For two years now, I have gone to Mass twice every Sunday, although I do so seated at my kitchen table. I can see the local Catholic church from my window, but I haven’t been inside it since the brief window, mid-pandemic, of supposed normality in July 2021. From my small town in Oregon, I Read more
Better music at Mass and carefully chosen songs would make attending Mass a more uplifting experience for churchgoers, reports a survey of nearly 2,000 Catholics. The May 4 survey reflected the views of those aged 21-39 and one of the questions the Truth Data Survey asked was: “What would you like to change at Mass?” Read more
What is the proper spiritual response to the coronavirus pandemic? Although many Catholics seek to use this period as “a time of renewal,” as one priest put it, a vocal minority are approaching the pandemic with words more suited to culture warriors than to spiritual warfare. Any Catholic who has spent time on social media Read more
As Catholic churches throughout New Zealand prepare to welcome people back to Sunday Mass church ministers are warning things are not the same. Catholic churches used to have a common look and feel, but post-COVID-19, the new normal will likely be less familiar, it may even seem a little strange, warns Wellington priest, Pete Roe. Read more
In a pastoral statement, the New Zealand Catholic bishops have written to Catholics saying they are pleased that Mass can resume, but warn the experience may not be as familiar as it once was. They say the new normal is means the Church’s liturgy remains restricted to protect the vulnerable and elderly. The statement, creatively Read more
Italian authorities on Thursday (May 7) gave the go-ahead for public Masses starting May 18, after the government and Catholic bishops struggled to find an accord that would ensure safety measures amid the coronavirus pandemic. A protocol allowing Catholic faithful to attend Mass was signed Thursday by Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte; the president of the Read more
After nearly two months of not hearing church choirs singing hymns due to Covid-19 restrictions, Samoans piled into church buildings Sunday morning in unusually large numbers. The streets were again whitewashed with flashy Sunday best attire. Inside one church in Apia, there was initial trepidation as parishioners looked around to see who would be the Read more
As is already clear from the sudden rash of closings, cancellations and diagnoses of prominent people, the coronavirus outbreak is spreading rapidly. In response, many bishops around the world have taken the difficult but prudent step of dispensing the faithful from their Sunday Mass obligation. Those decisions are to be commended for the sake of Read more
It is the spring sumo season in Japan, one of the six two-week periods of the year when the national sport is played out before huge crowds. But not this year. The media are showing the wrestling tournament taking place in an empty venue. Spectators are banned from the arena. In various parts of the Read more
“Baby girl, no!” My 14-month-old daughter’s hand briefly paused in the air, dripping water back into the dog’s drinking bowl. Her hand went to her head, to her chest and completed a toddler’s awkward sign of the cross. My husband and I were horrified by the slobbery dog-water blessing. But we were also awestruck: We Read more