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May 2013

May 5

London Catholic board developing a new communication strategy

May 5, 2013

The London Catholic school board is proposing to spend up to $100,000 to revamp the board’s communication strategy.

May 6

At least two die in Tanzanian church bombing; nuncio unhurt

May 6, 2013

VATICAN CITY - The deadly bombing of a new church in northern Tanzania left at least two people dead and a dozen injured while the Vatican nuncio escaped unharmed after the attack.

Mary is a mother who helps Christians grow, Pope says at rosary

May 6, 2013

ROME - Mary is a mother who helps Christians grow, face the difficulties of life and use their freedom to make lasting commitments, Pope Francis said.

May 7

Pope celebrates diversity of popular piety, unity of church

May 7, 2013

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis celebrated popular piety as a means of transmitting the faith and cultivating it in ordinary Catholics but said such piety must be practiced in communion with the hierarchy in order to maintain the church's unity.

Vatican says its congregations collaborate, including on LCWR decision

May 7, 2013

VATICAN CITY - Two days after the head of the Vatican office overseeing religious life said he had not been consulted by the Vatican's doctrinal office about a controversial investigation of American nuns, the two bodies affirmed their "common commitment" to reform of the U.S.-based Leadership Conference of Women Religious.

May 8

Pope tells sisters the Church needs them, they need the Church

May 8, 2013

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis told 800 superiors of women's orders from around the world that the Catholic Church needs religious women and that religious women need to be in harmony with the faith and teachings of the Church.

May 9

Miehm ordained as auxiliary bishop for Hamilton

May 9, 2013

HAMILTON, ONT. - Surprised, grateful, humbled and excited.

Stone jars and softer containers

May 9, 2013

In his novel A Month of Sundays, John Updike presents us with a character, a lapsed vicar, who, though struggling himself with faith, is extremely critical of his young assistant whose faith and theology he judges to be fluffy and lightweight. He describes his young assistant this way:

God is love, God is light

May 9, 2013

Pentecost Sunday (Year C) May 19 (Acts 2:1-1; Psalm 104; 1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13; John 20:19-23) What actually happened at Pentecost? What would a video recorder have registered? The issue is clouded by the fact that we have two accounts in the New Testament and they are very different. The descent of the Spirit in Acts is rather noisy and flashy, and it results immediately in public proclamation of Jesus by the assembled disciples. The giving of the Spirit in John was a quiet, intimate affair in the upper room. Jesus bestowed the Spirit personally on His followers, but there was no record of an immediate public ministry.

God is love, God is light

May 9, 2013

Ethical consumption

May 9, 2013

Millions of people across the developing world are longing to work and will take almost any job, at any wage in just about any workplace. They’re that desperate.

Quick action the best route

May 9, 2013

Last week Cardinal Keith O’Brien, who resigned as archbishop of Edinburgh just before the recent conclave upon revelations of “lewd behaviour” and “drunken fumblings,” spoke for the first time since press reports led him to absent himself from the conclave. The accusations were made by Scottish priests who reported O’Brien had made advances after excessive drinking in years past. The accusations did not involve minors.

Social media dialogue should be respectful

May 9, 2013

The father of a large family passed away recently. During his last days, family members rushed home to see him, but two brothers couldn’t make it.

Rolling the dice on an ‘illusion’

May 9, 2013

The debate on whether Toronto should have a casino has generated a lively range of opinion, both pro and con. People I have discussed it with have a mixed reaction. There’s a sense that all those new jobs would be good and an occasional visit to the a casino might be fun, but there are serious concerns about what government-sponsored, high-stakes gambling could mean for families and for people with addiction problems.

We must assure the survival of Christianity in the lands of its birth

May 9, 2013

Last time I was in Amman, Jordan I met a lovely 12-year-old Christian girl with a beautiful smile. Her father used to be a taxi driver in Baghdad — until a gang of criminals or jihadists or both threatened his life and his family if he didn’t leave Iraq immediately.

It defies logic

May 9, 2013

At a recent debate on euthanasia and assisted suicide, the proponent for medicalized killing was making the predictable argument on the grounds of personal autonomy.

Supreme Court rules unborn baby is a child under law

May 9, 2013

OTTAWA - An unborn baby is a child under the law if the child is likely to be born alive, the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled.

Lending a helping hand for 100 years

May 9, 2013

One hundred years of helping. This simple theme, coined to highlight the centenary celebrations for Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Toronto, neatly summarizes what Catholic Charities has been doing since 1913: Delivering a variety of practical, life-affirming services to the poor and the marginalized in response to the Gospel call to love one’s neighbour.

Catholic Charities’ fingers all over medicare

May 9, 2013

TORONTO - Once upon a time in Canada, medical bankruptcy was common. Going to the hospital was a financial death sentence for many.

New scholarships honour the past, look to the future

May 9, 2013

TORONTO - Honouring the past and investing in the future has motivated Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Toronto to establish two new scholarships for those pursuing a career in social work.