Church News & Info

Confessions of a Basilica Confessor

Dominican Priest Shares View From Confession Box They have a fixed schedule, a day of rest, and a couple of hours for lunch. Their office is not a desk with a computer, but a confessional. They are the basilica confessors, those priests assigned a special ministry to impart the sacrament of reconciliation on a full… Read More ›

U.S. Catholic and Episcopalian leaders respond to Vatican’s new Anglican provision

Washington D.C., Oct 20, 2009 / 03:31 pm (CNA).- Responding to the announcement of a new apostolic constitution to assist Anglicans in entering the Catholic Church, Cardinal Francis George has said the provision will serve the unity of the Church. An Episcopalian spokesman said the full implications of the action are still being studied and… Read More ›

Pope Benedict approves structure for admitting large groups of Anglicans into Catholic Church

Vatican City, Oct 20, 2009 / 05:11 am (CNA).- In a Vatican press conference today, Cardinal William Levada, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, announced that an Apostolic Constitution has been prepared in response to “many requests” from groups of Anglican clergy and faithful wanting to enter into full communion with… Read More ›

Vatican expert says parishes are not islands unto themselves

Lima, Peru, Aug 24, 2009 / 10:50 pm (CNA).- Father Nikolaus Schoch, OFM, who is the Assistant Promoter of Justice at the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signature, said during a strip to Peru this week that amidst the challenges of today’s world, parishes must not be islands unto themselves, but rather must be integrated… Read More ›

Website Threshold Reached

The Oblate website crossed the 10,000 hit threshold October 7, 2009. I could not help but  note the threshold was crossed on a feast day of Our Lady and hope that she will continue to bless this ministry of the Oblate program through the years to come. It is remarkable to see the reach of… Read More ›

New Movie about Our Lady of Fatima

San Francisco, Calif., Oct 1, 2009 / 06:39 am (CNA).- A new film about the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima, based on the memoirs of visionary Sister Lucia and the accounts of thousands of eyewitnesses, will be holding pre-release screenings in at least seven major U.S. cities. “The 13th Day” is the first major… Read More ›

The Case for Priestly Celibacy

Each month, when I face an auditorium full of engaged couples preparing for a Catholic marriage, there is a Q-and-A session. It is the interesting, unrehearsed part of the evening. The couples write their queries on a piece of paper, and the anonymity guarantees at least a few hardball questions about the Church and its… Read More ›

Pope: The challenges of our time call for Christian unity

Heavenly Heart Benedictine monastery opens in rural Texas

Dallas, Texas, Sep 22, 2009 / 06:05 am (CNA).- A new Benedictine monastery was inaugurated in rural Texas on Saturday to be a “special presence” for the Vietnamese community and to proclaim hope to all. The monastery is called Thien Tam, Vietnamese for “Heavenly Heart.” It is located on a former ostrich ranch of 300… Read More ›

Vatican to Insist Rebels Respect Jews, other faiths

Sun Sep 13, 2009 1:35pm EDT/ Reuters: PARIS (Reuters) – The Vatican will tell a rebel traditionalist group it must respect Judaism, other Christian churches and other world faiths to be fully reintegrated into the Roman Catholic Church, a leading cardinal has said. Vienna Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn said these reforms of the Second Vatican Council,… Read More ›