tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79398736225081074892024-03-18T23:41:01.902-04:00Standard Timea blog from the Catholic Standard & Times, official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-81515149052966142932012-01-07T18:20:00.004-05:002012-01-07T18:33:46.787-05:00Catholic schools stunner: The day afterIt’s the day after the announcement of the <a href="http://catholicphilly.com/2012/01/news/archdiocese/catholic-elementary-and-high-school-consolidations/">merger</a> of 85 Catholic parochial schools and closure of four high schools in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The scope of the <a href="http://catholicphilly.com/media-files/2012/01/commission-report-1.pdf">Blue Ribbon Commission’s report </a>received Jan. 6 by Archbishop Charles Chaput was, as <a href="http://catholicphilly.com/2012/01/news/archdiocese/school-mergers-closures-point-way-toward-new-models-of-catholic-education-in-archdiocese/">Lou Baldwin writes on CatholicPhilly.com</a>, “stunning.”<br /><br />This day after has seen candlelight vigils to explain the plans and complain about them, and as always in a Catholic community, to pray about them.<br /><br />Reactions up to this point have ranged from expressions of love for the schools to be closed, bewilderment of the choices to merge some schools with others, and even wildly mistaken impressions that the parishes themselves, not just the schools, were closing. (They aren’t.)<br /><br />Today might also be the day when folks are taking time to actually <a href="http://catholicphilly.com/media-files/2012/01/commission-report-1.pdf">read the report</a>. That would go a long way toward clearing up confusion and begin moving forward into the new day that surely must come.<br /><br />Because the current situation can’t continue. One school community or another might be sad at the loss of their parish school or high school, but no one can argue that a sweeping reorganization such as this was not long overdue.<br /><br />Pastors knew it, parish finance councils knew it, principals and home and school associations knew it. Maybe they all hoped the changes would sweep up someone else’s school.<br /><br />Nevertheless, the Blue Ribbon Commission’s report clearly painted the dire financial picture of a system that cannot be sustained as current.<br /><br />This is the plan going forward. Implementing it will not be easy, yet it must be done quickly. Recommended names of consolidated schools must be submitted in March, along with school tours for prospective students. School administrators and faculties will need to be well in place by summer so the new term can begin smoothly in September.<br /><br />As the report details, besides the mergers and closures are solid recommendations to solidify and stabilize Catholic education with new structures of governance for the schools and plans to keep them academically excellent. Along with these proposals are calls for a renewed commitment on the parish level for Parish Religious Education Programs (aka CCD, to another generation) and special education schools.<br /><br />So to anyone who cares about Catholic education (schools, PREP and special education) and that should be everyone, the report should be on the weekend’s reading list. Emotions at this time are natural. But the path forward will be lit with the light of truth. It should not be pounded out by<br />people stamping their feet in anger but by working together for the common good of education in the Church.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-77229120051722588212012-01-05T13:34:00.005-05:002012-01-05T14:04:48.738-05:00In a new year, a new message from the Archbishop<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJtcJhtUM8qgwdJpRM2IbfN2rPLoC2isgiFsQYmMWjVS8mz_WuOmVYxZZomVGlZfFFItq5I5FV6waB73aRQh06xrOVNLY0a4znJLweT2OH8MSo8cx_noLdaSBQ0HDR89OzXZU7GW2TBO0/s1600/prisonvisit.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 295px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5694224714832683234" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJtcJhtUM8qgwdJpRM2IbfN2rPLoC2isgiFsQYmMWjVS8mz_WuOmVYxZZomVGlZfFFItq5I5FV6waB73aRQh06xrOVNLY0a4znJLweT2OH8MSo8cx_noLdaSBQ0HDR89OzXZU7GW2TBO0/s400/prisonvisit.jpg" /></a> It’s January 5, and still not too late to wish someone a happy new year. The day also is the Catholic Church’s feast day for St. John Neumann, the saintly eighth bishop of Philadelphia.<br /><br />The current shepherd of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, Archbishop Charles Chaput (at right he visits a Philadelphia prison Dec. 22; <a href="http://catholicphilly.com/2011/12/news/photo-features/archbishop-chaput-makes-christmas-prison-visit/">see more photos</a>), marks the occasion to launch a new initiative in the new year: <a href="http://catholicphilly.com/2012/01/archbishop-chaput/archbishop-chaputs-schedule/education-the-church-and-the-legacy-of-john-neumann/">a new weekly message </a>to Catholics and all visitors to <a href="http://catholicphilly.com/">CatholicPhilly.com</a>.<br /><br />Archbishop Chaput takes the occasion to prepare people for what’s coming tomorrow. Jan. 6 will see the unveiling of the report and recommendations of the <a href="http://catholicphilly.com/2011/12/news/archdiocese/blue-ribbon-commission-on-catholic-education-final-report-to-be-released/">Blue Ribbon Commission on Catholic education.</a> A year in the making, the report is said to <a href="http://catholicphilly.com/2012/01/opinion/editorials/get-ready-for-necessary-changes-of-2012/">envision a seismic shift </a>in how Catholic education – not just Catholic schools but parish religious education and special education too – is delivered in southeastern Pennsylvania.<br /><br />Much of the media attention will likely go toward stating the number of Catholic parochial grade school and archdiocesan high schools set to close or consolidate. But the report will do more than list the names of buildings. It is expected to lay out a vision of a smaller yet stronger system of schools that is sustainable far into the future.<br /><br />Archbishop Chaput lays out the challenges ahead for Catholic education and for other issues the Church in Philadelphia is facing, including, he writes, “legal, financial, and above all, pastoral” issues.<br /><br />These issues spring from a spiritual crisis today today, which the archbishop faces squarely in his message. Spirits must be rejuvenated, and a spiritual fire rekindled.<br /><br />“The resource and organizational issues always come from some deeper spiritual problem: a lack of zeal, a lukewarm faith, an eagerness to fit in, a hunger for influence and a comfortable life,” he wrote. “These shadows live in all of us to one degree or another, including those of us in ministry.<br /><br />The more we let them draw us away from loving Jesus Christ and doing the work of discipleship, the weaker and more dishonest our common life as believers becomes. The ‘habit’ of being Catholic is not enough. It’s not even close to enough. There needs to be a fire for being Catholic in our hearts.”<br /><br />The Archbishop points back to St. John Neumann, who was first a missionary priest before he was the bishop who came to be so strongly identified with Catholic education.<br /><br />“John Neumann was a missionary first. Everything else was second. You and I are called to exactly the same vocation. Let’s begin that work today. Difficulties can be overcome. Problems can be solved. We can renew our Church and make Catholic education grow and thrive again. But we need two things to do it – the grace of God, and hearts truly on fire for Jesus Christ. The rest will follow.”<br /><br />Read the message from Archbishop Chaput at <a href="http://catholicphilly.com/">CatholicPhilly.com</a>.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-55410937182770652602011-02-18T16:22:00.003-05:002011-02-18T16:29:12.625-05:00What a week for Catholic Press MonthAt Catholic newspapers in the United States such as the Catholic Standard & Times, February is Catholic Press Month. It’s a time when Catholic newspapers take stock of their value to society.<br /><br />Many fewer Catholics are reading the paper than in decades past. But they are reading Catholic news.<br /><br />Philadelphia became ground zero for the major news story of the past week: current and former priests plus a lay teacher were indicted and arrested in connection with a city grand jury report regarding clergy sexual abuse of minors.<br /><br />The grand jury released its report on Thursday, Feb. 10. Since the CS&T’s deadline for publishing on Thursday is Tuesday evening, our Feb. 10 issue didn’t have the news.<br /><br />But <a href="http://cst-phl.com/archdiocese-responds-to-indictments-p2344-1.htm">our web site had full coverage</a> of the district attorney’s press conference and the early response by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.<br /><br />For each of the first two days of coverage almost a thousand visitors hit our web site, more than double the average number for a typical day. Most of them found our coverage through Twitter and Facebook posts and by logging in directly to our site, <a href="http://cst-phl.com/index1.htm">cst-phl.com </a>(yes we know it’s a clunky URL; we’re working on that).<br /><br />Today we posted <a href="http://cst-phl.com/new-efforts-address-sex-abuse-concerns-p2367-1.htm">a follow-up story </a>, and the traffic has been equally high.<br /><br />People wanted to read about this important Catholic news, and they weren’t satisfied with the secular coverage.<br /><br />They sought out the Catholic perspective on news from a source they have trusted for many years. Now they can find us online and even on their mobile phone: tap us on your cell at <strong>cst-phl.com/m.htm</strong><br /><br />Overall newspaper circulation continues to dwindle and the Catholic press is not immune. But traffic to Catholic news web sites continues to rise. That is true for the Catholic Standard and Times.