Social distancing can be miserable, but at the very least we have each other.

Social distancing can be miserable, but at the very least we have each other.

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious said May 27 it will join a group of over 100 national faith leaders — from Christian, Jewish and Muslim traditions — who have called for a National Day of Mourning and Lament June 1 for those who have died from COVID-19.

We mourn the tragic and senseless death of George Floyd. We share the sense of outrage and intense feelings of helplessness of so many others who have now viewed the searing images of his final moments of struggle. All who profess to be followers of Jesus Christ are obligated to work relentlessly to defeat the painful and persistent reality of racism in every instance and wherever it is manifested. Our hearts ache for the family of Mr. Floyd as we pray for them in this hour of their great anguish. We pray also for the people of Minneapolis as they now come to terms with this latest instance of injustice and with God’s help begin to bind the wounds that it has exposed.

Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori felt “great joy” when he heard the news that Pope Francis had accepted a miracle attributed to the intercession of Father Michael McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus.

“The sadness and pain are intense,” Archbishop Hebda said of the circumstances surrounding the May 25 death of George Floyd.

Sulpician Father John Kemper, the driving force behind the restoration of the historic St. Mary’s Seminary Chapel on Paca Street in Baltimore and a former superior for his religious society’s Province of the United States, died May 21 after an 18-month battle with esophageal cancer.

In an executive order issued May 26, the county executive of Howard County issued regulations for religious institutions that would seem to disallow the distribution of the Eucharist in Catholic churches. After the Archdiocese of Baltimore expressed “serious concerns” about the order, the county acknowledged that the restriction would be withdrawn.

As the religious community and local, state and federal government officials proceed in the gradual reopening of various activities, including religious services, there will inevitably be differing views on challenging issues that must be addressed.

Here’s my version of the wager. Embrace an authentic Catholic attitude and see how it impacts your life now.

This weekend, my 10-year-old godson wrote a prayer.

While McCorvey’s real outlook and motivation remain elusive, two things can be said with certainty: first, that she was a complicated person and second, that everyone interviewed for filmmaker Nick Sweeney’s profile of McCorvey has an agenda of his or her own.

Pope Francis has approved a miracle attributed to the intercession of Father Michael McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus, clearing the way for his beatification.
