Inspiration Faith & Prayer Health & Wellness Entertainment Love & Family
Newsletters Special Offers

The Deacon's Bench

Yesterday, Archbishop Dolan announced that the Archdiocese of New York would get its very first basilica: the historic Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral in lower Manhattan. Fittingly, the previous weekend the old church — forerunner of the glorious temple in midtown — hosted something truly special: mass celebrated in Gaelic. Curious? You can get a little…

The sage Msgr. Charles Pope has a few thoughts about what goes on (and doesn’t) up in the pulpit: When I talk with Catholics who have left the Church, the number one reason I get that they left was poor preaching.This is especially true of those who left for the Evangelical Churches. Catholic priests as…

Yes. Believe it or not, a devotion has sprung up in Mexico: In these dark times, the faithful still come to worship in the chapel of Jesus Malverde, Mexico’s patron saint of drug traffickers. They kneel in front of his statue, dip flowers in water and wipe them tenderly over his face. They leave cryptic…

Is the Senate avoiding something on the issue of health care reform? Sr. Mary Ann Walsh, from the USCCB, thinks so: The thousands of pages in the health care reform legislation contain much to ponder, but what’s most puzzling is the shying away from the Hyde Amendment in the Senate bill. The Hyde Amendment was…

And who knows better about whispers than Rocco Palmo?  He stopped by the offices of “Currents” recently and was interviewed for a segment that we call “I WITNESS.” Among other things, he talked about why he does what he does. Take a look. (Trivia buffs will note that the office he’s using for the segment…

This appears to be a big break from what the USCCB is advising: Catholic nuns, in an unusual split from the powerful Catholic bishops, came out in favor of President Barack Obama’s health care plan, offering potentially important political cover for antiabortion Democrats still on the fence. Nearly 60 nuns from orders they say represent…

Here’s something I never knew: the spiritual seeds of Irish soda bread. According to this item from America Magazine, it has to do with the cross that is cut on top: It’s scientific, primarily, because it allows the heat to penetrate into the thickest part of the bread, so it assists cooking. And obviously the…

“I want to say to anyone who has been hurt by any failure on my part that I apologise to you with all my heart. I also apologise to all those who feel I have let them down. Looking back, I am ashamed that I have not always upheld the values that I profess and…

For St. Patrick’s Day: a classic that, while not exactly Irish, certainly has the Emerald Isle in its heart. (Aside: my wife, Irish to the core, sang this at our wedding reception, and it never fails to plant a lump in my throat.) This rendition, featuring the astonishing Shane Warby, is just beautiful. Give a…

Here’s one provocative take on the debate now raging in this country, from T.R. Reid in the Washington Post: The latest United Nations comparative statistics, available at http://data.un.org, demonstrate the point clearly. The U.N. data measure the number of abortions for women ages 15 to 44. They show that Canada, for example, has 15.2 abortions…
archives most recent
search this blog
More from Beliefnet and our partners