A living document speaks to living waters
âThe Columbia River Watershed: Caring for Creation and the Common Good,â an international pastoral letter by the Catholic bishops of the Northwest, celebrates its 20th anniversary About 40% of all wheat produced in the United States is shipped in barges, pushed by tugboats, on the Columbia River to Portland, Vancouver, Kelso and Longview. It would take more than 500 trucks to transport the wheat a barge carries. Yet the dams that make the water route possible have devastated salmon runs on the Columbia. The Yakama people, who fished for centuries on the river, note that the United States signed treaties that promised fishing rights in perpetuity, rights that the dams make meaningless. The Catholic bishops, in writing the Columbia River pastoral letter, addressed this tragedy. (Courtesy Columbia River National Scenic Area)
Striding together in prayer
Each Sunday, Oregon Catholics make a small pilgrimage to pray for the full reopening of churches and an end to the pandemic Families walk in prayer along St. Louis Road during a recent Sunday pilgrimage in Gervais. âMany people feel very helpless right now, and they want to do something,â said Jeannine Eisenbacher, a member of Sacred Heart-St. Louis Parish. âIt fills a void in your heart to be out there praying publicly as a community.â (Courtesy Amy Counts)
select Pilgrims of all ages walk (or ride) from St. Louis Church to Sacred Heart Church in Gervais. The pilgrimage was started during Advent to pray for an end to the coronavirus pandemic and a full reopening of churches. (Courtesy Jeannine Eisenbacher)
Latin in Mainstream TV Series and The Newly-Thriving Mass of Ages January 28, 2021
MANHATTAN Latin is everywhere. It might be in a joke by Icelandic comedian Ari Eldjárn in “Pardon My Icelandic” his Netflix special released on Dec. 2 or in the epic series “Barbarians” (Netflix) and “Romulus” (Sky Italy) both filmed in Latin which premiered late last year.
In recent months, we might have consumed the highest doses of mainstream Latin in ages. And when anyone hears a simple note of this melodious language, it immediately prompts Gregorian chants’ images and the old rite Mass.
Latin and Catholicism are intrinsically intertwined with the foundation of our Western Culture. They are in our roots and core, practicalities, and imagination. Latin is considered a dead language but still accounts for almost 30% of the modern English language. And interest is growing to the point that Pope Francis’ all-Latin Twitter account (Papa Franciscus: @Pontifex ln) ha
Jan 23, 2021 national correspondent
Pro-life advocates pray for the unborn during a prayer service at St. Patrick Parish Cemetery in Smithtown N.Y., Jan. 22, 2021, the 48th anniversary of the Supreme Court s landmark Roe v. Wade ruling legalizing abortion in the U.S. The gathering also marked the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children. (Credit: Gregory A. Shemitz/CNS.)
The U.S. Bishops’ Conference pro-life chairman has called President Joe Biden’s intent to codify Roe v. Wade “deeply disturbing and tragic,” in response to a statement made by the second ever Catholic president on Friday.
NEW YORK The U.S. bishops’ conference pro-life chairman has called President Joe Biden’s intent to codify