<br /><br />It’s also true that this newspaper’s mission to inform, educate and inspire (a three-word tag coined by our former editor, Cardinal John Foley) is as vital today as it was 116 years ago at our founding.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-31491074211119939072011-01-21T16:24:00.003-05:002011-01-21T17:11:25.896-05:00A harsh, revealing light on abortionThis week Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams rode to the rescue to human decency and defense of the law. Excellent work by him, his staff and the grand jury's voluminous report alleging murder, conspiracy and a laundry list of crimes coming out of a West Philadelphia abortion clinic.<br /><br />In case you missed <a href="http://cst-phl.com/doctor-charged-in-baby-deaths-archdiocese-calls-actions-abhorrent-p2278-1.htm">the story</a>, it's an informative if <a href="http://cst-phl.com/doctor-charged-in-baby-deaths-archdiocese-calls-actions-abhorrent-p2278-1.htm">unsettling read</a>.<br /><br />That Philadelphia and Pennsylvania health and licensing officials turned a blind eye to what can only be termed a chamber of horrors at the Women's Medical Society is tragic enough. If this isn't the agencies' unspoken policy of "don't look and don't touch" an abortion facility, then it has to be gross negligence on the part of agency staff.<br /><br />Either way, I suspect that this part of the story is only just beginning.<br /><br />The Archdiocese of Philadelphia in <a href="http://archphila.org/press%20releases/pr001748.htm">its statement </a>called the goings on at the clinic "abhorrent and intrinsically evil."<br /><br />It also said: "The report's use of the language of 'infants and babies' for the unborn and the charges of murder underscore our conviction that every child in the womb is created in the image and likeness of God."<br /><br />That's the real eye-opener in this case: murder charges on the clinic's only licensed physician, Kermit B. Gosnell, extend to the killing of children at an abortion clinic.<br /><br />That is what happens with an abortion -- a child dies. Of course, it is illegal to abort a child after a certain point of gestation, thanks to Pennsylvania's Abortion Control Act. But at any stage, it is killing an innocent human life. No matter what one chooses to call that life (baby, fetus, clump of tissue).<br /><br />The heinous part of this story is that the babies were delivered alive then killed. But if they were several weeks earlier in their term and killed by chemical or mechanical means, the act would be legal.<br /><br />This story shines a bright and inescapable light on abortion: the practice, legal or not, destroys a living human child.<br /><br />The case against this particular abortion doctor and his clinic indicts the abortion industry and its legal underpinnings. It is an industry built on the death of the human family's most innocent and needing of protection, our children.<br /><br />The other victims are the women who feel compelled to seek an abortion. They are particularly vulnerable and need social support and the care of medical professionals. No one deserves to be exploited as the women appear to have been in this case.<br /><br />They deserve the support of a close-knit community and, if they become pregnant, a quantum leap in safe, professional prenatal medical care and postnatal professional services, including adoption services.<br /><br />The quandary over abortion in this country has to resolve those two points: preventing the death through abortion of children at any stage of gestation, and supporting the women who experience an unexpected preganancy.<br /><br />Resolving those goals remains the work of millions of committed people in this country who never again want to witness murdered children and maimed women as a result of abortion, legal or not.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-65645107483038286792010-12-02T13:47:00.003-05:002010-12-02T13:57:40.825-05:00Sign points to Christmas in PhiladelphiaBig news often springs from the humblest of beginnings. Take the story on the “little Christmas Village that could,” which has blanketed the region's media and gone national.<br /><br />You <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">couldn</span>’t have missed it in daily newspapers, radio and television stations but here’s a recap: A plaza of Philadelphia City Hall hosted a nice conglomeration of about 50 kiosks selling arts and crafts Christmas items. It had a tall archway sign above it appropriately stating “Christmas Village.”<br /><br />Someone got upset about the word Christmas (they had nothing better to do?), complained to the city and like that, down came Christmas from the sign.<br /><br />Then the media glare went megawatt and the whole sign was taken down. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia voiced its disappointment and pointed out the lack of common sense to removing Christmas from an obviously Christmas themed-display.<br /><br />Getting burned around the edges by all this heat, the city, thanks to Mayor Nutter, is bringing Christmas and its sign back.<br /><br />Everyone presumably is back into the joyful Christmas spirit. Hopefully the craft items are selling as briskly. The controversy has got to be a marketing boon: "Is Christmas OK in Philadelphia? Of course! Come on by (buy)!"<br /><br /><a href="http://cst-phl.com/index1.htm">The Catholic Standard and Times</a> made its own contribution to the reason this little story became as big as it did. To say it went viral, as Mayor Nutter said, is to acknowledge how powerful the Internet is in disseminating information widely and quickly, and helping people respond in kind.<br /><br />The Archdiocese’s strongly worded <a href="http://archphila.org/press%20releases/pr001721.htm">statement </a>was issued Wednesday morning, the day after our weekly paper goes to press. So our story on the matter included the statement that also was used in radio and TV news reports that day, and in other newspapers the following day.<br /><br />We’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">ve</span> <a href="http://cst-phl.com/after-outcry-christmas-is-restored-to-sign-p2177-1.htm">updated the story</a> today and pulled together pertinent links, including the archdiocesan statement.<br /><br />Just goes to show, when you mess with Christmas, you provoke a response. In this case, the city and the vendor did the right thing. In fact they recognize what always should have been acknowledged and protected: the word Christmas is not an epithet designed to offend but a fact of culture and, yes, religion.<br /><br />Religion is present in society because religion is an integral part of human culture, indeed the human spirit. It is as wrong to remove religious images from public observation as it is to whitewash from society words with religious meaning.<br /><br />If people are offended by such words as menorah, Judaism, Allah, mosque, Christ, Catholic or Christmas, then the fault lies not in the culture or the government. For such people, to paraphrase Shakespeare, the fault lies in themselves.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-24075101826696214652010-10-29T14:40:00.002-04:002010-10-29T14:52:18.845-04:00A smile for your weekend<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivwzXf5RlU5_QduwGiuXch4RlcSFuT8NkhIs0SQDijhRBSm0aJksF9IDjKEqRJYcqBD4RnecJo_A_AcOZRv2aiVt-paPYcwgTA5_DMsvvCM6kkJq0uL6mayCyoqJbudHPXG6ULQxZkpFQ/s1600/casakids.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5533542767549857746" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 229px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivwzXf5RlU5_QduwGiuXch4RlcSFuT8NkhIs0SQDijhRBSm0aJksF9IDjKEqRJYcqBD4RnecJo_A_AcOZRv2aiVt-paPYcwgTA5_DMsvvCM6kkJq0uL6mayCyoqJbudHPXG6ULQxZkpFQ/s400/casakids.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Here’s a photo we just received from a Halloween parade today at the preschool at Casa del Carmen Family Service Center. It’s an agency in North Philadelphia operated by Catholic Social Services of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.<br /><br />We’re considering it for the front page of our Nov. 4 issue. What do you think – should we use it for the cover? <a href="mailto:mgambino@adphila.org">Let me know!</a><br /><br />By my count there are five Spidermen and five princesses, plus other characters, among the little boys and girls from every ethnic background. All getting along, having fun and learning in a Catholic environment. If that doesn’t make you smile, consider one little super girl on the left. She is super – she’s wearing the uniform! And so are all the kids, visitors seeking aid and the staff and volunteers at Casa.<br /><br />As the Church approaches <a href="http://www.usccb.org/nab/110110.shtml">All Saints Day </a>on Monday, let’s remember the saints around us. They’re in North Philly, around the corner from you, and even in your home.<br /><br />All saints, all holy men and women, pray for us!</div>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-50865796851326025502010-09-15T06:18:00.003-04:002010-09-15T06:24:31.049-04:00Cardinal Rigali: 'We should be thinking about peace'Cardinal Justin Rigali, Archbishop of Philadelphia, gave an interview Sept. 10 with Fox29 TV reporter Sean Tobin, at which the Catholic Standard and Times was present. The Cardinal responded to questions about a controversial Florida pastor’s plan to burn copies of the Quran, the Muslim holy book, on Sept. 11. The pastor later cancelled the event amid worldwide condemnation.<br /><br />Watch the video of the interview in three parts on the Catholic Standard and Times' <a href="http://www.youtube.com/CathStandardandTimes">You Tube channel</a>.