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The Deacon's Bench

“The Spirit who came as a great rushing wind and as tongues of fire on the first Pentecost will come more quietly but no less powerfully upon us today and upon the gifts we will place on this altar. If we believe the Spirit will make of bread and wine we offer the presence of…

A proposal to construct a Muslim center, including a mosque, near the site of the World Trade Center has sparked controversy, and debate. And now leaders from three faiths — including a Catholic priest who was a chaplain at Ground Zero — have endorsed the idea in a column in the New York Daily News:…

If I’m lucky, and God doesn’t mind, (and I haven’t lost what’s left of my marbles) maybe this one day could be me: Lou Weitzel piloted a B-24 bomber over Europe during World War II, helped Ford Motor Co. integrate its production in Canada, and now each Sunday he serves as a deacon for St.…

From the In My Backyard Desk…here’s an item that has ignited a small storm of controversy over in Staten Island: The impending sale of an empty, 2 ½ -story convent in Midland Beach owned by St. Margaret Mary’s R.C. Church has neighbors angry and afraid because the purchaser is an Islamic organization they know little…

You never know how history will see your life 500 years down the road. Witness the case of Copernicus: Nicolaus Copernicus, the 16th-century astronomer whose findings were condemned by the Roman Catholic Church as heretical, was reburied by Polish priests as a hero on Saturday, nearly 500 years after he was laid to rest in…

The prospects are tantalizing — and terrifying: The first life form created entirely with man-made DNA opens the door to manufacturing new drugs and fuels, while raising the possibility that mail-order germs may one-day be available for bioterrorists. Researchers at the J. Craig Venter Institute in Rockville, Maryland, reported today in the journal Science that…

Most of us know that rosaries aren’t intended to be worn as jewelry — but that hasn’t stopped countless young people (and a lot of adults) from adopting them as necklaces. They’re even being marketed that way by Dolce & Gabbana (see above).  And now, that’s causing problems: School districts in New York and Texas…

It will happen in upstate New York, as another former minister takes advantage of the “Pastoral Provision.” From CNA: As former Protestant minister Scott Caton prepares for his ordination as a Catholic priest in 2011, his wife and six children are prayerfully offering their support. As a priest, he hopes to focus on reconciling men…

If so, stop reading now. The Anchoress looks at what is happening in the American workplace and links to this profane and hilarious piece by Larry McCoy. Larry McCoy is definitely not a wuss.  Believe me, I know.  (Ignore that picture on the left showing him with a ladybug.  He usually doesn’t look that nice…

The growth of the diaconate has prompted a reporter from Religion News Service to look into the vocation — and the resulting article has a few familiar names: He’s performed so many funerals, they call him “Burying Joe.” A recent Saturday afternoon found Joe Krysiak again at a cemetery, his white alb and paisley stole…
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