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The Deacon's Bench

Been to confession lately? Seems more and more people can answer “Yes” to that question. And the sacrament of reconciliation is enjoying so much of a resurgence, even the Wall Street Journal is taking note: Sin never goes out of style, but confession is undergoing a revival. This February at the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI…

More dioceses are helping men to discern a vocation to the diaconate, often with “nights of information” or Q&A sessions where those who feel called can hear speakers, listen and learn. It’s also a great opportunity for wives and families to hear, first-hand, what this ministry involves; my wife and I have attended a couple…

I received an e-mail earlier today from my brother deacon Eric Stoltz, in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, alerting me to a new project he’s launched, with photographer Francesco Cura, called “Cathedrals of California.” As he described it: We’re setting out to document all the cathedrals of California (Catholic, Orthodox and Anglican) with text narrative…

There’s an old Shakespearean axiom that revenge begets revenge. That’s as true today as it was 500 years ago. And the parishioners at one Chicago parish have decided to do something about it: Violence can happen anywhere. But when Israel Morales, a neighborhood organizer and parishioner at St. Nicholas of Tolentine Parish on Chicago’s Southwest…

An e-mailer passed along this beautiful and inspiring story with just one word: Wow. I can’t put it any better than that. Read on: Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon University computer-science professor, was about to give a lecture Tuesday afternoon, but before he said a word, he received a standing ovation from 400 students and…

For as long as I can remember, the Church has told us that the one who sings “prays twice.” But is it any good? That’s what the National Association of Pastoral Musicians would like to know: The National Association of Pastoral Musicians is polling Catholics online, asking them to rate the quality of singing of…

I can remember when my parents celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary — I was a pimply and obnoxious 15-year-old at the time — and I’m a little awed to realize I’ll be celebrating my own silver anniversary in just another four years. But the census is telling us such events are increasingly rare: More than…

The hard-working team of blogging professionals over at The Word, Catholic Colbert, have directed my attention to this terrific piece on My Close Personal Friend Stephen Colbert, from Parade. Among the highlights: Colbert was the youngest of 11 children growing up in Charleston, S.C. It was a big, bustling, Irish-Catholic family—”a humorocracy,” Colbert recalls. “Singing…

The provocative answer to that question, from Elizabeth Scalia at InsideCatholic (the online offshoot of Crisis) is: yes. Her take: President George W. Bush is perhaps the most pro-life president we have ever seen, and even when his party held both houses of Congress, his pro-life sensibilities did not translate into an abortion-ending legacy. Still,…

Like a big pizza pie, that’s amore… And if Dean Martin singing, while you munch a cannoli on the streets of Little Italy, is your idea of the San Gennaro Festival, Deacon Tony is setting the record straight about where this festival originated: Today we celebrate the feast of St. Januarius, more commonly known as…
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