Author Archives: Miller

Ad Limina Meeting Engaged Bishops in ‘Open and Frank’ Conversation with Pope Francis

The bishops of Pennsylvania and New Jersey engaged in a “free-flowing, open and frank” conversation with Pope Francis during their ad limina visit to Rome Nov. 25-29.

Bishop Ronald Gainer told The Catholic Witness Dec. 9 that the 20 bishops of Region III who met with the holy father for more than two hours on Thanksgiving Day experienced honest discussion of several topics, including clergy sexual abuse of minors.

Honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe

December 12 is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and more than 800 faithful gathered at St. Joseph Church in Hanover for Holy Mass celebrated by Bishop Ronald Gainer and concelebrated by more than 10 priests of the Diocese.

The feast marks the Marian apparition in 1531 to St. Juan Diego in Mexico City. And it’s the only apparition in which the Blessed Mother appears pregnant with the Christ child. Our Lady of Guadalupe is the patroness of the Americas, of unborn children worldwide and to the New Evangelization of the Church.

McDevitt’s Lady Crusaders Host Teacher Appreciation Night

As a way to honor teachers and staff for the important role they play, the girls’ basketball team at Bishop McDevitt High School in Harrisburg hosted a Teacher Appreciation Night before the start of their varsity match-up against Lower Dauphin on Dec. 10.

In an endearing ceremony prior to tip-off, each member of the Lady Crusaders escorted their honored teacher to center court and presented them with a letter of appreciation and a gift card. The ensuing scene, with all students and teachers present, extended from baseline to baseline.

Bishop McDevitt Student Acclaims School Choice at White House

Myles Slade-Bowers, a junior at Bishop McDevitt High School in Harrisburg, visited the White House on Dec. 9 to participate in the Educational Empowerment Roundtable with President Donald Trump and speak about the positive impact that school choice has had on his education.

Betsy DeVos, United States Secretary of Education, invited Slade-Bowers as the sole student to represent the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Students’ Art Selected in Missionary Childhood Association Contest

Joyful anticipation of Christmas was illustrated through artwork in the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., where many of this year’s 24 winners of the Missionary Childhood Association Christmas Artwork Contest gathered Dec. 6 with their families for the annual awards presentation.

Contest winners from the Diocese of Harrisburg are Mary Grace Duncan of St. Columba School in Bloomsburg and Sydney Dissinger from Our Mother of Perpetual Help School in Ephrata. Their artwork, selected from among thousands of entries, is on display in the National Shrine throughout the 2019 Advent/Christmas season.

Youth Travel the World to Celebrate Christmas

Youth from across the Diocese experienced Christmas early on Saturday, Dec. 14, during the inaugural Around the World event. Coordinated by the Diocesan Office of Multicultural Ministries, the event celebrated the Christmas traditions from various cultures, explaining their unique, yet similar, ways of celebrating the birth of Christ.

Before decorating stockings and playing a variety of games, the nearly 75 youth attending from throughout the Diocese learned about the Christmas traditions in Vietnam, Peru and Nigeria.

The Heart of Christmas

Recently, as I was driving to work, I switched on the radio to listen to some Christian music. To my chagrin, even though in my world it was Advent, the station was blaring Christmas music. I was totally tempted to turn off the radio and growl at the culture for not actually preparing for Christmas. However, a new song – at least to me – flooded my conscience: The Heart of Christmas by Matthew West.

As soon as the first few measures began, my soul hungered to listen to its message. At a very high level, the song talks about the busyness of this season and the pressure that we all put on ourselves to get Christmas just right. But the HEART of Christmas? No other than a babe lying in a manger – the feeding trough of animals.

Father Thomas R. Hoke Dies

Father Thomas R. Hoke pastor of Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Spring Grove, died suddenly on Dec.14. He was 70 years old.

Father Hoke was born in Hanover on May 16, 1949, to the late Henry J. Hoke and Pauline C. (Schrader) Hoke. He attended St. Joseph Catholic School in Hanover and graduated from Delone Catholic High School in McSherrystown and earned a degree in Theology from Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md. He served as a deacon at Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Lancaster.

On a Mission with Coffee

Last November, with two master’s degrees in hand, Nicholas Higgins was planning to find a job as an industrial engineer in Florida.

Today, he’s in rural Newville, working to open a coffee shop to benefit the people of Honduras.

“I’ve had a total conversion. It is very clear that God has called me here,” Higgins said from behind a display counter, which will become the espresso bar and pastry case for his project, the San Jose Café.