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In conversation with American Catholics
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June 10, 2013
Does the church need a preferential option for the young?
May 16, 2013
Here’s an interesting graph about belief in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist!
According to newly published research on American Catholics, it is more common for Catholics to believe Christ is present in the Eucharist without actually knowing the church teaches that fact than to know the church’s teaching but not believe it to be true.
May 9, 2013
US mission territories face unique challenges
Areas with small Catholic population and few resources struggle to serve needs of the faithful
By Scott Alessi
Every Sunday, Father Theodore Nnabugo is likely to spend as much time behind the wheel of his car as at the altar of a church.
ather Nnabugo, pastor of Holy Redeemer Parish in La Pine, Ore., also serves three mission parishes spread across a 10,000-square-mile region in the Diocese of Baker, Ore. On Sunday mornings he first heads to Holy Trinity in Sunriver for 8 a.m. Mass, then returns to Holy Redeemer for Mass at 10 a.m. Next up are Masses in two other mission churches, Our Lady of the Snows in Gilchrist at 12:30 p.m. and Holy Family in Christmas Valley at 3:30 p.m., before he returns home — having logged a total of 500 miles round trip.
Read entire story.
May 9, 2013
"Continuing to define women by themes of motherhood and maternity undermines the real progress that has been made in the ways that we think about women. The church doesn’t ask priests and monks to be “manly.” Why then does it insist that women must be nurturing mothers?"
— Liz Lefebre, in “Let’s stop defining women by fertility and motherhood,” a blog on uscatholic.org.
May 8, 2013
"Let me say this: I am thankful that there have been no calls to deny communion to people who actively participate in unjust labor laws. Because I love communion. I love approaching the table with my brothers and sisters in Christ, acknowledging that we are all imperfect - unworthy, even."
— Kira Dault, in a blog post called “Let’s not use the Eucharist as a weapon” on uscatholic.org.
May 8, 2013
"I fully understand that people want to focus their attention on the liturgy and not be distracted by noises in the church, and I am just as quick to get annoyed when someone’s cell phone starts ringing in the middle of the homily. But what I cannot understand is the intolerance of Catholics, a pro-life community, toward fellow parishioners who are trying to raise a family that attends Mass together each week."
— Scott Alessi, from a blog on uscatholic.org called “For crying out loud: What should we do with noisy children at Mass?”
April 26, 2013
What can the church do for worker justice in America?
The Editors of U.S. Catholic interview Kim Bobo, the founder and director of Interfaith Worker Justice, an organization to help workers get fair wages from their employers.
May 10, 2012
Cutting public transit = cutting access to church?
In Pittsburgh, according to U.S. Census data 25 percent of households do not have a personal vehicle, and nearly 20 percent of workers use public transit to get to work. I wonder how many churchgoers use transit to get to church?
Thanks to budget deficits, Pittsburgh transit lines are facing a doomsday scenario, potentially losing half of the regions routes.
We like to cut public transit when budgets are tight, but tend not to get concerned about highways and building developments. Unfortunately, it seems the expansion and sprawl of major cities has helped contribute to the break up and dissolution of once Catholic enclaves. When you have to drive to church, are you less likely to go? How far are people willing to drive to church? What if you don’t have access to transportation? I think this is an especially important question for the increasingly Hispanic and new immigrant population of the Catholic church.
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