On May 10, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI promulgated the decree of heroic virtues of Sr. Emilie Engel, a Schoenstatt Sister of Mary from Germany.
Tag: hope
Engaging in work on the new and the old evangelization
This is the first in a series of articles to be published on the topic of engaging in the work of evangelization — old and new — and how to live out the Year of Faith by engaging in this most important task. Keep reading in the weeks to come!
We are three months in. This Year of Faith was called for with the hope of transforming our world and the lives of those living in it. What has happened?
- A synod of bishops and lay leaders in the Church met in Rome for a month to talk about the New Evangelization last October
- A few hundred people in the Diocese of Madison came out to hear Tom Peterson, founder of Catholics Come Home, speak in Madison this past November.
- A couple parishes in the area have invited back those who had fallen away from the practice of their faith.
- Catholic churches were packed on Christmas and were less than half full the following Sunday.
Caring for the body — and the soul
Dear Friends,
I don’t know if it’s been your experience, but, of late, I’ve noticed a marked increase in the number of people who are very obvious for their display of unhappiness. I’ve been taken aback on a number of occasions by total strangers who, by way of their rude behavior, and shortness with others, indicate a real lack of joy in their lives.
Let the beauty of the Cross shine through
Dear Friends,
As you read this week’s column you may be either in the heart of Christ’s Passion or the Joy of His Resurrection. Thus, I’d like to reflect upon the paradox that is the beauty of the Cross, and the paradox that is our own tendency to turn against God’s plan for us, despite the fact that His plan is for our happiness and eternal life.
Consecrated women bring the love and mercy of God
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Each February, the Church celebrates two events of special significance to Little Sisters of the Poor.
On February 5, the Church celebrates the World Day of Consecrated Life, a day important to all men and women religious. On February 11, the World Day of the Sick is observed.
Each of these special days offers an opportunity for us to affirm our vocation as consecrated women devoted to the Church’s mission of compassion through the ministry of healthcare.
Ten new seminarians point to Church’s hopeful future
As the fall season rolls in and many students are headed back to school, the seminarians for the diocese are all heading back to school to continue with their seminary formation after a much deserved summer break.
Starting this fall, we will have seminarians in seminaries in Detroit, Mich.; Denver, Colo.; Washington, D.C.; Winona and St. Paul, Minn.; Seward,
Neb.; South Orange, N.J.; and Rome, Italy. Their years of seminary formation range from freshmen in college to the final year of theology.
Treat miscarried babies with the dignity they deserve
As soon as I heard my wife burst out the bathroom door that sunny spring day, I knew she was pregnant. I hadn’t yet opened my eyes but I didn’t need to. Her footsteps told me everything.
My wife didn’t have any particular reason to believe she was pregnant. But after a couple years of praying for a second child, I’d grown accustomed to Laura taking random pregnancy tests — hoping against hope that somehow that second pink line would appear. This time it did.
Joyful days
The days ahead were as joyful as any we’d experienced in our life together. We beamed when friends who knew of our struggle with secondary infertility congratulated us and we devoured all the fetal development materials we could find, eager to mark every last milestone in our baby’s nascent life.
This Lent: Helping hope live in the missions
“My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” is the familiar cry of Jesus on the cross.
In our own lives, we may also sometimes feel abandoned, with hope seeming to disappear. As we cope with the serious illness of someone close to us. As we face economic challenges, perhaps even the loss of our job. In the gray loneliness that follows the death of a beloved wife or husband.
God does not abandon us
And yet, in the midst of our darkness, we remember that God did not abandon His beloved Son and the suffering of Good Friday transformed into the hope of our Lord’s Resurrection. God does not abandon us.
WCC positions bring a nonpartisan view of hope
For those who engage the policies by which we govern ourselves, the beginning of an odd-numbered year is a time for defining a vision.
Governors set their vision with their state of the state message and their budget address. Legislators do it by their “priority bills.” The Wisconsin Catholic Conference (WCC) does so by sharing its Policy Positions for the new session.
Filled with hope and gratitude
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Dear Friends,
As I write this, I am freshly arrived back from the annual assembly of our National Bishops Conference, filled with hope indeed. On my way to Baltimore for the meeting, I had a stopover in Washington, during which time I had a good opportunity to visit with our seminarian who is a Basselin Scholar at the Catholic University of America, and some of the fellow seminarian friends whom he has met. The experience was totally upbeat and filled me with hope, both for the present and for the future.
Additionally, at meetings of the bishops conference, Tuesday night is usually the “free evening” for dinner and recreation for the bishops, though in many instances, bishops are very generously giving themselves, on Tuesday evenings, to the work of the various committees or sub-committees of our conference.