On June 27, 2009, the Feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, a group of educators, religious and corporate volunteers set to work cleaning out the long-closed St. Barbara’s elementary school in Bushwick, as a first step in the creation of what would become the new Pope John Paul II Family Academy (PJPFA)

An article published in a recent issue of the New York Times was blood curdling: “25 Cats Found Murdered in Yonkers.”

Like so many children born of working-class parents whose defining life experience had been the Great Depression of the 1930s, I was a born Democrat.

Every year, we celebrate the feast of the Holy Trinity, a central doctrine of Christianity, the belief that God is one in three Persons. We have been told over and over again that this is a mystery that no one can possibly understand. Yet, to the degree that we can penetrate this mystery, it has the power to transform our lives.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The Catholic Church is no place for “climbers,” who want to reach the heights of prestige, power and profit, Pope Francis said.

April 27, 2014 was a glorious day in the city of Rome. Two great popes, John XXIII and John Paul II, were canonized as saints of our Church. The priests of the Diocese of Brooklyn were well represented in Piazza San Pietro on that day.

This Sunday, Pope Francis will canonize two of his predecessors: “Good” Pope John XXIII and John Paul “the Great.”

Everyone knows that Christians are supposed to be joyful for Easter. But what if you’re feeling down? How can you pick yourself up?

Recently, I received a phone call that two lovely friends I knew had passed away. I called them Madeline Sr. (the mother) and Madeline Jr. (the daughter).

I was always told that giving to the poor was an essential part of being a Christian. Knowing this, it would make sense for me to give to people on the street who were begging for money.