Login
Our Sunday Visitor
   Catalog      
  
   Periodicals      
  
   Books      
  
   Parish Resources      
  
   Offering Envelopes      
  
   About Us   
Our Sunday Visitor
Newsletter signup
Log In


Forgot My Login Register
Advertisements
Shrine Design Candle Stands
Food for the Poor
Atwood Hamlin
Carroll Electronics
WLP World Library
St. Thomas Aquinas College
Franck and Lohsen
Catholic Kids Games
By the Book
Mr. Joe Rogers
Classified Advertising
How to place a classified ad.
Free for Catholics

OSV Blog

The OSV Daily Takes Blog. News, views, and news analysis from a Catholic perspective from the newspaper editorial team, including John Norton and Greg Erlandson.. Email us with questions, comments or suggestions: feedback@osv.com. Or just comment!

Author: admin Created: 10/17/2006
Daily news and views from the staff of Our Sunday Visitor.

By admin on 1/30/2008

Canadian bishops to take part in inquiry

The Globe And Mail

Catholic bishops pledged their support Tuesday for a truth commission concerning allegations of physical and sexual abuse at Indian residential schools, saying Catholics will speak publicly at the hearings to "balance" the official history of what happened for decades behind closed doors. The Catholic Church ran about 70 percent of the schools jointly with the federal government. Archbishop Sylvain Lavoie of the Keewatin-Le Pas archdiocese said the public will learn that abused students were not the only victims in the federal schools policy that lasted more than 100 years. A Truth and Reconciliation Commission is part of last year's multibillion-dollar, out-of-court settlement between former students, the churches and Ottawa. More info>

Spanish crowd defends family life

LifeSiteNews.com

Spanish supporters of traditional families packed the Barcelona Convention Palace on Monday to protest the government’s anti-family policies, including "homosexual marriage," the "express" divorce system, and the pro-homosexuality indoctrination program for schoolchildren, known as "Education for Citizenship." The organizer of the event Covenant for Life and Dignity said it may have to rent a local soccer stadium for the next gathering, as attendance for the event exceeded seating capacity for the building. More info>

Economic benefits of Lent?

Newswise.com

A professor at the University of New Hampshire says that making financial sacrifices during Lent may help Catholics concerned about the economic downturn. “With the downturn in the economy and the general air of recession, individuals and families who feel they need to cut back on certain purchases might use Le ... Read More »

By admin on 1/29/2008

Greek Orthodox mourn leader

The Los Angeles Times

Archbishop Christodoulos, the head of Greece's Orthodox Church, who welcomed rapprochement with the Vatican and revitalized his congregation over the past decade, died after a seven-month battle with cancer Monday. He was 69. Christodoulos joined historic talks with two popes in an effort to ease a 10-century rift with the Catholic Church, receiving Pope John Paul II, who became the first Catholic pontiff to visit Greece since 1054, in 2001 and visiting Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican in 2006. More info here»

Immigrant finds sanctuary in church

The Chicago Sun-Times

Saying she hoped the fear of God would keep federal agents away, undocumented immigrant Flor Crisostomo on Monday vowed to stay in a suburban Chicago church indefinitely to keep Congress focused on immigration reform. Arrested in an immigration raid in April 2006, she was ordered to leave the country voluntarily by Monday. Instead, she sought "sanctuary" in the Adalberto United Methodist Church. "I am taking a stand of civil disobedience to make America see what they are doing," Crisostomo said in a statement that was translated into English. Speaking in broken English, she said immigrants are not terrorists but hard-working people contributing to the economy. More info here»

Saintly spiritual seeker?

Busted Halo

Many people may consider themselves spiritual seekers. This Busted Halo story on Paulist founder Isaac Hecker, whose sainthood cause has just been opened, points out that the notion of being a spiritual seeker is not unique to our times, as Father Hecker’s own faith journey led him to Methodism and Transcendentalism before he joined the Catholic Church. Along the way, he met some of the greatest minds of the 19th century, including Henry David Thoreau and Orestes Brownson. Read More »

By admin on 1/28/2008

Catching up

USA Today

Black and Hispanic children have made significant gains in health, safety and income over the past two decades, narrowing gaps between them and white children, according to a Foundation for Child Development report on child development to be released Tuesday. Minority children are less likely to smoke cigarettes, abuse drugs or alcohol, or commit suicide, the report found. "There's a long way to go, but this is an enormous closing of the gap," says co-author Donald Hernandez, a sociology professor at the University at Albany, State University of New York. He says the overall gap between black and white children closed by one-fourth, and between Hispanics and whites by one-third. "That's stunning. I was frankly surprised by the extent of it." More info>

A mother’s sacrifice

The Daily Mail

In a story reminiscent of St. Gianna Molla’s, a British woman refused to abort her baby after learning she was in advanced stages of cancer. Lorraine Allard insisted on waiting long enough to give her unborn son a chance to survive, telling her husband, Martyn: "If I am going to die, my baby is going to live." Baby Liam was born prematurely Nov. 18. Allard then started chemotherapy, but it was too late. She died Jan. 18. "Towards the end we knew things weren't going well, but she was overjoyed that she had given life to Liam," Martyn Allard told the Daily Mail. More info>

