by Donna Leslie In an inspiring year when America saw a female African-American gymnast become an Olympic champion, the Diocese of Brooklyn saw its future “champions” of youth with the 22nd annual Kujenga Youth Leadership Retreat, held July 27-29 at the Immaculate Conception Seminary, Huntington, L.I. The central theme for this year’s retreat, “Not a […]
by Mark Pattison WASHINGTON (CNS) — Labor unions and other worker associations are necessary to help propel workers and their families out of poverty amid a “broken economy,” said the chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development. “Economic renewal that places working people and their families at the center of […]
by Marie Elena Giossi Green thumbs have been cropping up at Mercy Home residences in Greenpoint and Rosedale this summer. Those thumbs belong to developmentally challenged adults taking part in Plant-Grow-Give, an innovative program, developed by staff, which empowers group home residents to learn new skills and take an active role in feeding and caring […]
Boxing isn’t exactly a sport that exemplifies Catholic values. Two competitors enter the ring with one goal in mind: to knock out their opponent. However, just because the sport by nature is violent, that hasn’t stopped a few boxers from openly professing their faith. Born in England and raised in Ireland, Seamus McDonagh, 59, always […]
VATICAN CITY (CNS) —Fighting in Aleppo, Syria, has not spared the residences of the local Melkite and Maronite Catholic archbishops, according to the Vatican’s Fides news agency. The residence of Melkite Archbishop Jean-Clement Jeanbart was ransacked during clashes Aug. 23. The archbishop and several priests who live in the building had fled a few hours […]
by Nancy Frazier O’Brien WASHINGTON (CNS) — A three-judge federal appeals panel has affirmed a lower court ruling that the U.S. government can fund embryonic stem-cell research despite a federal ban on funding any research that harms or destroys human embryos. Chief Judge David B. Sentelle of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District […]
by Dan Russo EDGEWOOD, Iowa (CNS) — In 2001, Abbie Steger, then in second grade, took part in a tradition that has been going on for decades at St. Mark Church in Edgewood. On the Sunday after Easter, the small, tight-knit parish’s first Communion class stands on a lawn outside the church and releases balloons. […]
At a recent reception, the Office of Faith Formation and the Diocese of Brooklyn’s Pastoral Institute honored 11 people who completed their master’s degree in theology from St. John’s University, Jamaica, and the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception, Douglaston. Those honored were Rosemary Burchik, Catherine Crimmins, Gladcia Drew, Marie Fouche, Rosa Gomez, Dawn Hewitt, Shirley […]
Father Robert Lauder and the diocesan Office of Faith Formation recently released the lineup for the Friday Film Festival at the Immaculate Conception Center, Douglaston, this fall: Sept. 7 — Xavier Beauvois’ Of Gods and Men (Subtitle) Sept. 14 — George Stevens’ The Talk of the Town Sept. 28 — Franco Castaldi’s […]
by Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Father Caesar Atuire is not naive enough to ask his pilgrims to leave their smartphones at home. However, the CEO of a Vatican-related pilgrimage agency does ask his pilgrims to at least look at the holy sites — perhaps even say a prayer — before clicking and capturing […]
