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January 2015

January 2

God’s plan leaves no one out

January 2, 2015

Epiphany of the Lord (Year B) Jan. 4 (Isaiah 60:1-6; Psalm 72; Ephesians 3:2-3a, 5-6; Matthew 2:1-12) Isaiah painted an inspiring and hope-filled picture of Israel’s future. His words must have been a welcome balm for a dispirited and discouraged people. The day would come when the radiance of God’s light and glory would be so overwhelming that it would stand as a beacon for the whole world. They were to ignore the seeming darkness around them and look to God’s glorious future.

Move forward in Cuba

January 2, 2015

Following half a century of hostility, and guided by the intervention of Pope Francis, the United States and Cuba have agreed to try to become good neighbours. The detente announced between the two nations on Dec. 17 is welcomed news to end a year that witnessed too much hatred.

January 4

Through water, blood, Spirit, we witness Christ’s reality

January 4, 2015

Baptism of the Lord (Year B) Jan. 11 (Isaiah 55:1-11; Isaiah 12; 1 John 5:1-9; Mark 1:7-11) God is not like human beings — and we can rejoice in that. In fact, Isaiah went to great lengths to highlight the wide gulf between divine and human reasoning. This is certainly evident in the fact that God offers food and drink in abundance to all those who hunger and thirst absolutely free and without any preconditions.

Pope Francis names 15 new cardinal electors, most from global south

January 4, 2015

VATICAN CITY - Underscoring the geographical diversity of his selections, Pope Francis named 15 cardinal electors "from 14 nations of every continent, showing the inseparable link between the church of Rome and the particular churches present in the world."

January 5

Mafia ‘betray the Gospel,’ Italian bishops say in rare rebuke

January 5, 2015

ROME - Catholic bishops from the southern Italian region of Calabria have broken their silence and spoken out against the “inhumane” power of the Mafia that dominates their poverty-stricken area.

Barking up the wrong tree

January 5, 2015

“Oh Lord, why?” Then again, I suppose the Lord must in His turn ask, “Oh people, why?” Why do Catholics in the public eye continue to embarrass the faith and give us what seem to be self-parodies or satires, thus playing into the hands of those who would condemn us and our faith as being irrelevant or even absurd?

Want to see Pope Francis’ vision for the church? Look at his new cardinals

January 5, 2015

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis reinforced his radical reshaping of the Catholic Church by naming 20 new cardinals from countries as far afield as Ethiopia, Tonga, Thailand and Panama.

Christmas always cracks up the family

January 5, 2015

I just celebrated my 26th Christmas with my lovely bride. Each Christmas has been special and each one has been a little different.

If God is first, the community will fall into place

January 5, 2015

This past Sunday my husband and I took my visiting mother and brother to our little wooden church. Mark slipped away into the choir pews at the back while we stocked up on missals and pieces of paper with the day’s prayers and hymns (Latin and English) printed on them. My brother slid into the wrong row of connected wooden prie-dieux, and I marched into my own. He followed me, looking quizzical.

Jesus may have been tried here: Archaeologists uncover Herod's palace

January 5, 2015

JERUSALEM - The site where Jesus may have been tried, prior to his crucifixion, is now open to the public for the very first time.

January 6

Jordan welcomes throngs of tourists at site where believers say Jesus was baptized

January 6, 2015

AMMAN, Jordan - For most Americans, Epiphany (Jan. 6) passes with little celebration. Traditionally, the 12th day of Christmas is marked by Eastern Orthodox, Catholics and some mainline Protestants as the day the three kings visited the baby Jesus. For Eastern Rite Christians, Epiphany (also called Theophany) emphasizes the revelation of Jesus as the son of God through his baptism and the beginning of his public ministry. Thousands of believers make pilgrimage on that day to the Jordan River where John baptized Jesus.

From Jackie O to Mario Cuomo, a Jesuit parish is the final stop for boldface Catholics

January 6, 2015

NEW YORK - Former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo’s funeral will be held on Tuesday (Jan. 6) at the Roman Catholic Church of St. Ignatius Loyola, a Jesuit-run parish in Manhattan that has often served as the venue for bidding a final farewell to the rich and/or famous. Among the well-known Catholics whose funerals were held at St. Ignatius:

350,000 pass through Quebec Holy Door

January 6, 2015

A year of celebration in the Archdiocese of Quebec drew more than 350,000 pilgrims through the Holy Door of Quebec City’s Cathedral-Basilica of Notre Dame de Québec.

Florida bishops disappointed with court rulings on same-sex marriage

January 6, 2015

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Florida's Catholic bishops said they were disappointed by a U.S. federal judge's ruling striking down the state's ban of same-sex marriage as well as with higher courts that denied a stay of the decision.

Guelph landmark church designated a basilica

January 6, 2015

Guelph, Ont.’s Church of Our Lady Immaculate now dons the title basilica. The landmark church perched on a hill overlooking the city was designated a basilica earlier this month by Pope Francis, catching parishioners by surprise.

Parishes have a missionary role

January 6, 2015

OTTAWA - The Canadian bishops’ doctrine commission, in a new booklet, is stressing the role of all Catholics in the new evangelization.

Family of Faith passes halfway point of total goal

January 6, 2015

At $55.8 million, Toronto Catholics are closing out 2014 having raised more than half the $105-million goal Cardinal Thomas Collins set for them in May.

God created all people, desires to save them, Pope says on Epiphany

January 6, 2015

VATICAN CITY - In every age and in every culture, people seek God just as the Three Kings did and, in every age, with the help of the Holy Spirit, they find him in the surprising humility of a baby born in a manger, Pope Francis said.

January 7

Pro-lifers hope new law will keep RU-486 out of Canada

January 7, 2015

OTTAWA - Canadian pro-lifers hope that a law requiring mandatory reporting of adverse drug reactions will be enough to keep the abortifacient drug RU-486 out of Canada.

Christian clergy visit Jordanian family of captured Muslim pilot

January 7, 2015

AY, Jordan - Christian clergy led by the Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal of Jerusalem visited the family of the Muslim Jordanian pilot captured by Islamic State and expressed support and continued prayers.