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April 26, 2017 Wednesday of the Second Week of Easter Reading 1 Acts 5:17-26The high priest rose up and all his companions,that is, the party of the Sadducees,and, filled with jealousy,laid hands upon the Apostles and put them in the public jail.But during the night, the angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison,led them out, and said,"Go and take your place in the temple area,and tell the people everything about this life."When they heard this,they went to the temple early in the morning and taught.When the high priest and his companions arrived,they convened the Sanhedrin,the full...

Bishop Gianfranco Todisco asked to be sent 'to the farthest, most disadvantaged' diocese Pope Francis accepted the early retirement request of Italian Bishop Gianfranco Todisco, who begged to be allowed to return to missionary work or to be sent “to the farthest, most disadvantaged” diocese. The Vatican announced Bishop Todisco’s resignation on April 21 as Bishop of Melfi-Rapolla-Venosa in southern Italy. The bishop is 71, and the normal retirement age is 75.

Roughly 100 people turned out in New City Monday evening to protest a plan to build a Syrian Orthodox church in their neighborhood. The Malankara Catholic Church purchased a 11,000-square-foot property on Mountain View Avenue to build a place of worship and a 55-space parking lot.

Fr. Don Miller, OFM Image: Saint George and the Dragon | Gustave MoreauSaint George Saint of the Day for April 23 (c. 280 – April 23, 303)  Saint George’s Story Saint George is the object of a vast amount of imagination. There is every reason to believe that he was a real martyr who suffered at Lydda in Palestine, probably before the time of Constantine. The Church adheres to his memory, but not to the legends surrounding his life. That he was willing to pay the supreme price to follow Christ is what the Church believes. And it is...

The Four Basic Pillars of the Christian Life Msgr. Charles Pope • April 24, 2017 • On Sunday we read from the Acts of the Apostles and we do well to look back at the opening verse of that passage (Acts 2:42). There we discover a four-point plan that describes the Christian life. Of the life of the early Christians it is said,They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer (Acts 2:42).Here then are the four pillars of the Christian life. Before looking at them in detail, recall...

April 25, 2017 Feast of Saint Mark, Evangelist Reading 1 1 Pt 5:5b-14Beloved: Clothe yourselves with humilityin your dealings with one another, for: God opposes the proudbut bestows favor on the humble. So humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God,that he may exalt you in due time.Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you. Be sober and vigilant.Your opponent the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lionlooking for someone to devour.Resist him, steadfast in faith,knowing that your brothers and sisters throughout the worldundergo the same sufferings.The God of all gracewho called you to his...

It appears that Russia is leading the way towards a much-needed rejection of "religious freedom" in the West: Source from NRO: http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/446966/russia-jehovahs-witnesses-ban-continues-putin-religious-persecution Russia’s crackdown on religious activity took a major step forward this week as the Justice Ministry banned Jehovah’s Witnesses. Russia has steadily curtailed rights to evangelize in recent years, but this move signals their commitment to aggressively policing private religious activity. The Russian supreme court ruled that Jehovah’s Witnesses amount to an “extremist group,” and therefore the government is shutting down their headquarters and local chapters, seizing their property, and banning them from meeting. Vladimir Putin’s campaign...

Four Qualities of Bold and Believable Witnesses to Jesus Msgr. Charles Pope • April 23, 2017 • It is worthwhile to look back at a text that was read on Saturday (Saturday of the Octave of Easter). It is from Acts and sets forth a picture of courage and holy boldness that is too little evident in many Catholics. Let’s look at the passage and then reflect on four qualities that the Apostles Peter and John manifest.Now when [the Sanhedrin] saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And...

April 24, 2017 Monday of the Second Week of Easter Reading 1 Acts 4:23-31After their release Peter and John went back to their own peopleand reported what the chief priests and elders had told them.And when they heard it,they raised their voices to God with one accordand said, "Sovereign Lord, maker of heaven and earthand the sea and all that is in them,you said by the Holy Spiritthrough the mouth of our father David, your servant: Why did the Gentiles rageand the peoples entertain folly?The kings of the earth took their standand the princes gathered togetheragainst the Lord and against...

India's Catholic bishops have strongly condemned a violent police disruption of a Good Friday service at a small parish in the south of the country. The Dhalit Catholic community in the village of Sogandi was holding a liturgy for the Passion of the Lord April 14 when they were disrupted by the Tehsildar – local tax and revenue officers – as well as police during the Veneration of the Cross and distribution of Holy Communion.

