Page 1867 – Archdiocese of Baltimore

LIMA, Peru – When Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez told Archbishop Roberto Luckert Leon recently that he would “see him in hell,” he was fanning the coals of an ongoing war of words with Catholic leaders. And when Bolivian President Evo Morales’ government picked a fight with that country’s bishops shortly after his inauguration, he seemed to be biting the hand that had helped the country’s grass-roots movement put a president in power

Father Drinan, ex-congressman, dead at 86

WASHINGTON – Jesuit Father Robert F. Drinan, the first Catholic priest to vote in the U.S. Congress, received praise and censure during his lifetime for his active involvement in politics. Father Drinan, 86, died Jan. 28 at Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, where he had been treated for pneumonia and congestive heart failure for the past 10 days. Funeral arrangements were pending Jan. 29. “Few have accomplished as much as Father Drinan and fewer still have done so much to make the world a better place,” said T. Alex Aleinikoff, dean of the Georgetown University Law Center, where Father Drinan had taught since 1981.

Eastern Europeans discuss communist collaboration

WARSAW, Poland – Many Eastern European church officials said they lack procedures for handling claims of clergy collaborating with communist secret police nearly 20 year after the collapse of communism. Father Laszlo Nemeth, secretary-general of the Hungarian bishops’ conference, told Catholic News Service that although Hungarian bishops had debated the issue in the early 1990s the communist police archives are still closed to researchers.

Hibernians honor St. Brigid

St. Brigid, Canton, will host a special Mass Feb. 4 for the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians to celebrate the Irish saint for which the 153-year-old parish was named. About 100 members of the LAOH from 12 different Maryland divisions are expected to flock to the special 1:30 p.m. Mass in honor of St. Brigid’s Day. “We hold this in a different Catholic church in a different part of the state every year,” said Natalie Harvey, a member of the Howard County division of LAOH and a parishioner of St. John the Evangelist, Columbia. “It just so happens that we’re holding it at St. Brigid’s this year, so it’s kind of special.”

Date night helps couples keep spark alive

Local News, News

Erica and Sean Kerchner find it hard to spend quality time together at the moment. Mr. Kerchner has been training with the U.S. Navy in Norfolk, Va., for four months while his wife of three years stays with her parents in Silver Spring. Mrs. Kerchner said when her husband visits on the weekends, it is important for them to find time for themselves in between visiting friends and family. They try to set aside one night to go out to dinner or a movie, “nothing really fancy,” she said.

Oblate Sisters to celebrate the life of Mother Mary Lange

Surrounded by paintings, letters and memorabilia of Oblate Sisters of Providence founder Mother Mary Lange, Sister Virginie Fish, O.S.P. prepares for the day-long celebration marking the 125th anniversary of the candidate for sainthood’s death on Feb. 3. The event is a tradition the 79-year-old director of the Mother Mary Lange Guild has organized annually since 1991, which will begin 8:30 a.m. in the Chapel at the Our Lady of Mount Providence Convent in Catonsville and end with a 7:30 p.m. service of celebration.

Death penalty not acceptable in a fallible world

The church has made many arguments against capital punishment (CR, Web poll). Those who do not accept the church’s moral authority in the matter should consider the following: to support capital punishment, one must either accept that the court system is infallible (which is demonstrably false), or that it is acceptable to occasionally execute innocent persons.

Celebration of Tradition and Triumph

There is nothing more exciting than the packed house, overwhelming school spirit and the healthy rivalry between two long-standing Baltimore institutions, The Institute of Notre Dame and Mercy High School. Alumni and basketball enthusiasts alike will gather at the Towson Center, Feb. 2 for the 41st tip-off of “The Game.” Tip-off time is 7:30 p.m. with pre-game festivities kicking off at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at either school for $8 until the day of the game. Tickets sold at the door at the Towson Center on game day will be $9.

Skills and intangibles – a recipe for Cougar success

The Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Middle River, Lady Cougars are poised and prepped to defend their Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland C Conference title this season, maintaining a strong hold on first place of the Conference’s Y Division. The Cougars are posting a 12-3 league record with their lone conference loss Dec. 20 to Beth Tfiloh, and are 16-3, overall.

Become evangelists for forgiveness

WASHINGTON – Use of the sacrament of penance makes each Catholic “an evangelist for the forgiveness of Christ and a witness to God’s wondrous mercy,” said Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl in his first pastoral letter as head of the Washington Archdiocese. Archbishop Wuerl called confession “a great gift” that offers new life in Christ. “When we face daily frustrations and struggle to be good, we need to recall the teaching of the church that we have the power to triumph over sin because we have God’s grace within us,” he said in the letter, dated Jan. 8 and made public Jan. 25.

Maryland State Senator Lisa Gladden of Baltimore City addresses members of the media after she and Delegate Sandy Rosenberg of Baltimore City introduced legislation to ban the death penalty Jan. 25. (CR Staff/Owen Sweeney III)|

Death penalty ban gains momentum

ANNAPOLIS – After many years of failed attempts to repeal the death penalty in Maryland, abolitionists are closer than ever to passing a ban on capital punishment now that Gov. Martin J. O’Malley has promised to sign repeal legislation. The governor made the pledge Jan. 25 after Sen. Lisa Gladden and Del. Sandy Rosenberg, Baltimore City Democrats, unveiled legislation that would replace Maryland’s death penalty with a prison sentence of life without parole.

Vatican defends Pope Pius XII’s wartime actions