He may be at the helm of one of the most dynamic Roman Catholic parishes in Florida, with the 3,000 families present each weekend at one of the seven masses at Saint Peter’s Church in Deland, but Father Thomas Connery is still worried. “We have many retirees in Florida, so the churches are full but Read more
More than one-third of 15-year-old children in the UK could be classified as ‘extreme internet users’, or those who are online for more than six hours daily outside of school. A report from UK think-tank Education Policy Institute (EPI) states that children in the UK have a higher rate of extreme usage (37.8 percent of all UK Read more
Pope Francis said, “Fundamentalism is a sickness that is in all religions … Religious fundamentalism is not religious, because it lacks God. “It is idolatry, like idolatry of money … We Catholics have some — and not some, many — who believe in the absolute truth and go ahead dirtying the other with calumny, with Read more
When Pope Francis canonized child seers and siblings Francisco and Jacinta Marto May 13, the centenary of the first apparition of the Virgin Mary at Fatima, he added to a long list of children and young people who are at some point on the road of sainthood. Granted, the number of child saints is a small Read more
Discernment is one of the words Pope Francis repeats most, especially when speaking to priests and seminarians. He often expresses his desire for greater formation in discernment – a concept that may seem obscure without an understanding its importance to the Pope’s Jesuit formation. “When a Jesuit says ‘discernment,’ they’re employing a term that has Read more
The cause of canonization for the Italian laywoman Chiara Corbella opened June 13, the fifth anniversary of her death. Here is a recent interview with her husband: When Enrico Petrillo and Chiara Corbella were expecting their son Francesco, Chiara was diagnosed with a very aggressive form of cancer. Together, they decided to postpone treatment so Read more
A growing crowd wants Cardinal Robert Sarah’s head on a platter. Open a liberal Catholic periodical and you are likely to find a call for the dismissal of the Guinean cardinal who heads the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship: “It’s past time for [Pope Francis] to replace Cardinal Sarah” (Maureen Fiedler, National Catholic Reporter); “New Read more
Today in the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church, we go back to Ordinary Time. At first, the designation might seem a bit peculiar, since the word “ordinary” is oftentimes associated with things that are unimportant, insignificant, or just downright boring. The Church couldn’t possibly mean these types of things when speaking of the liturgy Read more
“We cannot command our final perseverance, but must ask it of God.” — St. Thomas Aquinas “St. Peter is the leader of the choir, the mouth of the apostles and the head of that tribe, the leader of the world, the foundation of the Church, and the ardent lover of Christ.” — St. John Chrysostom Few issues Read more
In 1970, there was one priest for every 800 Catholics in the United States. Today, that number has more than doubled, with one priest for every 1,800 Catholics. Globally, the situation is worse. The number of Catholics per priest increased from 1,895 in 1980 to 3,126 in 2012, according to a report from CARA at Read more