With the death of Cardinal John P. Foley on December 11, we have lost a dedicated leader who helped the Church’s message reach people throughout the world.
Many of our readers heard his voice for 25 years on the television and radio broadcasts of the pope’s Christmas midnight Mass. Cardinal Foley always explained what was going on in a clear style. I still remember the way he pronounced “Cath – o – lic” by enunciating every syllable.
Remember when we used to wait until after Thanksgiving for Christmas decorations to be put up in public places and most homes? Now we start seeing Christmas decorations in September!
I still wait until after Thanksgiving to start decorating our home and do most of my Christmas shopping. The first Sunday of Advent should be the sign for Christians to start preparing the way of the Lord. After all, it’s Christ’s birthday that we are supposed to be celebrating on December 25.
“Love is what it’s all about,” Msgr. Felix Oehrlein told high school youth attending the Resurrection 2004 rally in Wisconsin Dells. “Jesus reminds us to keep his commandments. Jesus came here and lived among us and lives with us today. He lives in the Church and you and I are that Church.”
State Representative Andrew Jacque (R-Bellevue) has introduced a “personhood” amendment in Wisconsin.
It seems to me that our sense of gratitude has diminished in recent years. How often do we send or receive thank you cards? How often do we express our appreciation to people in our lives, let alone to God who has given us the gift of life itself?
Most of us would have to be honest and say we don’t say “thanks” often enough. We take so many things for granted.
In Wisconsin, we’ve been hearing a lot in the media these days about sex education. Our state Legislature is debating a bill which would overturn a law passed two years ago called the Healthy Youth Act.
That law required public schools that offer sex education to teach about proper use of contraceptives, among other things. The proposed new law, called the “Strong Communities . . . Healthy Kids Act,” would emphasize abstinence as the only reliable way to prevent pregnancy and disease.
Although I love spring, autumn is also a special time of the year. There are things I like about autumn, but there are things that bother me, too.
We live on a street lined with trees on both sides of the road. I enjoy watching the leaves on the trees change from green to yellow, gold, and red. What a beautiful sight!
But those leaves start falling from the trees, and that means lots of blowing and raking. We get our yard clear of leaves and pile them on the curb to be picked up, then we start again as more leaves fall. Of course, they don’t all fall at the same time. It’s frustrating when we think we’ve gotten the leaves all cleared and wake up the next morning to see the lawn full again — many of them having blown in from our neighbors’ yards.
A baby born on October 30 in the Philippines has been welcomed as one of the world’s symbolic “seven billionth” babies.
The Associated Press admitted that with all the babies born in the world on that day, it is impossible to pinpoint the arrival of the actual Baby Seven Billion. But the United Nations chose to mark Filipino Danica May Camacho as the symbolic seventh billion child. The parents and the baby were met by top United Nations officials in the Philippines, who presented the child with a small cake.
The birth of any child should be a happy occasion. However, the birth of Baby Seven Billion is being looked at as a cause for celebration by some and a reason for concern and even fear by others.
We all know that we will eventually face illness, disabilities, and death of our family members, friends, and ourselves. Despite the inevitability, it is difficult to think about and even more difficult to talk about issues involving sickness and dying.
Yet, these are issues we must confront and deal with — and our faith can provide a great deal of guidance and support. As we conclude Respect Life Month, we should remember that respect for life must encompass respect for the disabled, the elderly, the sick, and the dying.
As we continue reflections during Respect Life Month, we should reflect on the standard of living in this country and how it impacts children and families.
We all need food, clothing, and shelter to live healthy, happy lives. Yet statistics show that 46.2 million Americans are living below the poverty line. That means that many families have to make hard choices as they face hunger and can’t afford housing or health care for themselves and their children.