<br /><br />The planned Quran burning was “a reprehensible thing,” Cardinal Rigali said. “This is totally unjustified from every standpoint. Acts of violence and extremism trigger other acts. They are contrary to human dignity, contrary to the way we are supposed to act as human beings. This is disrespectful of religious values of people who are our brothers and sisters. There is no justification for it.<br /><br />“When any type of human rights are not respected then the results are disastrous. We can’t expect to have a world of peace and do things that are contrary to the rights of human beings.”<br /><br />“This is completely wrong (and) very disappointing,” he continued. “It violates Christian teaching and is the antithesis of what Christianity is all about. Christianity does not involve hatred, or is disrespectful of human beings, disrespectful of human values, or stir up anger and revenge.”<br /><br />Instead of this “very irresponsible act,” he said, “We should be thinking about peace. How is peace produced? It is produced by kindness, by love, by working together. It’s produced by prayer.”<br /><br />Paraphrasing Pope John Paul II, with whom he worked closely at the Vatican for many years, Cardinal Rigali recalled the late pope’s words on the topic, themselves echoing his predecessor, Pope Paul VI.<br /><br />“If you want peace, work for justice,” Cardinal Rigali said. “If you want justice, defend life. Defend the values that are part of Christianity.”<br /><br />He continued, “We should help Sudan, where the people have suffered so much. We have a great challenge in Pakistan,” he said, referring to the estimated 17 million people affected by recent flooding in the country.<br /><br />“These are the values of Christianity,” he said. “This is Christianity, and anything that masquerades as Christianity should be rejected as such.<br /><br />“What (the Florida pastor) proposes to do has nothing to do with Christianity and Christianity repudiates it. What he is doing is totally contrary to Christian doctrine, to the message of Christ, to the law of love, to respect for human beings and the value of each human person, and the fact that human beings have religious rights.”Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-44538494576066966932010-09-15T06:11:00.003-04:002010-09-15T06:18:34.863-04:00Old is new: Cardinal Newman's thoughts speak today<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxzJ-xAMa2Bn1rKv8uboFJQMzcjESG3OZL1qQ0ycKg3Sl8-WkaPCwjbTo9ypVqea-ZLCk60GVOo6jsnkjfnEzD8Udkzq-uRRuPT9UW721yR1OSaV4YjZrjnEJbGdUBwn66FHpP5Pi3BUM/s1600/cardinalnewman.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5517082283099007922" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 295px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxzJ-xAMa2Bn1rKv8uboFJQMzcjESG3OZL1qQ0ycKg3Sl8-WkaPCwjbTo9ypVqea-ZLCk60GVOo6jsnkjfnEzD8Udkzq-uRRuPT9UW721yR1OSaV4YjZrjnEJbGdUBwn66FHpP5Pi3BUM/s320/cardinalnewman.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Pope Benedict XVI will beatify Cardinal John Henry Newman Sunday, Sept. 19 in Birmingham, England. Traces of the thought of Newman, who died in 1890, remain relevant to the issues of today, as noted in an editorial in this week's <a href="http://cst-phl.com/">Catholic Standard and Times</a>. </div><br /><div><br />His writings are voluminous, and no one passage neatly addresses the hidden benefits of the recent worldwide condemnation of a Florida pastor’s plan, since dropped, to burn copies of the Quran, the Muslim holy book. </div><br /><div><br />The following passages of <a href="http://www.newmanreader.org/works/subjects/sermon22.html">Sermon 22 </a>by Newman, as collected on the web site <a href="http://www.newmanreader.org/controversies/guides/rickabyindex/index.html">Newman Reader</a>, address the role of the Church in society. The site also offers a full topical index to Newman’s writings. The unanimity of many Christian and Catholic leaders rejecting the plan reflects some of Newman’s thought on the topic. The writing style may sound dated, but the content remains instructive.</div><br /><div><br /><br />Sermon 22. Outward and Inward Notes of the Church</div><br /><div><br />"I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day." 2 Tim. i. 12.</div><br /><div><br />{324} IT is not to be supposed that any of us, in this fallen time, should be able to use these words of the great Apostle as he used them. God who made us, has given to each of us his own place. Some He places in heathen countries, some in Christian; some in the full light and grace of the Gospel, others amid shadows; some He visits almost with sensible tokens of His presence, others He barely supports with the hope and surmise of it. Some He leads forward only by intimations, and, as it were, whispers; as the old Saints, who "went out, not knowing whither they went;" and "died in faith, not receiving the promise." And others, like St. Paul, have before now been granted visions of the third heaven, that full and intimate Presence of Christ, which enables the Apostle to say, in the words of the text, "I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day." {325}</div><br /><div><br />Yet in spite of these great differences in God's dealings with man and man, there is this one thing the same in all cases, that He has dealt with each. I mean that religion is a personal, private, and individual matter, that it consists in a communion between God and the soul, and that its true evidences belong to the soul that believes, are its property, and not something common to it and the whole world. God vouchsafes to speak to us one by one, to manifest Himself to us one by one, to lead us forward one by one; He gives us something to rely upon which others do not experience, which we cannot convey to others, which we can but use for ourselves.</div><br /><div><br />Now that there is much in Scripture agreeable to this statement, no one I suppose will deny; but this question arises, which is worth considering, whether the Gospel Dispensation does not, even more than the Law, in one respect modify it, or even run counter to it and reverse it? For if there be a distinction of the Gospel plainly laid down in Scripture, it is that it is a social religion, and addresses individuals as parts of a whole. And, being social, it must have all things in common, and its evidences and tokens in the number. And, further, if it is social, it must be a public religion, "a city set upon a hill;" and its evidences will be in a measure public. Nay, further, its great note, as announced by the Prophets, is not only that it is social, that it is public, but that it is both social and public in the very highest sense, because it is Catholic, universal every where; and this note is insisted on as something special in itself, of a nature to dazzle and subdue the mind, like a miracle, or like the sun's light in the heavens. It was to be the {326} characteristic gift of the Christian Church, that she herself was to be a great public evidence of her mission, that she was to be her own evidence. Her very look, her bearing, her voice, were to be her credentials. As Adam had sovereignty over brute animals on his creation, or as the second Adam, her Lord and Maker, "spake as one having authority, and not as the Scribes," so she was to win or to awe the souls of men generally; not this one or that, but all, though variously, by the manifest royalty of her very presence. She received this gift from her Lord in the beginning—to claim and command obedience when she spoke, because she spoke; and that not from any thing special in the mind of the hearer, but from the voice and tone of the speaker.</div><br /><div><br />[…]<br /></div><br /><div>These of course are but a few out of the multitude of passages in the Prophet Isaiah, descriptive of the Christian Church; they speak of tokens outward, visible, common to all; and yet, in spite of these, St. Paul in the text, when about to die, and contemplating the judgment, speaks, not of them, of an evidence not outward, not visible, not common, but inward, private, incommunicable. "I know," he says, "whom I have believed." I bear about me "the marks of the Lord Jesus" in my own person; I have assurance that He has "stood by me," because He has "strengthened me;" His tabernacle is not only "with men," but "the grace of Christ tabernacles upon me." In other words (could we doubt it?), in his instance the general had become particular; the external had flowed into his secret soul; {328} the universal gift had been appropriated; the visible glory had kindled a light in his own breast; and thus, just as we need not read a friend's writing when we hear his voice, so, though Christ had gone forth into the wide world, and had been lifted up aloft to draw men to Him, and had lodged among them the power and the presence of His Atonement, yet the blessed Apostle needed not seek Him abroad, who had graciously condescended to "come under his roof," and manifest Himself unto him.</div><br /><div><br />Now this is a distinction very necessary in all ages of the Church, for different reasons: when her outward glory is great, by way of turning our attention to our own hearts, and our personal responsibility; and when it is obscured, in order to keep our faith from failing, and to revive our hope; at all times, to hinder our being engrossed by what is external to the loss of what is inward in religion.</div><br /><div><br />I observe, then, this: that the public notes of the Church, which are the common property of all men, are rather a sign to unbelievers than to the faithful, and to the world than to Christians; and a sign to members of the Church in proportion as they are without, and till they gain those truer and more precious tokens, to which the external notes lead, and by which they are practically superseded. This I conceive to be the Scripture doctrine concerning them, in the very passages which promise them to us.