Catholic Fire

Monday, June 2, His Grace The Most Reverend Raymond L. Burke, Archbishop of Saint Louis conferred the Papal Medal “Bene Merenti” on Abbé Alexander Willwebber of the Institute of Christ the King for his restoration work on several historic Catholic churches here in the United States. This award is given by the Holy Father himself for outstanding good works for the Church. Abbé Willwebber has been the artistic consultant for several restoration projects entrusted to the Institute of Christ the King all over the world and in the USA, like St. Mary’s Oratory in Wasau, Wisconsin, the Shrine of Christ the King Sovereign Priest in Chicago, Illinois, Old St. Patrick’s Oratory in Kansas City, Missouri, and St. Francis de Sales Oratory here in St. Louis, Missouri. While each of these edifices were designed in a different style—St. Mary’s in American Neo-Gothic, the Christ the King Shrine according to early Baroque churches in Rome, and St. Francis de Sales in German Gothic—the work of Abbé Will...

I have discovered a new blog that looks very appealing and I'm linking to it. Here's the description from NY Mom : The inspiration of the energetic and savvy Fighting Irish Thomas, a Notre Dame alumnus, educator, sports instructor and a freelance writer, Cathlete.net is a welcome alternative to other conservative online news magazines.This attractive site is a collection of political, religious, pro-life and general interest news items in an easily accessed format. An exciting feature is the addition of a wide range of sports news, in keeping with Thomas' own abiding interest in athletic pursuits. Also, links to a variety of useful Catholic websites are conveniently located on either side of the page, including several notices for pregnancy counseling and assistance. The Notre Dame connection is subtly felt throughout, lending a charming Irish Catholic air and a note of nostalgia to the endeavor and particularly warmed the Irish corner of my heart. I may be prejudiced, but...

The 2008 Catholic Blog Awards are now taking nominations . From the website : "Nominations for the 2008 Catholic Blog Awards will open this year at 12:00 Noon CST on Friday, February 15, 2008 and close on Friday, February 29, 2008 at 12:00 Noon CST. Voting will begin on Monday, March 3, 2008 at 12:00 Noon CST and end on Monday, March 17, 2008 at Noon." I would be very honored if this blog were nominated for any of the categories listed. There are so many wonderful blogs out there - happy nominating and voting!

Lots of interesting posts today from the Telegraph.co.uk, including: Pope to purge the Vatican of modern music Damian Thompson: Why the Pope is right Catholic hospitals ban abortion referrals Pope gets radical and woos Anglicans

The official statue of Our Lady of America has arrived at the St. Louis Cathedral where it will remain until Sept 8, feast of Our Lady’s Birthday. This is the same statue that was blessed by Archbishop Burke of St. Louis at the US Bishop’s meeting in Baltimore, MD in November. Via Air Maria.Com and Spirit Daily .

The Curt Jester offers a satirical post on the Pontifical Council for Migrants issued a “Guidelines for the Pastoral Care of the Road,” aka The Ten Commandments of Driving, while Dawn Eden offers some suggestions for the title of the document. Carolina Cannonball also reacts to the driving ten commandments.

He loves playing golf and basketball, and runs or works out regularly. Fiercely competitive, he "takes no prisoners" on the racquetball court, according to a friend. The Most Rev. Joseph E. Kurtz , 60, showed similar energy as Roman Catholic bishop of Knoxville, driving hundreds of miles to visit parishes in his East Tennessee diocese, attending festivals, fundraisers and community events, even learning to hold services in Spanish. Friends and colleagues expect Kurtz to bring that drive to his new job as Roman Catholic archbishop of Louisville -- along with his humor, patience, intelligence and a deep faith. [more ] By Deborah Yetter The Courier - Journal Louisville, KY

Check out the damages here: Chicago Catholics outraged by Hillary speech (NewsMax) Pro-abortion Senator Clinton to speak at Chicago Catholic charity (LifeSiteNews)

Portugal's parliament voted overwhelmingly to legalize abortion up until the 10th week of pregnancy. Now this small Roman Catholic country can "keep up with the times" just like the rest of its European neighbors. This is devastating news. Many of us have been praying for Portugal and for the leaders of nations to protect and safeguard innocent lives. We might be asking ourselves, "How could God have allowed this to happen?" or "Why is God punishing his people?" God gives us free will and apparently some of our leaders are exercising their free will to the fullest extent. Some consider themselves even above God and his laws. We need to pray and fast for the conversion of our wayard leaders who do not respect human life, but treat it as if it were garbage. These leaders exist not only in Portugal, but throughout the world. They are like vipers - full of the poisionous venom of their power and corruption - a disease which spreads throughout their countr...

I just finished reading this amazing article from the March edition of Homiletic and Pastoral Review ... Social Justice in Catholic Parishes , by Dr. Robert F. Gotcher and just had to share it with you. Here's a preview: There is a trend in dioceses today to develop specialty parishes. One type is the traditional parish with statues, standard organ hymns and Latin in the Mass, another is the “community-building” parish in the suburbs, and many in the inner-city are the “social justice” parishes. Sometimes the inner city parishes seem to be compelled to make a choice between being a “traditional” parish that caters to the disenfranchised traditional minded who flee from the “communitarian” suburban parish and being a “social justice” parish. [Read the rest here .] H/T to Insight Scoop.