BLOG: Matthew Harrison
The Archdiocese of Toronto celebrated their Chrism Mass in the heart of the city today at St. Michael’s Cathedral.  The Mass, which commemorates the gift of the priesthood, was well attended by many priests and by many faithful who wanted to support their pastors. In his homily, Archbishop Thomas Collins spoke about the role of ...read more
The last two weeks have been difficult ones for faithful Catholics as the clergy sexual abuse scandal has stained headlines and the Church worldwide. There is no denying that crimes of abuse are appalling and must be dealt with properly.  However, media outlets are now taking reports of abuse as an opportunity to abase our ...read more
Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Palm Sunday with thousands of faithful in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday.  Palm Sunday is also the weekend that World Youth Day is celebrated at the diocesan level, and this year marked the 25th anniversary of the event established by Venerable John Paul II.  The anniversary was the focus on his ...read more
Vatican Press Office director Fr. Federico Lombardi, SJ, released a message on Saturday addressing media reports regarding clergy sexual abuse.  Entitled “Vigil of Holy Week,” we offer you the full text of the message below: The question of the sexual abuse of minors by members of the Catholic clergy has continued to receive wide coverage ...read more
Salt + Light Television is pleased to bring viewers the live online webcast of the Episcopal Ordination of Monsignor Donald Bolen this evening. Our webcast begins with a pre-recorded interview with Bishop-Elect Bolen at 8pm ET/6pm MDT, followed by ordination coverage at 8:45pm ET/6:45pm MDT. Over my years as a priest, I’ve been called to ...read more
As many of our parish priests can attest to Holy Week marks one of the busiest times of the year — and of course this is no different for the Bishop of Rome. Tomorrow, March 25th, marks the beginning of a number of major events that Pope Benedict is participating in, including a meeting with ...read more
With Holy Week just days away, our 40 day sojourn through Lent is drawing to a close — and this Sunday, the 40 Days for Life Campaign is as well. As Pedro shared with you back on Ash Wednesday, 40 Days for Life is a campaign of prayer and fasting for an end to abortion.  ...read more
Okay, it’s a bit of a stretch — but as Catholics we believe the Church is guided by the Holy Spirit, correct?  And considering that the Holy Spirit is often personified as a dove and the popular social networking service Twitter uses a bird as part of their branding (the idea of a ‘twittering,’ or ...read more
Pope Benedict visited a Lutheran parish in Rome last weekend. On this week’s Catholic News Service Vatican Report, Cindy Wooden and John Thavis discuss Catholic-Lutheran dialogue. To download Flash Player please click here ...read more
It’s hard to believe but World Youth Day is celebrating its silver anniversary! Twenty-five years ago Venerable John Paul II launched the annual meeting for young people and Pope Benedict XVI reflected on this milestone in his annual World Youth Day message which was released on Monday. Apart from the international World Youth Day gatherings, ...read more