<br /><br />[…]</div><br /><div><br />What is told us in the New Testament is to the same purpose. For instance: consider the very precept of Christ, which binds us together in one body, and observe the reason it gives for doing so. "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another; by this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye have love one to another." You see it was to be a sign to the world, not to the Church herself. Still more clearly is this implied in our Lord's intercessory prayer: {331} "As Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me." You see, unity was for the sake of the world; He repeats it: "I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be perfect in one, and that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me, and hast loved them, as Thou hast loved Me." The visibility of the Church was rather for her proclaiming the truth, than for her dispensing grace.<br /></div>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-9407423282487756612010-06-30T15:23:00.002-04:002010-06-30T15:30:20.400-04:00New evangelization -- yes, it's that important<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeGVLUMfGONpYJKYyPhR2P7G7pUoYqsPNpFuJzTggzZwtxN9gMC5BZV-YtkG-GDobJRp3KvuOC_jO63iEFjqWJDNvQPA1RUIKbFMhM3zEmrll9NConCzw0c4nOsF5djjS0o0o-y4AbWnw/s1600/fireworks-Vatican.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488651243575608258" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 250px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 175px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeGVLUMfGONpYJKYyPhR2P7G7pUoYqsPNpFuJzTggzZwtxN9gMC5BZV-YtkG-GDobJRp3KvuOC_jO63iEFjqWJDNvQPA1RUIKbFMhM3zEmrll9NConCzw0c4nOsF5djjS0o0o-y4AbWnw/s320/fireworks-Vatican.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Today at the Vatican, the administration of the Holy See grew by another office. Here in the Philadelphia area, so far away and living in a time of shrinking staffs and the budgets that sustain workers, one has to wonder about adding a new department to the Roman curia of the Catholic Church.<br /><br />But this is a good move because it lies at the heart of what the Church is all about.<br /><br />Pope Benedict has established a new Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization. (OK, so it lacks an elegant title. It’s the thought that counts.)<br /><br />Its fundamental task, <a href="http://press.catholica.va/news_services/press/vis/dinamiche/c0_en.htm">the Pope said in making the announcement,</a> is to promote “renewed evangelization in countries where the first announcement of the faith has already been heard and where there are Churches of ancient foundation, but where a progressive secularisation of society is being experienced, a kind of 'eclipse of the meaning of God.'" These countries, he said, "are a challenge to us to find the adequate means to re-present the perennial truth of the Gospel of Christ."<br /><br />The Holy Father concluded by affirming that "the challenge of the new evangelisation calls to the universal Church, it asks us to remain committed to the search for full unity among Christians.”<br />The concept of “new evangelization” began with Pope Paul VI and was expanded and promoted heavily under his successor, Pope John Paul II. Now that venerable pope’s successor places it at the highest level of the Church’s administration under the leadership of its president, <a href="http://press.catholica.va/news_services/press/vis/dinamiche/c8_en.htm">Archbishop Salvatore Fisichella.</a><br /><br />That is how important new evangelization is.<br /><br />But just what is it? And what’s new about it?<br /><br />The Catholic Standard and Times <a href="http://cst-phl.com/clients/cst-phl/new-priests-for-the-new-evangelization-p1740.htm?twindow=Default&smenu=84&mad=No">earlier this year described </a>what is meant by a new evangelization. It’s not doing the same things of the past to share the Gospel message with others in perhaps an attempt to convert. It is a whole new way of sharing the person of Jesus with the rest of the world.<br /><br />The Pope said at that time, in May, that it requires a personal witness: “Bear witness to all of the joy that (Jesus’) strong yet gentle presence evokes, starting with your contemporaries,” Pope Benedict said. “Tell them that it is beautiful to be a friend of Jesus and that it is well worth following Him.”<br /><br />So the work of this new office couldn’t be more important. Its task is to help every Catholic and Christian working together to tell (and show by our lives) the beauty of being a friend of Jesus.</div>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-17499978544888488442010-04-13T18:01:00.004-04:002010-04-13T18:10:56.927-04:00Return of the Holy Face<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7b8oiRp8O4ODdpkc5TPUgp2Kz-aoft8F-3nvGfV-S9O5a4LJVU6a435EgpZXl_C55ZP0TwUmkGMZah78QxEFdmSF3V3xNKORY5jmKqOyBDddq3sIIJIFm8soa0-1wNCa0sFb_F8xg31E/s1600/shroud.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459745729458558082" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 226px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7b8oiRp8O4ODdpkc5TPUgp2Kz-aoft8F-3nvGfV-S9O5a4LJVU6a435EgpZXl_C55ZP0TwUmkGMZah78QxEFdmSF3V3xNKORY5jmKqOyBDddq3sIIJIFm8soa0-1wNCa0sFb_F8xg31E/s320/shroud.jpg" border="0" /></a>The <a href="http://www.sindone.org/the_holy_shroud__english_/00024122_The_Holy_Shroud.html">Shroud of Turin</a> is back in the public eye in a big way these days.<br /><br />The face of a man presumed to be dead and bearing the marks of torture and great suffering appears mysteriously on a large cloth in the northern Italian city of Turin. It is believed by millions of people to be the burial shroud of Jesus Christ.<br /><br />The shroud was the focus of a History Channel program during Holy Week two weeks ago. And Catholic News Service <a href="http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1001463.htm">reported</a> that the Nazis in the 1930s expressed “unusual and persistent” interest in the shroud, so it was secretly hidden in a church altar in southern Italy. When German armies in 1943 combed the area and the abbey in which it had been hidden, a German officer told his soldiers not to disturb the monks gathered in prayer around the altar. It was inside the altar that the shroud remained protected until after the war, when it was finally brought to Turin safely. A page from an Indiana Jones story!<br /><br />If you’re making your way to Italy, a must-visit will be to Turin where its most famous artifact will be on public display for the first time in a decade through May 23. Pope Benedict XVI will inspect the shroud during a visit to the city May 2.<br /><br />Here in Philadelphia, a <a href="http://www.philashroud.org/shroud/Home.html">replica of the shroud </a> is currently on display at Philadelphia’s Byzantine Ukrainian Cathedral on Orthodox Street in the Northern Liberties section through June 29. Hours: Tuesday to Thursday, 1-6 p.m.; Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5:50 p.m.<br /><br /><strong>What is it?</strong><br />Plenty of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shroud_of_Turin">investigations and speculations</a> of the shroud and its origin have been offered over the years. None definitively answer whether Jesus is actually depicted on the shroud. A 1988 investigation dated the cloth to 1260, presumably making it a medieval forgery. But left unexplained is exactly what the image consists of – it is not a painting, nor an etching or any other artistic representation – or how it got onto the cloth.<br /><br />Some questions have been raised in recent years that dispute the dating to the medieval period.<br />Regardless of the lack of consensus on the science of the authenticity of the shroud, it continues to have a positive effect on the faith of people who view it.<br /><br /><strong>Who is it?<br /></strong>At first photography, and now with three-dimensional modeling, images of the man of the shroud invoke a strong response of faith in Jesus. (Check <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gufirqZQByU&feature=related">this link </a>and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gufirqZQByU&feature=related">this one</a>.)<br /><br />Is it the Lord? Perhaps. What's sure is that people still seek the face of Jesus. Maybe that is because in an age reliant upon only that which can be measured and proven, people may find God distant and unknowable. The image reassures that Jesus lived as one of us, among us, with all the joys and sufferings as we (and more).<br /><br /><strong>What does the shroud mean?<br /></strong>The shroud shows that even in our time of great scientific and technological advances, science stumbles in seeking answers to the deepest longings of the human heart. These include seeing the face of God and knowing we are not alone but united with Him.<br /><br />In this, the Shroud of Turin suggests that Jesus Christ, true God and true man, lived, suffered and died in order to redeem all humanity because of His father’s great love for us.<br /><br />The story of the Shroud may never be fully explained. But neither is it an end in itself. The image is of a dead man bearing the marks of great suffering. The central truth of the Christian faith, the resurrection of Jesus, means that our Lord did not remain in the tomb but rose to new life. That ultimate gift from the Father of Jesus and Father of all creation extends to all each day.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-14710535527658942672010-02-04T13:41:00.002-05:002010-02-04T13:51:54.587-05:00Value of the Catholic press: The proof is in the paperFebruary is Catholic Press Month, a time that the Catholic Standard and Times recommits to what it has always done: communicate the truth of the Gospel through Catholic news and catechesis.<br /><br />Look no further for an example of the value of this newspaper than this week's front page. While many media reported that the Archdiocese called for a collection to assist earthquake ravaged Haiti, this is the only one that reports parishes have raised more than $583,000 so far.