Page 1863 – Archdiocese of Baltimore

WASHINGTON – Young adult Catholics have a strong Catholic identity but do not feel much of a commitment to the institutional church or its moral teachings, two sociologists said Feb. 6 in Washington. The seemingly paradoxical assessment came from James A. Davidson of Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., and Dean R. Hoge of The Catholic University of America in Washington at a Woodstock Forum on the campus of Georgetown University.

Pope says lay movements can help bishops

VATICAN CITY – A bishop can turn to Catholic lay movements not only when he needs an organized group to implement his pastoral plans, but also when he needs to care for his own soul, Pope Benedict XVI said. When a movement gathers its “bishop-friends” together, it helps them experience “a more intense communion of hearts, a stronger mutual support and a greater shared commitment to showing that the church is a place of prayer and charity, a house of mercy and peace,” the pope said. Pope Benedict spoke Feb. 8 at a joint audience for 80 bishops participating in a conference sponsored by the Focolare movement and 110 bishops attending a meeting organized by the Community of Sant’Egidio.

Holy Land conflict: bringing the issue home

As Catholic Relief Services’ former director for the Middle East, Christine H. Tucker saw firsthand the conflict-ridden borders of Palestine and Israel. This February, the St. Louis, Clarksville, parishioner is bringing the issue home, via Howard County television. Ms. Tucker, who serves as the Mid-Atlantic regional director for CRS, shares her knowledge of the escalating fall out during a 30-minute program on Comcast Cable Channel 73 in Howard County called “Building Peace for Israelis and Palestinians,” airing throughout February, 11 a.m., 3 and 7 p.m., on Mondays and Fridays.

Campus religious leaders adapt to American culture

Loyola College in Maryland senior Matt Greer was relieved when he learned the school scheduled a special 4 p.m. Mass on Super Bowl Sunday because he would probably have had to skip his weekly spiritual ritual to watch the big game with his buddies. “I usually attend the 9 p.m. Mass,” said the 21-year-old student from Westchester, N.Y. “That would have been in the middle of the Super Bowl. I don’t like to skip Mass, but I really didn’t want to miss the Super Bowl.” By moving its regularly scheduled 6 p.m. Mass to 4 p.m. on Super Bowl Sunday, the Baltimore campus chapel was filled with more than 200 church-goers, most appearing to be under the age of 23. The accommodation is one of many tactics college officials are using to encourage more students to attend Mass.

Excessive drinking harms liver

When Debbie Collins’ wedding ceremony at Sacred Heart of Mary, Graceland Park, concludes June 23, the 26-year-old Dundalk resident plans to toast her nuptials with a sip of champagne. Though she knows that excessive alcohol consumption can be harmful to the liver, the soon-to-be bride isn’t concerned about the effects of the mouthful of sparkling wine and the one Amaretto & Sprite she plans to drink at her wedding reception.

Electronic giving makes donating to church easy

More parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Baltimore are turning to a relatively new way of encouraging parishioners to donate to their church: electronic giving. Instead of using weekly envelopes, parishioners agree to have a set amount of money transferred automatically from their checking or savings account to their parish. Some donors choose to have their credit cards charged.

Mercy forum helps women religious live healthy lives

Some 180 sisters of 13 different religious communities listened to experts speak about the topic “Taking charge of your health and wellness,” in the lobby of the Weinberg Center for Women’s Health and Medicine at Mercy Medical Center, Baltimore, Jan. 27. During the forum the sisters were educated on five different topics: gynecologic health, exercising the mind and body, keeping your bones strong, prevention and detection of colon cancer, and breast health. “Our thought behind this event was these are women that take care of others,” said Amy Freeman with executive services at Mercy. “They need a day to think of their own wellbeing.”

Shopping addiction possible

Joy Black used to shop so frequently at Talbot’s Outlet that she knew the sales staff by name. For her, the thrill of shopping was in the sheer delight of finding a great bargain. “I liked getting 75 percent off,” said Mrs. Black, 47. “Even if I didn’t need it, I’d have to buy it.” When the St. Francis Xavier parishioner’s third child entered school, she found freedom. “I’d go shopping for no reason at all. I kind of went wild. It lasted a few years.” Yet when the shelves and rods in her closet were crammed and the volume of clothing overwhelmed her, she questioned her shopping habit.

All life is equal

The recent article, “Death penalty ban gains momentum” (CR, Feb. 1), states that Sen. Lisa Gladden and Del. Sandy Rosenberg, Democrats, introduced legislation which would change the death penalty to life without parole. As a pro-lifer, that is certainly something I support.

Religious called to imagine new future

WASHINGTON – Present trends suggest a declining future for many communities of men and women religious, but religious are called to imagine a different future, Sister Doris Gottemoeller said Feb. 3. Sister Doris, former president of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas and of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, and Father Canice Connors, a former provincial minister of the Conventual Franciscans and former president of the Conference of Major Superiors of Men, were the main speakers at Washington Theological Union’s annual Religious Life Symposium. The theme of this year’s symposium was “Re-Imagining Religious Life in the 21st Century.” Sister Doris addressed the overall theme, while Father Connors described a specific effort by a community of Conventual Franciscans in Syracuse, N.Y., to create a new center of Conventual life and ministry.

Early church grew thanks to married couples

VATICAN CITY – From the earliest days of Christianity, the faith was nourished and the church grew thanks to the commitment of believing married couples, Pope Benedict XVI said. Continuing what he described as a verbal “portrait gallery” of important figures in the early church, the pope focused his Feb. 7 general audience remarks on Priscilla and Aquila, a married couple who assisted St. Paul in his ministry in Corinth, Ephesus and Rome.

Nuns acknowledge racism, pledge to fight it