What we have seen and experienced in the last two weeks has been mind-numbing. Since we have weathered many hurricanes in the past, it is hard to believe that such a storm could create such havoc in our communities as Sandy did. There is a wide gap among the kinds of pain we all have […]
Author: settinger
Hurricane Sandy — The Aftermath
Our Response to the Disaster of Sandy
by Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio Hurricane Sandy has left her trail of death and destruction across our city and region. On Wednesday, I had the opportunity to visit with the communities affected by the storm. We all pray first and foremost for our fellow New Yorkers and their families who perished. While things may always be […]
Sandy’s Wrath
Some church buildings in the Rockaways sustained water damage from Hurricane Sandy, but many parishioners’ lives were turned upside down when more than 100 homes burned to the ground in the oceanside community of Breezy Point. The storm knocked out power to huge swathes of the nation’s most densely populated region, swamped New York’s subway […]
Christmas Stamp Has A Timely Theme
by Carol Zimmerman WASHINGTON (CNS) – When the U.S. Postal Service unveiled its new Christmas stamp Oct. 10 featuring an image of the Holy Family fleeing to Egypt, there was no uproar about religion in the public square, or in this case, rectangle. “We didn’t get a single phone call or e-mail from anyone who […]
Aftermath of Vatican II Misinterpreted Missions
by Francis X. Rocca VATICAN CITY (CNS) – On the subject of the Second Vatican Council, Ralph Martin is nothing if not an enthusiast. The theologian, who teaches at Sacred Heart Seminary in Detroit and served as an official expert at the October, 2012, world Synod of Bishops on the new evangelization, said the “wonderful […]
Sites Offer Alternative To Diocesan Pilgrimage
On the same day as the Brooklyn diocesan pilgrimage to Washington, D.C., the diocese hosted two pilgrimages for Catholics who could not travel to the nation’s capital. In Brooklyn, the Shrine Church of Our Lady of Solace, Coney Island, opened its doors Oct. 27 to nearly 250 local pilgrims. The day of prayer and reflection […]
American Among Four New Cardinals
Pope Benedict XVI surprised pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 24 by announcing he would create six new cardinals, including 63-year-old U.S. Archbishop James M. Harvey, prefect of the papal household, in late November. It will be the smallest group of cardinals created since the 1977 consistory when Pope Benedict, the then-Archbishop Joseph Ratzinger, received […]
Life Trumps Party Loyalty
by Francis X. Rocca VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Church teaching against abortion “requires absolute adherence” on the part of Catholic voters, who must “stand united” in opposition to the practice regardless of party affiliation, said Archbishop Charles J. Chaput of Philadelphia. “(Abortion) really is a big issue today, and I think what it requires of […]
Growth Through Self-Revelation
by Father Robert Lauder As I have mentioned frequently in past columns, I have come in recent years to appreciate in a new way the importance of friendships. For many years, I thought of friendships, and indeed all interpersonal relationships among human beings, as more or less extrinsic to religion and to spiritual growth. Though […]