<br /><br />Add to that more than $117,000 raised by Catholic schools in the Archdiocese.<br /><br />The operations of this Catholic medium depend entirely on the newspaper's readers, both from subscriptions and their patronage of our advertisers. Readers on our <a href="http://cst-phl.com/">web site </a>also contribute traffic that shows online advertisers their message is extended beyond the printed page.<br /><br />In this month we ask readers --both of the print product and on screens of various sizes -- to encourage other Catholics to subscribe to the newspaper. We’ll do our part to inform, educate and inspire all year long.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-68030308546308977112009-12-23T15:19:00.001-05:002009-12-23T15:25:00.008-05:00What's a holiday tree?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJWytMceyDAr_YK5-nNPFzYWylnapdvPP7KDdXD4A85NIWxpjKzHTo23sjlYjTCimLTL8py3nFbU0koF79WlWJljw6WSxbC3shOb_lFNuccJ6YCCw4-0-1C9HvUemrHkD3d-XKwqbCOlg/s1600-h/christmas-tree-lights1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5418530166304369826" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJWytMceyDAr_YK5-nNPFzYWylnapdvPP7KDdXD4A85NIWxpjKzHTo23sjlYjTCimLTL8py3nFbU0koF79WlWJljw6WSxbC3shOb_lFNuccJ6YCCw4-0-1C9HvUemrHkD3d-XKwqbCOlg/s320/christmas-tree-lights1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>It’s OK, you can say “Christmas.”<br /><br />The folks at the New York based Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights certainly do. But they know people who just <a href="http://www.catholicleague.org/release.php?id=1743">can’t bring themselves to say the word. </a><br /><br />Take the officials of Cary, North Carolina, who relabeled the pine tree cut, placed and decorated in their town hall the “community tree.” They’re joining other towns that are celebrating something around their holiday tree, state capitol tree or solstice tree.<br /><br />The League reports that Howard County, Indiana, retired its manger scene in favor of a lighted display of the Loch Ness monster, a whale and other animals. And a corporate executive advises against saying “happy new year” in favor of “looking forward.”<br /><br />Standard Time might be cutting across the new cultural grain, yet we proudly wish readers a merry Christmas and happy new year.<br /><br />There, that was easy.</div>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-10541472895307923762009-11-23T12:46:00.004-05:002009-11-23T15:45:01.852-05:00Survey says...Today we closed our reader poll on health care reform. Here's an analysis of how visitors to <a href="http://cst-phl.com/">cst-phl.com</a> answered the question, "Do you favor health care reform..."<br /><br />41 percent: I don't wish to change the health care system in any way.<br />26 percent: if it provides health care to everyone in America<br />17 percent: if it includes a public option and excludes abortion funding.<br />16: only if it excludes funding for abortion.<br /><br />One could read much into the responses of each group. But be cautious: only a total of 291 votes were cast in the poll.<br /><br />Still, the largest group (118 votes, or 41 percent) would prefer no change in health care at all. It may be discomforting for those without health care to know that even though the <a href="http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0905107.htm">U.S. Bishops worked to get a bill </a>through the House that excludes abortion funding and provides affordable care to 96 percent of Americans, a large block of Americans oppose any tinkering with the system, especially a plan run by the government.<br /><br />I had dinner with a friend who's in his third decade serving in the Army Reserves. When he says, "The government can't run anything," I'm inclined to agree. Whether a public option in some form is the way toward a more just way to deliver health care to those who need it, I don't know.<br /><br />The bishops don't say definitively whether they favor a public option. They do make priorities of affordability, broader access, care for immigrants (and they're almost alone in <a href="http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0904169.htm">calling for it</a>) and of course, the status quo on abortion as a minimum.<br /><br />On the last point, the fewest votes in our poll came for the position closest to the bishops: favoring reform only if it excludes abortion funding. From this chair, the bishops' points make the most sense. Fortunately they won the day in the House.<br /><br />In the Senate it's a different story. Those exclusions currently are missing from the Senate bill, so a lot of work remains.<br /><br />Amendments will be added and deleted until Christmas at least, with a final vote expected to come in January. Until then, keep the emails and phone calls churning out to senators. Here are <a href="http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/2009-11-20-ltr-usccb-health-care-to-senate.pdf">key points from the bishops </a>to keep you on message.<br /><br />Health care reform is important to the Church (if not some of its members). Any final legislation must reflect Catholic principles of fairness and justice, especially for the unborn persons without a voice in this debate.<br /><br />For a change of pace after all that, <a href="http://cst-phl.com/">try our new poll </a>on a more eternal topic: the beginning of Advent.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-15847616063298743462009-11-18T12:56:00.006-05:002009-11-18T13:42:23.697-05:00Now they tell us<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG5oDlLC2DdJPJtFTRTsyoILNZMGyntx2i6RoYoB_nFljKVwOnZ_wkl0NrtcdYTJ8IdLNybMcbp-EJeWD-LxcKXc_8Enx7Qi5T0Da3m_INjJ2A3oNN5yCR_IIrCLeEpb8K1l_WEKkDUB0/s1600/proclaim.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405515553166648466" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 175px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 143px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG5oDlLC2DdJPJtFTRTsyoILNZMGyntx2i6RoYoB_nFljKVwOnZ_wkl0NrtcdYTJ8IdLNybMcbp-EJeWD-LxcKXc_8Enx7Qi5T0Da3m_INjJ2A3oNN5yCR_IIrCLeEpb8K1l_WEKkDUB0/s320/proclaim.jpg" border="0" /></a>It's been said that journalism is what you know when you know it. For journalists painting their story in the medium of ink on newsprint, production deadlines mean one must file a story with what is known now, and provide updates in the next edition.<br /><div></div><br /><div>So it is this week that the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's favorite newspaper, the Catholic Standard & Times, does not report on the outcome of the United States Catholic Bishops' meeting in Baltimore in the paper's Thursday edition. The conference's Tuesday evening session produced, among other items, approval of new translations of the texts of the Catholic Mass.</div><br /><div>The lash of the deadline descended upon the paper's editors and production staff, so news of this closely watched development needed to be deferred to next week's edition. Here is what we know today, after deadline:</div><br /><div>The bishops approved the new English Mass texts, which feature translations said to be more faithful to the liturgy's Latin source texts. Some bishops objected for years that although the translations better reflect Latin, they will be obscure for most people participating in the Mass.</div><br /><div>See what you think. The U.S. Bishops Conference offers <a href="http://www.usccb.org/romanmissal/examples.shtml">many examples</a> of the changes expected to be fully implemented by 2011. Here are two: </div><br /><div>Current Nicene Creed: "We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, ... begotten not made, one in being with the Father." </div><div><br />New Nicene Creed: "I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible, and in one Lord Jesus Christ, ... begotten not made, consubstantial with the Father."<br /><br />Current Lamb of God: "Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed." </div><br /><div>New Lamb of God: "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed."<br /></div><br /><div>It should be noted that the Roman Missal, the texts we pray at every Mass, have been in development since 1963 at the Second Vatican Council. And, it is still the same Mass as it always was: Word and Sacrament, perfect praise and thanksgiving through communion with the most holy Eucharist, source and summit of our worship. </div><br /><div>Learn more about the changes, including the extensive period of catechesis (teaching) on this subject from the <a href="http://www.usccb.org/romanmissal/">U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' site.</a></div>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-46358856833804098422009-11-13T12:06:00.003-05:002009-11-13T12:21:32.541-05:00Catholic biz pros: All for One<div>For a first-time get together, the new <a href="http://www.catholicpros.com/">Catholic Business Professionals of Greater Philadelphia </a>that met last night was an impressive success.<br /><br />The new group, which also has an <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/groupsDirectory?results=&sik=1255725289098&pplSearchOrigin=GLHD&keywords=catholic+business+professionals+philadelphia">online presence at LinkedIn,</a> drew about 50 Catholics from various business backgrounds and parishes around the <a href="http://archphila.org/home.php">Archdiocese of Philadelphia </a>to Kildare’s Pub in King of Prussia. There was some chat about doing business in this tough economic environment, no matter in what field people worked.<br /><br />But mostly people seemed excited to make connections with fellow Catholics and to support each other in living their Catholic faith.