WASHINGTON – The apostolic visitation of U.S. religious communities of women continued to move forward as 2009 came to a close with plans being drawn up for visits to congregations by official representatives of the church to begin in the spring.Read More

St. Angela Merici was born March 21, 1474, in Italy. At the young age of 15, she became a Franciscan tertiary and had a vision that she would inspire women in vocations. While making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, she became blind. Instead of going home, she continued on her pilgrimage. Afterwards, Angela Merici...Read More

St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows was born in 1838 in Assisi, Italy. After a youth spent in society and chasing women, Our Lady led him to the Passionist Order. He devoted his life to prayer, devotion to Our Lady and contemplation of her sorrow over the suffering of Jesus. Pope Benedict XV lifted...Read More

The moment I uttered the words I knew they sounded silly: “What do you get the girl who has everything?”Read More

Archbishop Edwin O'Brien, Archbishop of Baltimore, is reminding Catholics in the Archdiocese that Church law excuses them from fulfilling the Sunday obligation to attend Mass due to a "grave cause," such as unsafe travel due to severe weather conditions.Read More

St. Mark the Evangelist was a disciple of St. Peter. Sometime before the year 60 he wrote the second Gospel, which he wrote in Greek for the converts to Christianity. He traveled with St. Barnabas and St. Paul on a missionary trip through Cyprus. St. Mark also evangelized in Alexandria, Egypt, where he established the...Read More

St. Simeon Stylites the Younger was born in Antioch around in 521. When St. Simeon was 5 years old his father died, and a monk nearby undertook his care. At age 7, St. Simeon and the monk began to live solitary lives on top of platforms. The saint attracted a number of followers and eventually...Read More

There was one family from Mount Savage that was skipped over in the Your Parish profile of St. Patrick (CR, Nov. 19). That family of John and Ellen (Daley) Mattingly had 11 children, four of whom became religious, two Notre Dames, one Sister of Charity and one Redemptorist priest. They also have a nephew who...Read More