Page 1511 – Archdiocese of Baltimore

When they met for the first time on the steps of Holy Trinity, Glen Burnie, Maureen Parker and Nancy Little exchanged just a few sentences before discovering they harbored the same idea – to form a support/prayer group for parents of priests and seminarians.

Cardinal George pledges to work with Obama on various policy concerns

WASHINGTON – The president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has pledged that he and his fellow prelates will work with the incoming administration of Barack Obama and the 111th Congress to “advance the common good and defend the life and dignity of all, especially the vulnerable and poor.”

Vatican report: Most U.S. seminaries are generally healthy

WASHINGTON – An apostolic visitation team concluded that U.S. Catholic seminaries and houses of priestly formation are generally healthy, but recommended a stronger focus on moral theology, increased oversight of seminarians and greater involvement of diocesan bishops in the formation process.

In her last school stop, first lady Laura Bush visits Catholic school

BETHESDA – First lady Laura Bush, who has visited countless schools in the United States and foreign countries, made her last school visit Jan. 13 to Little Flower School, a Catholic school in the Washington suburb of Bethesda.

Replay: Catholic Harbaugh takes Ravens further than expected

There was a time when John Harbaugh could walk into a barbershop or church without anyone knowing who he was.

In praise of George W. Bush

The following is best appreciated if read aloud in the best Irish accent you can manage:

Gabriel Network leader says program changes lives

Anthony M. DiIulio got a glimpse of a side of the pro-life movement he had never known.

Bishop Madden joins interfaith leaders in call for repeal of the death penalty

In a Jan. 13 ceremony at First and St. Stephen’s United Church of Christ in Towson, Auxiliary Bishop Denis J. Madden joined dozens of Maryland faith leaders in signing a letter asking state lawmakers to repeal the death penalty – a recommendation urged last month by the Maryland Commission on Capital Punishment.

PEOPLE, PLACES, THINGS

Three Loyola Blakefield, Towson, football players participated in the Baltimore Ravens Toyota Quarterback Challenge during halftime of the Ravens-Redskins game Dec. 7. Dons quarterback Connor Bruns and receivers Ryan Cullen and Vincent Snarski, all juniors, were able to triumph in the competition. Connor ran a 52-yard completion during the event, in which the winner was determined by the longest throw. Loyola Blakefield was invited to participate in the challenge, held during every Ravens home game and featuring local high school quarterbacks.

Heartened by growth of eucharistic adoration

What a delight to have counted four more parishes in our archdiocese who have answered the call for scheduling eucharistic adoration to foster religious vocations (CR, Jan. 8). They have joined the ranks of the 53 parishes previously listed (CR, July 31, 2008).

Where is the outrage on Gaza?

With the possible exceptions of Pope Benedict XVI’S new appeal for peace in Gaza (CR, Jan. 8) and the rebuke of Israel over the conditions in Gaza by Cardinal Renato Martino, the head of the Pontifical Council for Peace and Justice, Catholic groups and organizations and their church leaders have been unbelievably subdued and disproportionately lacking in their response to the horrific conditions in Gaza. Religious leaders in the United States are more concerned with being politically correct and less concerned with Israel’s military attack on the United Nations school in Gaza where dozens of innocent civilians and children were killed. Does the biblical command: “Thou shall not kill” apply to this area?

Pope has right prescription for economic crisis