Obituaries – July 30
The names of the following deceased persons have been submitted by their parishes. Please remember in your prayers the happy repose of these recently departed souls and the consolation of their loved ones.
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Survey in Next Week’s Edition Seeks Feedback to Determine Future of The Witness
Your voice is needed to help determine where The Catholic Witness goes in the future. To assist us in planning the newspaper’s path as we move forward, we’ve developed a survey that will be featured in a special mailed edition of The Witness on August 7. The printed edition will…
The Called: Father Tri Luong
Father Tri Luong Hometown: 25 miles south of Saigon Education: Catholic grade school, seminary and government schools in Vietnam; St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia, Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md. Current Assignment:Pastor of St. Anne Parish in Lancaster, and Pastoral Care of the Vietnamese Community in Lancaster
Knights of Columbus Founder to be Beatified in October
Father Michael McGivney, the founder of the Knights of Columbus Catholic fraternal organization, will be beatified on October 31, the Congregation for the Causes of Saints announced this week. The congregation made the announcement on its website and Twitter page July 20. A miracle credited to the intercession of the…
Sister M. Ursula Bowers
Sister M. Ursula Bowers, age 89, a member of the Daughters of Our Lady of Mercy, Villa Rossello, Newfield, N.J., died on July 22 at York Hospital. She had been a resident at Misericordia Nursing Center in York for the past two years. Sister Ursula, born in Taneytown, Md., was…
Pondering to Open Ourselves to the Sacred
Some time ago, I was a team member at a healing retreat for women in recovery. The women all had some kind of addiction to drugs or alcohol, and they all admitted that they did some shameful things in order to feed it. Through the course of the retreat, the…
Could Anything Else Go Wrong?
My middle name, William, was given to me by my parents to honor my Godfather, William Everly. Never have I taken the time to delve into the life of St. William. That changed on June 8 when my Saint of the Day email featured – you guessed it – Saint…
Love has Two Feet
As I witness and reflect upon the demonstrations in our cities, nationally and locally, over the tragic death of George Floyd and the whole issue of racism, here’s a story that I believe has relevance in our present, disquieting situation. “Once upon a time there was a town that was…
For Seminarian Kevin Key, Living in a Rectory Offers New Perspectives for Formation
When seminaries closed in mid-March because of the pandemic, most of the young men studying for the priesthood returned to their family homes. Many set up areas for prayer and study amid the bustle of family life as classes resumed online just a few days later. Seminarian Kevin Key went…
How an Epidemic Gave Us an Epic Monk
You are probably familiar with the early Benedictine monk who goes by the name Venerable Bede. His Feast Day is May 25. He was one of the early giants in English Literature, right up there with Chaucer and company. His life, which began around 673, was highly influenced by a…
Studies, Prayer Continue for Seminarians via Remote Formation
In the midst of hungering for Sacramental Communion, longing to return to the seminary, praying for the lives impacted by COVD-19 and navigating the challenges of remote learning, seminarian Richard Groff has come to understand that the struggles associated with the current pandemic are part of his formation. Not being…
Rogation Days Are Here Again
What to do when your diocese is overwhelmed by hostile invaders and natural disasters? Around 470 Saint Mamertus, Bishop of Vienne in Dauphiny (today’s France), had to figure out a plan of action. The Goths, the Huns, earthquakes, fires and crop failures were plaguing the faithful of his diocese. What…
Mothers and Saints
Many of us looking back on our childhood and young adulthood are humble enough to admit “My mother is/was a saint.” We probably did not accord our mothers the high honor at the time but now in retrospect they should be canonized for their limitless patience, unflagging perseverance and unconditional…
The Value of Spiritual Communion
In the last reflection I wrote about a very contemporary young man on the path to sainthood. Now I want to share one of the most unusual saint stories that I have ever heard. I first learned of this Holy One on retreat this past January with the bishops of…
The Path to Sainthood
When I meet with the Confirmation candidates before the Mass, I like to remind them of the great diversity that exists among the canonized saints. After all they have been browsing through the Saints’ Who’s Who to determine what name they want to be called at the moment of their…
On the Road Again
When I visit elementary school classrooms, a question frequently posed, especially by the younger students, is “What is your favorite Bible story.” My stock response is that I have many favorites but Luke 24, “The Disciples on the Road to Emmaus,” is pretty close to the top. On the Third…
The Paschal Candle
One of the great and beautiful symbols of the Risen Christ is the Paschal Candle. Lit from the Great Fire in the first movement of the Easter Vigil, the candle bears the five wounds of the Lord’s passion and reminds us that Christ is the Alpha and the Omega and…
Easter Laughing
Professors and authors in the field of Homiletics seem to be divided in their opinions whether preachers should tell jokes within a homily. In my own experience when I do tell a funny story, I’m fairly convinced that it might be the only thing most listeners will remember from the…
A Great Earthquake
This Easter, Matthew’s story of the empty tomb was the Gospel for the Vigil and an option for Easter Sunday Masses. We learn that Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were the first to hear the good news of the Resurrection and to encounter the person of the Risen Lord.…
Prayer, Connection Occur in Creative Ways as Schools Continue Mission
In Catholic schools, education is more than academics. It’s about caring for the whole person: emotionally, socially, physically and spiritually. In the days since Pennsylvania schools were ordered to close on March 13 from coronavirus concerns, Catholic schools throughout the Diocese have risen to the occasion, discovering and implementing ways…
