FOR THE JOURNEY The charges leveled against a former cardinal, Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick, are sickening and almost unbearable to read. It’s horrible enough that former seminarians allege he invited them to a beach house with the certainty that he was always inviting one extra who would have to share his bed. But then comes […]
Msgr. Owen F. Campion: His love never ends
21ST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Joshua 24:-2a, 15-17, 18b; Ephesians 5:21-32; John 6:60-69 The Book of Joshua provides this weekend’s first reading. The book draws its name from the ancient Israelite leader, Joshua, who followed Moses and actually guided the Hebrews into the land God had promised them. Fleeing from slavery in Egypt to settlement […]
Msgr. Owen F. Campion: ‘I am the living bread’
19TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME 1 Kings 19:4-8; Ephesians 4:30-5:2; John 6:41-51 The First Book of Kings provides this weekend’s Liturgy of the Word with its first biblical reading. Unified Israel’s kings are the central figures in these books, although the prophets, such as Elijah, receive more prominent mention. This weekend’s reading refers to Elijah, […]
Christina Capecchi: Flowers for Mary
TWENTY SOMETHING Janet Easter is experiencing Braxton Hicks contractions as she arranges a bouquet in her backyard, and she is unfazed. “I’m having contractions, which is hilarious,” she says, stripping the leaves off a hydrangea in one swift stroke. It’s 80 degrees on a Friday afternoon in a Pittsburgh suburb, and Janet is glowing, her […]
Msgr. Owen F. Campion: Loaves, fishes and faith
17TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME 2 Kings 4:42-44; Ephesians 4:1-6; John 6:1-15 The Second Book of Kings is the source of this weekend’s first reading. Originally, First and Second Kings composed one volume, but at one point in the revision of the Scriptures, this one volume was divided into two parts. As the title implies, […]
Effie Caldarola: Execution and mercy
FOR THE JOURNEY In early July, the Nebraska Supreme Court issued an Aug. 14 execution date for Carey Dean Moore. Moore, 60, has been sitting on death row for nearly four decades. It was 1979 when he killed two Omaha cabdrivers five days apart, and in 1980 he was sentenced to death for these crimes. […]
Father Kenneth Doyle: ‘Last rites’ for a comatose person?
QUESTION CORNER Q: My daughter, who was 50 years of age, became deathly ill, spent six weeks in the intensive care unit, then entered hospice to die. When death was imminent, a nurse finally found a priest to administer last rites. (It was a Jewish hospice, and they weren’t used to calling a priest.) By […]
Father Eugene Hemrick: More eloquence please
THE HUMAN SIDE After making a giant step forward in modern communications, have we also taken two steps backward? Thanks to the internet, people are communicating with each other in wonderful ways. For example, shut-ins once disconnected from society are able to stay connected with friends, and we now have all sorts of libraries at […]
Richard Doerflinger: The Supreme Court as battleground
A MORE HUMAN SOCIETY In its June 26 decision on freedom of speech, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against a California law that forced pro-life pregnancy aid centers to tell pregnant women how to get an abortion. This “forced speech” policy, making Americans facilitate what they recognize as the unjust taking of human life, was […]
Msgr. Owen F. Campion: Prophets and messengers
15TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Amos 7:12-15; Ephesians 1:3-14; Mark 6:7-13 The Book of Amos is the source of this weekend’s first reading. Amos is one of the relatively few prophets of whom something is known. Many prophets reveal some details about themselves, but not many give more than a few details. By contrast, it […]