<br /><br />Some companies’ unethical practices put enormous pressure on Catholics who sincerely try to integrate their spiritual and moral formation into their work life. All the more so at a time when just walking away from a job means one might not find another for a long time.<br /><br />People at the meeting shared their stories and strategies (doing what the boss wants but finding a way to do it in an ethical way) but mostly they shared good fellowship.<br /><br />The group’s founder, Nick Gibboni, won a hearty round of applause for introducing himself and thanking those who had helped him pull together the gathering, featuring free attendance and donated food and drinks. Deacon Bill Masapollo led everyone in a prayer to thank almighty God for the friendship and Catholic connections forged last night.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXa6IFA16uz229_Vhw9hPduosrYB-FG6VY5zYq8yMx803uwzN0gahKX8gLsmku3Inkml28sYQudnnxEEm_OkDkP6QSoIX0ON6ji2IrIpg8CWlIOu8nn0rvyQrsZiOO2u2jYYmXnegcurs/s1600-h/Sacred-Heart-of-Jesus.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403639321592188226" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 93px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 131px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXa6IFA16uz229_Vhw9hPduosrYB-FG6VY5zYq8yMx803uwzN0gahKX8gLsmku3Inkml28sYQudnnxEEm_OkDkP6QSoIX0ON6ji2IrIpg8CWlIOu8nn0rvyQrsZiOO2u2jYYmXnegcurs/s320/Sacred-Heart-of-Jesus.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />In addition to the evident smiles and handshakes, more than a few people remarked how the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was incorporated into Catholic Business Pros’ logo. On fire for and united with the Lord, only good things are no doubt in store for this group.<br /><br />Look for future coverage and promotion of the group’s next meeting, anticipated to be quarterly, in a coming edition of <a href="http://www.cst-phl.com/">the Catholic Standard & Times. </a></div>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-13457161916893236372009-10-08T20:02:00.001-04:002009-10-08T20:07:32.856-04:00How a tale of two schools endsThe Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced tonight at its 7 p.m. news conference that Cardinal <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Dougherty</span> High School and Northeast Catholic High School would close at the end of the current school year, June 2010.<br /><br />The archdiocesan schools boast a long and proud history, serving the heavily Catholic North Philadelphia neighborhoods that today lack the numbers of families to sustain the large buildings.<br /><br />Cardinal <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Dougherty</span>, located in the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Olney</span> section, and Northeast (commonly known as “North”), in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Frankford</span>, at one time boasted some of the largest student bodies of any Catholic high school in the world. CD packed almost 6,000 students into its halls in 1965, while North enrolled almost 4,500 in 1953.<br /><br />Today those big physical plants are largely underutilized. Each has student populations that fill only about a third of the building's capacity.<br /><br />At the press conference Bishop Joseph McFadden cited the key reasons for the recommendation of a strategic planning study, and they are not hard to understand. The buildings are underused but still must be heated throughout and maintained, making them costly. And retrofitting them for contemporary usage, such as for technology needs, becomes exceedingly expensive.<br /><br />Underlying it all, despite heroic efforts to raise money for scholarships, is the stark fact that enrollments keep dropping. The huge numbers of Catholic families in the North and lower Northeast Philadelphia areas that built the enormous student populations of the past simply are not present today. Sadly, few alternatives exist to the decision that was announced tonight.<br /><br />Check the Catholic Standard & Times at <a href="http://cst-phl.com/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">cst</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">phl</span>.com </a>for updates on this story. And for comprehensive coverage and a retrospective, don’t miss the weekly newspaper’s Oct. 15 issue.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-81614880044193647292009-08-10T15:36:00.003-04:002009-08-10T15:49:57.958-04:0070-page paper? Check. Back to school? Working on it...We’re still basking in the glow of producing 70 pages in a handful of days, in honor of Bishop Timothy Senior’s ordination and a week of news.<br /><br />Enjoy <a href="http://cst-phl.com/">the coverage</a> and other interesting news, such as a <a href="http://cst-phl.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=1&twindow=&mad=&sdetail=1090&wpage=1&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&rebed=&rebath=&subname=&pform=&sc=2666&hn=cst-phl&he=.com">breakthrough in stem cell research </a>courtesy <a href="http://catholicnews.com/">Catholic News Service,</a> and <a href="http://cst-phl.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=84&twindow=Default&mad=No&sdetail=1080&wpage=1&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&rebed=&rebath=&subname=&pform=&sc=2666&hn=cst-phl&he=.com">an editorial </a>on the topic.<br /><br />But the glow fades and we’re on to the next deadline. This time it’s an Aug. 20 edition featuring a supplement on going Back to School. Sorry to make the kids cringe. But a growing number of students in the good 'ole US of A are heading back to school several times a year as <a href="http://www.ericdigests.org/2001-3/year.htm">this report </a>or <a href="http://www.ed.gov/pubs/PrisonersOfTime/index.html">this more dated one </a>shows. Year-round school it's called. Decide for yourself.<br /><br />Whether you can’t wait to spend more long days with the little darlins’ or can’t wait till they board the bus on day 1 of 180, August seems to be flying by in a hurry.<br /><br />Get those toes wet and fire up the grill for just a few more weeks. Most kids in archdiocesan schools head back September 9.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-35898852249984964022009-08-10T15:14:00.002-04:002009-08-10T15:18:53.695-04:00The truths behind the polls<a href="http://cst-phl.com/">The CS&T</a> ran a story last year that referred to a study of academic achievement in our Catholic schools. Seemed like a nice, positive piece about Catholic education.<br /><br />One reader took high offense at our failure to list the science behind the study – “what was the standard deviation of the sampling group?” and so on.<br /><br />Just goes to show you can’t please everybody in this business. It also leads one to suspect that online polls, which seem to be on every web site these days, are not supported by rock-solid empirical evidence. They’re part diversion (<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">isn</span>’t that the purpose of the Internet?) and part window into people’s thinking.<br /><br />In the spirit of the latter and with a cavalier attitude for data mining, our web site at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">cst</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">phl</span>.com has been running polls for close to a year now. The sampling is small, normally less than 200 votes cast over a four-week period, but one can learn a lot about the mindset of visitors who took the time to weigh in.<br /><br />A poll we ran this summer concerned immigration, and it was enlightening. The question was, “The bishops of North and Central America are calling for a summit to discuss migration issues. What do you think?”<br /><br />Of the five sample answers, the leading one chosen was, “The bishops should only speak about just treatment of people, not immigration laws.” (40 percent of the 131 votes). The other answers ran the gamut from expressing the desire for the bishops to lead the immigration policy debate (30 percent), to the view that current U.S. immigration law should be enforced, and other countries and their bishops ought to stay out of American affairs (20 percent).<br /><br />In sum, most respondents to our poll (60 percent) not only disagree with the American Catholic bishops’ <a href="http://www.justiceforimmigrants.org/">teaching on immigration </a>– that the stranger should be welcomed and current law must be reformed – they don’t think the bishops should even weigh in on the issue.<br /><br />How often do we see a disconnect in the Church between her members and her teaching? It seems that many people misplace the truth of Church teaching, based on Scripture, the tradition of the Church and the teachings of her <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">magisterium</span>, for a certain political view. How can it be that members of the Body of Christ choose one teaching or another that they support in full throat, while conveniently assigning others to the periphery?<br /><br />You’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">ve</span> heard them: “This one is a core teaching. That one is a political issue which the Church should avoid.”<br /><br />The Church needs discipline, which is another way of saying obedience. Even the disciples in the Gospels grumbled at Jesus’ words: “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” Nevertheless, the truth of human dignity and mankind’s relationship with God serves as the foundation for all Church teaching.<br /><br />We do not get to pick and choose. We do get the opportunity to study and reflect upon the teaching, even if it is hard to accept at this time.<br /><br />While we are reflecting, open to the will of the Spirit to illuminate us with the light of truth, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">couldn</span>’t we at least accept that the successors of the apostles, the bishops, have the right to teach in public, and that Church teaching deserves a hearing in the heart?Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-59978415000989661162009-06-30T15:59:00.005-04:002009-06-30T16:23:29.877-04:00Manning up against porn<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR7SU2U_9lMHC4l1BsFdeJWFxl9wDR01yQ-7LWqjyLKg9NhiMnSOUBOkKApSOjKH5kCTnVElfs5I7T6BqotiufleXI7MrF6GDE1GL8irS_a7yrnx4IJxOHgT-cnudRWu29CyE8ilZqirU/s1600-h/kingsmen.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5353217547603453506" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 31px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR7SU2U_9lMHC4l1BsFdeJWFxl9wDR01yQ-7LWqjyLKg9NhiMnSOUBOkKApSOjKH5kCTnVElfs5I7T6BqotiufleXI7MrF6GDE1GL8irS_a7yrnx4IJxOHgT-cnudRWu29CyE8ilZqirU/s320/kingsmen.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>You read about the pervasiveness of pornography. You recognize its destructiveness both to the viewer and on marriage and family life. Usually all you can do is shake your head. Except now. </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div>There is one small step you can take for men, and a leap for women and children.</div><br /><div>A protest of the porn purveyor Adult World at Routes 202 and 309 in Montgomeryville will happen the afternoon of July 1, led by the King's Men, a group of Catholic/Christian men. </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div>These guys don't accept the maxim "boys will be boys" as a lame excuse for men behaving badly. They know how bad porn is for individuals and society, and they know the men who buy it can do better.</div><br /><div>As the King's Men's mission states: "Under Christ the King’s universal call to serve, we as men, pledge to unite and build up other men in the mold of leader, protector, and provider through education, formation and action." Read about them on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=17981673854">Facebook</a>.</div><br /><div>These good men will peacefully witness to anyone pulling up to the sex shop how strong, moral men ought to behave, for their good and everyone's. It ought to be a moving gesture, so come out and show your support in the effort to fight the systematic degradation for profit that is the porn industry.</div><br /><div>It won't break the back of this insidious business, but if they can turn away one man even for a day, it's a beginning. </div>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-22219851137621578502009-06-17T14:44:00.003-04:002009-06-17T14:57:25.045-04:00Thanks to Dad, on his dayA friend who works for John Patrick Publishing, the good folks who publish many of the parish bulletins in the Archdiocese, sent me a poem he wrote about the fine example of his father to mark Father's Day this Sunday.<br /><br />His father was another of the heroes of the greatest generation, as they have come to be known. The hero-as-dad might be uncommon these days, with TV shows often depicting fathers as bumbling fools. Sure, guys have a way of earning that reputation at times, but most men live lives of humble goodness, devoted to their wives and families without fanfare.<br /><br />The father of George Gerlach was one of those men. He was not only a hero to his son, but over the years taught George how to love his own wife in the fullest measure, to sacrifice and guide his children with gentle strength, and to be joyful whenever possible.<br /><br />Enjoy:<br /><br /><em><strong>He Taught Me How to Love My Wife</strong></em><br /><em><strong></strong><br />Dad was a big guy.<br />He consumed the open area of a doorframe as he passed through.<br />His presence became the focus though he didn’t wish it to be.<br />He would brighten up the room with his Big Band smile and got everyone laughing with his one-liners, even if we heard it for the tenth time.<br /><br />At other times you could hear a pin drop as he LISTENED to your trials, tribulations and concerns, waiting for you to finish, to get it all out… then he would often, without saying a word would have helped you to realize that you just answered your own question or solved your problem just by giving voice to it.<br /><br />His most potent times of being Dad were just in being present, being there to show he cared or because his wife, his bride, agreed we must go.<br /><br />He lived for his family, his wife and children. Yet he never minced words or left any doubt who was most important to him after his God. Bernice, his wife, his lover and companion on the journey, mother of his children, yes, but first his wife.<br /><br />Through the years they would be happy, sad, challenged, stretched, twisted, conflicted, joyous and always busy.<br /><br />But, make no bones; Dad was loyal, faithful, loving and in love with Mom. They marched as one, some days with different drums but in the end they made beautiful music.<br /><br />Never afraid to express affection for his wife in front of others, Dad was a man’s man. The hug, the kiss, the knowing glance and yes the pinch under the table brought back visions to Dad of never wanting again to be separated from his girl as he was in the War across the Ocean, of losing the grip of her loving hand.<br /><br />Being taller than Mom was no problem because he always had her on a pedestal.<br /><br />This larger than life husband would take his wife in his arms and gracefully whisk her across the dance floor and sing to her with his eyes “ I’ll being loving you always”….<br /><br />Dad had the grace and humility to laugh, cry, lead the way and ask forgiveness all at the same time.<br /><br />His pace would slow as he got older, his sore tired legs, feet and heart told him how far he could walk but whatever he could do, even to the end, it was always holding the hand of his lover.<br /><br />Dad, thank you for teaching me how to love my wife.<br />I pray that I keep learning from your wonderful life. Happy Fathers Day 2009</em>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-12650457859119030242009-06-11T17:12:00.001-04:002009-06-11T17:20:02.397-04:00Reason and faith, perfect togetherWhat do high-energy particle physics and Bible study have to do with one another? Two unrelated <a href="http://www.catholicnews.com/data/briefs/cns/20090610.htm#head5">Catholic News Service</a> stories this week point to the connection between reason and faith.<br /><br />In a talk June 10, Pope Benedict XVI reviewed the thought of a ninth century Irish monk, John Scotus Erigena.<br /><br />He taught that the only way to understand the Bible fully was with an approach that relied on intelligence and prayer at the same time, and that the final result was not understanding, but contemplation, according to CNS.<br /><br />Christians, the Pope said, have "the obligation to continue to seek the truth until one reaches an experience of silent adoration of God."<br /><br />This concept of using one’s intellect not merely for its own ends but to orient the person toward the Other finds a parallel in a Vatican delegation’s visit to CERN, the world’s largest particle physics laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland.<br /><br />The research at CERN is not strictly theoretical, even though the leader of the delegation, Cardinal Giovanni Lajolo, expressed his personal interest “regarding the farthest limits that astrophysical science is striving to reach with proton acceleration."<br /><br />CNS reports that the idea of having the Vatican visit CERN came from Ugo Amaldi, the president of TERA Foundation, which collaborates closely with CERN in finding ways to apply atomic research in treating cancer, especially in children.<br /><br />It’s been fashionable for people to say science and religion are mutually exclusive. Far from it.<br />As this one example shows, science and religion meeting in the service of human needs can work in harmony, not opposition.<br /><br />In doing so, one can help the other affirm life and seek truth, both of which come from God, the origin and end of humanity.Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-55621060166771752382009-05-20T09:48:00.004-04:002009-05-20T10:19:09.949-04:00Go digital, go tell the Good News<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVnZtOd5lIedzow7DPkxuglTCDTCu_3ECWhGAHwUx8MxcAqPRKPzrgLP9lFECmeSPz4rpRoQPmj1-vtD2W2JEn2jP4-5Xj1kcOloXsafNKGIa6nyoHSUx7BIhh5LNpCpYtSNLbydNqR-A/s1600-h/pope_benedict.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337910129935708898" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 260px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVnZtOd5lIedzow7DPkxuglTCDTCu_3ECWhGAHwUx8MxcAqPRKPzrgLP9lFECmeSPz4rpRoQPmj1-vtD2W2JEn2jP4-5Xj1kcOloXsafNKGIa6nyoHSUx7BIhh5LNpCpYtSNLbydNqR-A/s320/pope_benedict.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Today Pope Benedict XVI mentioned World Communications Day, held this Sunday, May 24. Since you're reading this, you're no stranger to new communications media. Neither is he.<br /><br />The Vatican is taking the occasion to <a href="http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0902272.htm">launch iPhone and Facebook apps </a>to reach young Catholics (and ages on up) and to launch a new site, <a href="http://www.pope2you.net/">http://www.pope2you.net/</a>, going live Sunday.<br /><br />Beyond the bling of blogs and treat of Tweets, content is still king. That means it is still the message that counts most. And what better message than "the Good News of God's infinite love for all people"? Christians in the digital world have the job of witnessing our faith -- in the words we choose to read (or skip past) and especially the words we write.<br /><br />The Holy Father's words on the topic:<br /><br />"I am inviting all those who make use of the new technologies of communication, especially the young, to utilise them in a positive way and to realise the great potential of these means to build up bonds of friendship and solidarity that can contribute to a better world.