Stan Vanuytrecht beat 50 applicants to win the role and occupy one of the last hermitages in central Europe A Catholic deacon has won a competition to live in one of central Europe’s last hermitages, beating 50 other applicants to occupy a 350-year-old cliffside cell above a small Austrian town. Stan Vanuytrecht, 58, responded to an advertisement placed by Fr Alois Moser, which asked for someone with a “connection to Christian belief” and “at peace with themselves”. The role, which is unpaid, became vacant after the previous incumbent left to pursue a writing career in Vienna. The hermitage, in Saalfeden,...

From Fear to Faith – A Homily for the Second Sunday of Easter Msgr. Charles Pope • April 22, 2017 • In today’s Gospel, the risen Lord appeared to the Apostles, who were gathered together in one place. The fact that they were gathered in one place is not without significance, for it is there that the Lord chose to appear to them. One of them was not in the gathering and thus missed the blessing of seeing and experiencing the risen Lord. It might be said that Thomas, the absent Apostle, blocked his blessing.Some people want Jesus without...

In Germany, in 1933, two men came to power... The first man, of course, was Adolf Hitler... The other man was Clemens August Graf von Galen, a towering giant of a man who later in 1933 was named bishop of Münster. Under the Nazis, he battled racial bias, the Nazi corruption of Church teaching and most notably the state-sanctioned program of euthanasia to kill off so-called “useless eaters” and burdens on the state.

Researcher says that, if trends continue, more Catholics than Presbyterians will be in church on Sunday The Catholic Church is likely to become the largest churchgoing denomination in Scotland. Figures from the 2016 Scottish Church Census reveal that the Catholic Church and Church of Scotland both make up 35 per cent of the churchgoing population, but that the Catholic proportion is expanding.

April 23, 2017 Second Sunday of Easter (or Sunday of Divine Mercy) Reading 1 Acts 2:42-47They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers.Awe came upon everyone,and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.All who believed were together and had all things in common;they would sell their property and possessionsand divide them among all according to each one's need.Every day they devoted themselvesto meeting together in the temple areaand to breaking bread in their homes.They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of...

Editor’s Note: We have received the following report from our Catholic brothers in the Archdiocese of Niterói (a municipality close to the City of Rio de Janeiro), Brazil, about a very serious incident that occurred last Ash Wednesday at São Domingos de Gusmão (Saint Dominic de Guzmán) parish church. We kindly ask you to read it and then meet our requests for Catholic action at the article’s conclusion. MJM Last Ash Wednesday everything was ready for the celebration of the Holy Mass at São Domingos de Gusmão parish church. The faithful entered the church and prepared themselves to ask God’s...

Fr. Don Miller, OFM Image: Statue of Saint Adalbert of Prague near Church of the Visitation of Our Lady in Hluboké Mašůvky, Znojmo District | photo by Jiří Sedláček Saint Adalbert of Prague Saint of the Day for April 22 (956 – April 23, 997)  Saint Adalbert of Prague’s Story Opposition to the Good News of Jesus did not discourage Adalbert, who is now remembered with great honor in the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, and Germany.Born to a noble family in Bohemia, he received part of his education from Saint Adalbert of Magdeburg. At the age of 27, he...

Fr. Don Miller, OFM Image: Stained glass of Saint Anselm in Chester Cathedral cloister | photo by Mum’s taxiSaint Anselm Saint of the Day for April 21 (1033 – April 21, 1109)  Saint Anselm’s Story Indifferent toward religion as a young man, Anselm became one of the Church’s greatest theologians and leaders. He received the title “Father of Scholasticism” for his attempt to analyze and illumine the truths of faith through the aid of reason.At 15, Anselm wanted to enter a monastery, but was refused acceptance because of his father’s opposition. Twelve years later, after careless disinterest in religion...

Washing of feet Question: I fled one parish over its strange observances of the foot-washing ceremony (and other liturgical abuses). The parish I am in now is better, but lo and behold, at the foot washing, they are planning to dismiss everyone to the church basement for a service project of sorting canned goods, washing their hands as they return. Why do such strange things persist?— Name and location withheld Answer: The idiosyncrasies that continue to surface regarding the foot washing are indeed a continuing problem in the Church. That the Lord intended this gesture to be a sign...

April 22, 2017 Saturday in the Octave of Easter Reading 1 Acts 4:13-21Observing the boldness of Peter and Johnand perceiving them to be uneducated, ordinary men,the leaders, elders, and scribes were amazed,and they recognized them as the companions of Jesus.Then when they saw the man who had been cured standing there with them,they could say nothing in reply.So they ordered them to leave the Sanhedrin,and conferred with one another, saying,"What are we to do with these men?Everyone living in Jerusalem knows that a remarkable signwas done through them, and we cannot deny it.But so that it may not be...