway – and the elves and tinsel and snowmen aren’t up in the stores yet. We still have months to go before the first carols start playing in the malls and the Salvation…

I credit The Anchoress for first bringing this to the world’s attention (or, at least, mine). It’s a fascinating new document from the Vatican on, of all things, rules of the road. The Catholic News Service describes them as “10 Commandments for Drivers,” and that’s not far off the mark. The official title is “Guidelines…

This is just too good and interesting to pass up. As a journalist who happens to be a member of the clergy (or a clergyman who happens to be a journalist, take your pick), I found this encounter between a venerable columnist and a bishop both heartening and fascinating. The columnist is the Providence Journal’s…

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