Welcome to the third of a series of blogs on the legacy of Brother André! As I mentioned in previous blogs celebrating Br. André Bessette’s canonization, a Salt + Light crew traveled to the United States in July for the documentary on Br. André.  Our last stop was… Manchester, New Hampshire!  We wanted to stop ...read more

In addition to a September 16th to 19th Papal trip to the United Kingdom which Pope Benedict has asked prayers for, September brings us the following papal intentions: General Intention: The Word of God as Incentive for Social Development That the proclamation of the Word of God may renew people’s hearts, encouraging them to work ...read more

For those of you devoted to Cardinal John Henry Newman, you may want to circle it on your calendar. October 9th. That was the day of the Cardinal’s conversion to Catholicism in 1845. And Pope Benedict XVI is set to announce it as his feast day when he officially declares the English scholar beatified on ...read more

Fr. Andrew Gawrych greeted me with a smile, one humid summer’s day in July at Notre Dame University in Indiana.  He had just arrived to take up his new position as Associate Vocations Director for the Indiana Province of the Congregation of Holy Cross — a big job for a newly ordained young American priest!  ...read more

Are you a beekeeper? A climber? A candlestick maker? Do you like Dijon mustard? If you answered ‘yes’ to any of these questions, you may be interested to know that today the Church celebrates St. Bernard of Clairvaux . Among other things (as you saw), St. Bernard is renowned for his deep devotion to the ...read more

It looks like there will be a touch of Tolkien when Pope Benedict XVI visits Birmingham, England next month. No, we’re confident the Holy Father will not be quoting portions of Lord of the Rings in any homilies or addresses. However, the legendary author’s great nephew, Tim Tolkien, will be sculpting a life-size statue of ...read more

In less than a month Pope Benedict XVI will be landing in Great Britain. Today the Vatican released the official schedule for the trip. It won’t be the first Papal Visit to the UK; Pope John Paul II visited the UK in 1982, but his visit was strictly pastoral. Pope Benedict’s visit will be pastoral, ...read more

Thirty one thousand decades of the Rosary and one hundred and thirty days of Eucharistic adoration. That’s the amount of prayer that benefactors of the charity Aid to the Church in Need have pledged to Pope Benedict XVI. For those of you keeping count, that prayer total works out to more than six months of ...read more

Castel Gandolfo was busy yesterday as Pope Benedict XVI marked the solemnity of the Assumption. First there was the celebration of Mass at the Church of St. Thomas, located just across from the summer Papal residence.  Later in the day, the Holy Father welcomed the faithful to Castel Gandolfo for his Angelus address. Of course, ...read more

Today he is 165 years old.  If he were still alive, that is. Even before he died in 1937, people all over the world regarded him as a saint.  About two months from now, on October 17th, Brother André Bessette CSC will be the first Canadian-born male to be officially named a saint by the ...read more