Catholic priest killed in Kenya

AllAfrica.com

The vice rector of a seminary in Tindinyo, Kenya, was killed in inter-ethnic violence Saturday as he tried to pass through an illegal roadblock in Nakuru. Father Michael Kamau Ithondeka, 41, was accosted by armed youths who claimed they were on a revenge mission after one of their own was killed in Nakuru. His pl ... Read More »

By admin on 1/25/2008

Catholics want land back in Vietnam

The Associated Press

Thousands of Vietnamese Catholics blocked a busy street in Hanoi today, chanting and praying for the communist government to return land once owned by the Church. The government took over many Church-owned properties when it ousted French colonists in 1954. A priest in a white robe carrying a large cross led a procession of parishioners, accompanied by a marching band, from St. Joseph's Cathedral in downtown Hanoi to the adjacent site of the former Vatican embassy. The embassy is one of several sites the Church is asking the government to return. Church officials say they have documents showing the 2.5-acre property belongs to the diocese. More info>

Pope has message for media

Reuters

In his message for World Communications Day, Pope Benedict XVI called on the media on Thursday to practice "info-ethics," saying the media were often used irresponsibly to spread violence and impose "distorted models" of life. "When communication loses its ethical underpinning and eludes society's control, it ends up no longer taking into account the centrality and inviolable dignity of the human person," he said in the three-page message. His full speech can be found on the Vatican website. World Communications Day is celebrated May 4 in most countries. More info>

Messing around with life

The Washington Post

Scientists in Maryland yesterday said they had built from scratch an entire microbial chromosome, a loop of synthetic DNA carrying all the instructions that a simple cell needs to live and reproduce. The feat marks the first time that anyone has made such a large strand of hereditary material from off-the-shelf chemical ingredients. On the basis of earlier experiments, the researchers believe the new, full-length loop would s ... Read More »

By admin on 1/24/2008

Heartbreaking theft

The Washington Post

The heart of a 19th-century Argentine friar was stolen from an urn in the Franciscan monastery where it was kept for years as a religious relic, a church official said. Whoever scooped up friar Mamerto Esquiu's heart on Tuesday left the urn it was stored in behind, said Jorge Martinez, head of the San Francisco monastery in the northwestern province of Catamarca. The theft marks the second time since 1990 that the friar’s heart has been stolen. More info>

Archbishop: Bill threatens Catholic identity

Catholic News Agency

Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver has warned that a proposed Colorado law restricting religious exemptions from anti-discrimination laws could force him to end Catholic Charities’ involvement with government programs if the bill passes. The archbishop criticized the bill in a column Wednesday, saying the proposed law would attack the religious identity of nonprofits and compromise Catholic organizations that cooperate with government agencies in providing necessary social services. More info>


Pro-lifers in search of candidate

The New Republic

The impressive turnout at this week’s March for Life in the nation’s capital can’t mask the fact that this is a time of great tension between the pro-life movement and Washington, says The New Republic. Though all the Republican candidates have tried to demonstrate their obeisance to pro-lifers, the movement has still been unable to find a candidate they can wholeheartedly support among the presidential field. More info>

 

By admin on 1/23/2008

Pro-life advocate-in-chief

Catholic News Agency

Speaking from the East Room of the White House, President George W. Bush addressed pro-life activists at the Washington March for Life rally Tuesday morning, saying, “I’m proud to be standing with you.” The marchers were protesting the 35th anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. Using a term made popular by Pope John Paul II, the president said the pro-life goal was to build a “culture of life” where women with unplanned pregnancies can find care and young pregnant women can complete their education. America must be a place “where the dignity of both the mother and child is honored and cherished.” More info>

Coach condemned for pro-abortion remarks

The Associated Press

Archbishop Raymond Burke of St. Louis said Tuesday that he will ask officials of Saint Louis University to take "appropriate action" against basketball coach Rick Majerus, who said in a television interview that he supports abortion rights. One of the game's winningest coaches, Majerus made the comment at a weekend rally for Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton. Archbishop Burke declined to say what the action against Majerus should be, saying that was a decision for the Jesuit university.  More info>

Kenyan Church urges end to chaos

AllAfrica.com

As Catholics marked a special day of prayer for peace around the country on Sunday, Cardinal John Njue, Archbishop of Nairobi and chairman of the Kenya Episcopal Conference, made an passionate call for an end to post-election chaos in Kenya. Responsibility for ending the conflict lies with President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga, the cardinal said during Mass at St. Augustine Catholic Church in Juja, near Nairobi. The two politicians should meet without giving any preconditions, he said. Some 700 people have been killed in post-election chaos in the last four weeks. Read More »

By admin on 1/22/2008

‘Call of civility’ criticized

Spero News

A group of 96 influential Catholics issued a petition Jan. 21  that explicitly criticizes a statement by other prominent Catholics and released in November 2007 that called for greater "civility" among Catholics in political discourse. The signers of the new statement believe the November statement would have the effect of silencing the pro-life movement and silencing criticism of pro-abortion Catholic politicians. Among the signers are Templeton Prize winner Michael Novak, authors Robert Royal and Peter Kreeft, and OSV columnist Russell Shaw. More info>

