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The Deacon's Bench

The movie version of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play “Doubt” is opening later this fall,and the first trailer is now up for viewing. The play, set in 1964, tells the provocative story of a priest suspected of sexual impropriety, and the nun — played in the film by Meryl Streep — determined to destroy him. For…

With the end of summer, something else is beginning: a new crop of deacons flourishing in Youngstown, Ohio. I haven’t seen any ordination pics yet — Buckeyes, send them my way! — but the Catholic Exponent had a preview a couple weeks back: Bishop George Murry, S.J., will ordain seven men on Sept. 6 at…

“Did we just get the Miracle Whip account?” — ad executive in Mad Men last night, when he spots a Catholic priest in the office. Right now, there’s just no better drama on television, and the subtle but striking depiction of early 1960’s Catholicism (Brooklyn variety) makes it even more compelling. And if the priest…

What could be better on a Monday morning than prayer with The Anchoress? Give a listen to her lovely new podcast feature right here. My humble contribution to the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows can be found here. And Sunday’s homily focused on the feast as well.

This week’s Time magazine asks the rhetorical question: Does Joe Biden have a Catholic problem? Take a look: On Wednesday, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops publically called out Biden for comments he made about abortion on NBCs Meet the Press. Even Kerry, whose support for abortion rights is much stronger than Biden’s and who…

Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows Adriaen Isenbrant1518-35 Father,as your Son was raised on the cross,his mother Mary stood by him, sharing his sufferings.May your Church be united with Christin his suffering and deathand so come to share in his rising to new life,where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spiritone God,…

“What marvels surround our work in the service of God’s word! We are instruments of the Holy Spirit; God is so humble that He uses us to spread His word. We become His voice, once we have listened carefully to the word coming from His mouth. We place His word on our lips in order…

Statistics show that more men are entering the priesthood later in life — and now a paper in Illinois is taking a closer look at this phenomenon: In what he calls his past life, the Rev. Geoffrey Horton worked at a Bloomington-Normal insurance company, coached a women’s softball team, owned a home and invested in…

The continuing curiosity about and interest in the diaconate has reached the hills of Kentucky. A paper in Lexington has this write-up about the latest class of deacons ordained for the Bluegrass State: Richard Abbey has a new vocation. The senior program leader in the reliability lab at Hitachi Automotive Products is now also a…

September 15th marks the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows, and it is traditionally when we celebrate the feast day of my parish, Our Lady Queen of Martyrs. On Sunday, the day before that feast, we’ll have a special concelebrated mass dedicated to the Queen of Martyrs. And I’ll be preaching the homily, below. This…
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