The Catholic Review Last week, I wrote about the various vocations that are crucial to the fulfillment of the Church’s mission, focusing on the Sacrament of the Holy Order of Deacon. The vocations of our permanent deacons, as with priests, are visible to the Catholic community. You see their generous labors at Masses, Baptisms, funerals,...Read More

The Catholic Review Vocations come in many forms. When we talk of vocations, our Church consistently focuses on vocations to the priesthood and religious life, rightly praying for their increase. But there are other vocations that are integral to our Catholic lives and to the life of our Church. Married life is one such vocation...Read More

The Catholic Review “The years pass quickly, and the gift of life, for all the effort and pain it involves, is too beautiful and precious for us ever to grow tired of it.”—Pope John Paul II, 1999. The Holy Father wrote these words in his 1999 pastoral letter to the elderly. The purpose of his...Read More

The Catholic Review The Archbishop’s column this week includes excerpts from his Respect Life Mass homily. What have we that is not from God? Everything can disappear tomorrow and as we came into this world with nothing, so will we depart, and without pockets in our caskets or U-Hauls trailing our hearses. Isn’t that what...Read More

The Catholic Review In a culture when freedom is supreme, the notion of obligation is repugnant to many, especially when it comes to “freedom of religion.” Nevertheless, obligations surround us: paying bills, faithfulness to spouse, keeping promises are all obligations which we readily recognize. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states (#1389): The Catholic Church...Read More

The Catholic Review A Wake Up Call   A Wake Up Call, Part 2 If I’ve failed to stress the significance of the challenge before us through my words, perhaps the frequency of my writing on the subject (3 consecutive columns and counting) will succeed in doing so! Over the past two weeks, I’ve attempted to...Read More

The Catholic Review My Dear People of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, Last week, our priests gathered over three days to pray and to discuss issues of common concern facing the presbyterate, our parishes and the Church in Baltimore. The issue that loomed largest in our conversations was that of the shortage of priests—both today and...Read More

The Catholic Review Last week, I had the privilege and honor of preaching the homily at the Mass to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the founding of the Parish of the Most Holy Trinity in Augusta, Georgia.   Though I had ties to the community dating back to the 1970s, I was asked to preach...Read More