Use of abortion pill on rise

MSNCB.com

Thirty-five years after the Supreme Court's landmark Roe v. Wade decision legalized abortion, RU-486, the so-called abortion pill, has slowly and quietly begun to transform the experience of ending a pregnancy in the United States. Mifepristone, with the alarming nickname of “miffy,” has become an increasingly common alternative, making abortion more private. At a time when the overall number of abortions has been steadily declining, RU-486-induced abortions have been rising by 22 percent a year. "This troubles me," said Randall K. O'Bannon of the National Right to Life Committee. "It obviously shows that the marketing efforts have been effective in getting doctors to introduce this into their practices." More info>

Is freedom in retreat?

The Economist

Civil and democratic rights are in retreat, says Freedom House, an American lobby group whose observations on the state of liberty are a keenly watched indicator. Its report for 2007 speaks of a “profoundly disturbing deterioration” in the global picture, with reversals seen in 38 countries — nearly four times as many as are showing any sign of improvement. The report is not wit ... Read More »

By admin on 1/21/2008

Tireless message

Catholic News Agency

In this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Pope Benedict XVI urged the faithful to “never grow tired of praying for unity among Christians.” "When at the Last Supper, Jesus prayed that ‘they all might be one,’ he had in mind the precise end, ‘that the world believe,’” the pope said Sunday during an Angelus address. “The evangelical mission of the Church is thus an ecumenical walk, a journey of unity in faith, in evangelical witness and authentic fraternity." More info>

Evolving view of God

The Chicago Tribune

Reconciling the biblical God with Darwin's theories would challenge even an omnipotent being, but transforming the way people think about God has become a vital mission for a wave of scientists and theologians who want to place the natural world at the forefront of religion. They see themselves as spokespersons for an emerging religious majority that has been obscured by the excesses of stubborn creationists and the iconoclastic broadsides of scientific atheists. More info>

Feeding the hungry gets harder

The Los Angeles Times

An unfortunate combination of shrinking donations and rising need has forced food banks to put food on the tables of low-income people, The Los Angeles Times reports. The supply of donated food is at its lowest level in recent memory, largely because of a steep decline in government surpluses. Many who work in the field are concerned that low-income people may go hungry — a worry they say is heightened by a growing number of households, particularly those with children, who report that they do not always know where their next meal is coming from. Food bank operators’ hopes are pinned in large part to a nearly $300-billion farm bill scheduled to go before President Bush next month that could nearly double federal money ava ... Read More »

By admin on 1/18/2008

Number of abortions drop

The Chicago Tribune

As the 35th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade nears, new data show that U.S. abortion rate has fallen to its lowest level since 1974, the first full year after the U.S. Supreme Court legalized the procedure nationwide. According to the figures being published Thursday, the abortion rate was 19.4 per 1,000 women age 15-44 in 2005, down from the peak rate of 29.3 in 1981. What this Chicago Tribune story buries several paragraphs down is the fact that an alarming one in five, or 20 percent, of unborn children are still being killed, making the need for the Jan. 22 March for Life as great as ever. More info>

Excommunicated archbishop heads to Rome

BBC News

Archbishop Emmanuel Milingo, the disgraced former head of the Catholic Church in Zambia has launched his autobiography in Rome. Archbishop Milingo was excommunicated for marrying and for attempting to ordain four married Catholic priests as bishops in the United States. This is the first time that he has returned to Rome since his formal excommunication by the Vatican. His book, “Confessions of an Excommunicated Catholic,” tells his life story from childhood poverty in Africa to his appointment as one of the youngest ever archbishops of the Catholic Church. More info>

It’s all about me, or is it?

The New York Times

Conventional wisdom  maintains that today’s young people are more narcissistic than their predecessors. Heck, they join Facebook groups like the Association for Justified Narcissism. A study released last year by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press dubbed Americans age 18 to 25 as the “Look at Me” generation and reported that this group said that their top goals were fortune and fame. N ... Read More »

By admin on 1/17/2008

Christianophobia: Anti-Catholic bias rising in Europe?

catholiconline.org

Vatican officials are worried that there is a growing hostility toward Christians in Europe. Archbishop Dominique Mamberti of the Vatican Secretariat of State and others have taken note of the movement that has been recognized with a new term: Christianophobia. Many Catholics in Europe have come under fire for making comments about issues that the secular world disagrees with the Church on, such as homosexuality, say. "The attitude in Europe is becoming very hostile," said Gudrun Kugler, founder of a website in Austria to battle these biases. More info>


Get organized!

Mercatornet.com

This time of year sees a lot of attempts by individuals to get more organized. A professional organizer from Dallas points to giving children in the home chores as a big step toward this task. And the benefits live on. She claims that kids who are given resposibilities in the home when they are growing up will become better spouses. More info>

Archaeological evidence of biblical family found