Search Results
PITTSBURGH — When it comes to social distancing, cloistered religious communities are way ahead of everyone.
In these difficult times of pandemic, we may miss experiencing the sacraments instituted by Christ. We also miss being able to go to museums and see great art in person. Yet thanks to modern technology, we can use this time to re-imagine the original context and meaning of many artworks that have been separated and put on museum walls. A great example of this is the Seven Sacraments series painted by Nicolas Poussin around 1640. The National Gallery of Art in Washington owns one of those pictures, “The Baptism of Christ.”
It’s Sunday morning at Holy Spirit Church in Annandale, and Mary “Provie” Rydstrom comes flying down the aisle with a metal music stand in on hand and a big red satchel in the other, just in time to interpret the 10:30 a.m. Mass in American Sign Language.
Even before Holy Family Church in Dale City had a name or a building of its own, the parish’s focus was on “serving people and helping people,” said Larry Pemberton, a longtime church volunteer and member of the pastoral council.
This year has proven to be a time of change in so many ways. I am a senior at St. Paul VI Catholic High School, and not only has my school changed physical locations, but we also moved to a hybrid model of instruction because of the pandemic. The anticipation of moving from Fairfax to Loudoun County has long been building. We are finally able to welcome people to our beautiful new campus in Chantilly. We were so fortunate to have Bishop Michael F. Burbidge lead the ribbon-cutting ceremony and bless our school’s auditorium, gym, football field and baseball field. He has been a great supporter of Paul VI and I am honored to get to know him through his regular visits to our school.
For many years, Catholic students at Shenandoah University in Winchester didn’t have a priest on campus to celebrate Mass on Sundays. Some students would catch a ride across town to Sacred Heart Church or gather on campus for fellowship, reading Scripture together and sharing a meal.
I love Netflix. I love that I can watch sitcoms and movies, as well as virtually any documentary I like, at any hour of the day or night. For a kid who grew up with three channels, rabbit ears and the occasional VHS rental cassette, it’s quite an amazing advancement.
There is more Christian persecution taking place worldwide than at any other time in modern history, says former Congressman Frank Wolf.
Some years ago, Lee Edwards, a veteran conservative writer and a friend of mine, launched an organization, the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, dedicated to “commemorating the more than 100 million victims of communism around the world and pursuing the freedom of those still living under totalitarian regimes.”
I went down to the basement this morning to put away some frozen food and to store some canning jars on a shelf. I flipped on the appropriate lights and navigated my way around still-unpacked moving boxes. After unloading my items and making my way upstairs, I turned off all the lights without thinking. This simple act was a milestone. The lights and switches aren’t really intuitive, and you have to truly know the place to know which ones do which thing. To do something in this house without consciously thinking through the steps felt like a victory. Maybe one day, if I can acquire enough of these little victories, I will feel at home.