<br /><br />"The new technologies," he added, "have brought about fundamental shifts in the ways in which news and information are disseminated and in how people communicate and relate to each other. I wish to encourage all those who access cyberspace to be careful to maintain and promote a culture of respect, dialogue and authentic friendship where the values of truth, harmony and understanding can flourish.<br /><br />"Young people in particular, I appeal to you: bear witness to your faith through the digital world! Employ these new technologies to make the Gospel known, so that the Good News of God's infinite love for all people, will resound in new ways across our increasingly technological world!"</div>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-76570980662593196902009-05-20T09:25:00.003-04:002009-05-20T09:47:59.952-04:00Under the Rainbow<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-tzGdQU6bippDMituooAFYipepsyNMWlSolsQnEGB1nI3N7GhwVVGdIqernBSnw5E19bgkf13zlDXTgvvlnXqXpEG8lqIPmv5wuDLepGTtd0vbadkfwBruoJ4mJsVJiIjXWalGC1cm3E/s1600-h/rainbow.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337902137087148162" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 256px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-tzGdQU6bippDMituooAFYipepsyNMWlSolsQnEGB1nI3N7GhwVVGdIqernBSnw5E19bgkf13zlDXTgvvlnXqXpEG8lqIPmv5wuDLepGTtd0vbadkfwBruoJ4mJsVJiIjXWalGC1cm3E/s320/rainbow.bmp" border="0" /></a> CS&T reader John Firn sent us the above photo some weeks back. With apologies to John for the delay -- as the CS&T has shown over the past six weeks, it's been a busy/hectic/frantic time. (Holy Week and Easter, the Catholic Charities Appeal, Priesthood jubilarians and ordination, two multi-part series including parish life and violence among youth, Bishop Cistone's appointment to Saginaw, Mich. -- and they're just the high-profile items.)<br /><div></div><br /><div>Here are John's words after he snapped this photo at the Burholme Ambulance Station in Northeast Philadelphia, reminding us all of the beauty and fragility of our earthly home, and Who is ultimately in charge of it...</div><br /><div> "On the 8th of April, at 1830 hrs, a heavy rain and wind came on suddenly. To the north, it was dark , cloudy and raining, and to the south, behind our Station it was sunny.<br /><br /> "A large rainbow appeared where the two fronts met, just out front of the Station. I took a couple of pictures with my cell phone, and the one here was the one I sent to my e-mail.<br /><br /> "Something in the picture caught my attention. Hardly anyone notices it the first look, but keep looking."</div><br /><div>That something is, with the gift of imagination, an image of a man's arms spread wide. Thanks to John for sharing a reminder of God's gift of salvation through the sacrifice of His son, Jesus Christ.</div>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-50614713399649936422009-05-08T16:05:00.003-04:002009-05-08T16:12:53.275-04:00A new economic order?“Economies based on greed must be replaced,” read the <a href="http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0902093.htm">headline on Catholic News Service. </a><br /><br />Interesting concept from the Honduran Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Maradiaga</span>, who is president of the Catholic relief organization <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Caritas</span> International.<br /><br />OK, your eminence, but replaced by what?<br /><br />Agencies like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Caritas</span>, Catholic Relief Services in this country and many others work to ease the suffering of poor people. They naturally look at the economic system in which those who are well off tend to get richer, while the poor struggle to survive.<br /><br />To paraphrase Churchill’s description of democracy, capitalism is the worst economic system, except for all the others.<br /><br />Certainly communism has failed in most cases, though the jury is still out on the long-term economic success of China’s mix of repressive communism and competitive capitalism. Socialism compares poorly with capitalism in terms of prosperity, especially when the latter is functioning in a healthy manner. A barter system, while it has merits on a small scale, is impractical to meet the demands of global and interdependent commerce.<br /><br />One emerging idea is peer-to-peer commerce, part of what is called cooperative economics. Here’s an <a href="http://www.openintegral.net/blog/?p=222">interesting read </a>on it plus a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_system">broader economic overview</a>.<br /><br />Don't get anxious, fellow democratic capitalists. Free-market capitalism <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">didn</span>’t surpass feudalism overnight, and the former likely won’t be supplanted any time soon.<br /><br />Cooperative economics might not be what Cardinal Rodriguez was thinking, but getting people to consider a more charitable, more sustainable economic system might really be what he had in mind.<br /><br />Using natural resources as though they were infinite cannot continue as it has. Nor can wealthy nations give lip service to development in poor nations.<br /><br />If there is going to be economic progress after the crash of 2008, a system must emerge in which resources are used efficiently while jobs are created by entrepreneurs. At the same time, governments with the means must seriously address the lack of basic necessities and education in poor countries that lead to radical movements and that ultimately threaten prosperity (perhaps even life) for all.<br /><br />How to do that? There is no agreement at this point, but one <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">couldn</span>’t disagree with John Lennon’s line: “We’d all love to see the plan.”Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7939873622508107489.post-17685826069897342622009-04-09T13:30:00.004-04:002009-04-09T14:40:52.107-04:00Eucharist every day, from the beginning<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi3DKb1MbPxoVAPcyzFeAxSv54D5bTPLtMjKi9f1y82eGbv_dt5zFjuP1eyop4c-n-oxnXjSGzNwELXySVKgnjnHPemXjZx-iE6JZ_Qs2AvURGCtwGs-wXcuIlW6FltgnnvcMvZ53W38E/s1600-h/brokenbread.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322763456936319842" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 250px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 186px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi3DKb1MbPxoVAPcyzFeAxSv54D5bTPLtMjKi9f1y82eGbv_dt5zFjuP1eyop4c-n-oxnXjSGzNwELXySVKgnjnHPemXjZx-iE6JZ_Qs2AvURGCtwGs-wXcuIlW6FltgnnvcMvZ53W38E/s320/brokenbread.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Along with the other unasked-for mail I received at home last week was a brochure addressed to Current Resident, from the local congregation of the Jehovah's Witnesses. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>It was slick, tri-fold, full color and invited people to join the congregation's reenactment of the Last Supper. It quoted from the (synoptic) Gospels how the Eucharist was instituted by Jesus the night before He died. Of course the words were familiar: "... this is my body ... this is my blood."</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Since the congregation takes the command to "do this in memory of me" (First Corinthians) literally, they are doing so on April 9, Holy Thursday -- on just this one day of the year!</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Excuse me, but as a Catholic I have to ask, if it's so important to print a brochure, mail it to every home in the local area, and ask folks to share in this great feast by the Lord's command, why do it only once a year? </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I do hope their celebration, in whatever form it takes, leads the participants to a deeper and yes, literal understanding of the Eucharist: Christ, the son of the Father, second person of the Holy Trinity, becomes truly present among the community of the faithful in the appearance of bread and wine. I hope they discover that in the Catholic Church, the Eucharist is celebrated every day of the year as it has been from the beginning of the Church!</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>The Eucharist is our Lord Jesus Christ's gift of himself to us every time we participate in the sacrifice of the Mass. What a great gift we share as Catholics. Christ established his Church and gave us His real presence in the Eucharist as spiritual food for the journey, as memorial sacrifice to help remember all that he did and said, as a sign of unity and of thanksgiving -- the literal meaning of Eucharist.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>This source and summit of our worship bonds us together with one another in the Church and to our Lord Jesus. More than community, this is communion, thanks to the Eucharist whose institution we celebrate tonight, at the evening Mass of the Lord's Supper.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>As Lent ends tonight we begin the Triduum -- three days of intense communal prayer leading toward Easter. Tonight we thank God in the most solemn way for the gift of himself. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Personally, tonight I pray also for those who have heard and read the Lord's command to "take, eat, this is my body..." but do not share full communion with the Catholic Church. In a special way, I pray for those people who were raised Catholic with the gift of the Eucharist but have chosen a different path. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>May they, through the providence of God acting perhaps in an unasked-for brochure, find their way to Jesus Christ the bread of life, in his most precious body and blood.</div>Matthew Gambinohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15582683524834750402noreply@blogger.com6