Dad was recovering from a knee replacement he had undergone three weeks earlier, and was still undergoing physical therapy. I knew how much my parents enjoyed going to the Maryland Barbecue Bash, a two-day festival in Bel Air with over 60 barbecue vendors from several states. Realizing dad couldn’t get around, I offered to go...Read More

WASHINGTON – Expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program should cover pregnant mothers and their unborn children, as well as legal immigrants who have not yet been in the country for five years, the head of the U.S. bishops’ domestic policy committee told senators.Read More

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Identical twins and Franciscan Brothers Julian and Adrian Riester – who were born seconds apart and died hours apart June 1 at St. Anthony Hospital in St. Petersburg – were remembered by friends, family members and colleagues for their constant companionship.Read More

VATICAN CITY – Iraqi Catholic bishops called on Pope Benedict XVI to convene a synod to address the mass exodus of Christians from the Middle East and the lack of full religious freedom there.Read More

The Conventual Franciscan Friars invite all to the Shrine of St. Anthony in Ellicott City June 11, for a Day of Pilgrimage to celebrate the shrine’s namesake, and again June 18, for a dinner concert.Read More

ATLANTA – As the second anniversary of the largest mass killing on a U.S. campus approaches, the Catholic priest serving at Virginia Tech University said the church can help fearful and confused students through its mindfulness of community rituals.Read More

TRAPPIST, Ky. – Since the 1940s when acclaimed writer and contemplative Father Thomas Merton drew the world’s attention to the Trappists’ Abbey of Gethsemani in Nelson County, men have come from around the world to join in its ritual life of prayer and work.Read More

A Vatican apostolic visitation team has concluded that U.S. seminaries are experiencing a greater sense of stability since the 1990s, but recommended increased attention to the formation of priests and greater involvement of diocesan bishops.Read More