BLOG: Sr. Donna Geernaert, SC
The bible is full of passages exhorting us to care for the widows and orphans and it seems that quite often we think that only applied to the people of Israel, way back when. Did you know that, while there may not be any orphanages in Canada anymore, there are some 80,000 children under the protection of child and family service agencies? These children need families. They need a place to belong. Whether it is for adoption or for temporary placement, Canada needs families to help care for these children. ...read more
Yesterday I attended the pre-release media screening of the new exorcism movie The Rite. After reading the synopsis of the book it was based on, I went in with fairly high hopes, thinking that this might be a little more educational or insightful than past Hollywood takes on the subject. As I entered the theatre ...read more
On Tuesday we told you about the new pastoral letter from the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, Living Chastity Today.  The letter can be downloaded from cccb.ca, or you can view it in video form, presented by seven young people.  The video will also be available as a DVD that can be used in the ...read more
MADRID – Out of the nearly two million pilgrims expected to attend World Youth Day in Madrid in August, about five thousand of those pilgrims will have some sort of disability. The WYD organization has partnered with a Spanish organization to make sure those pilgrims will be able to get the full WYD experience just ...read more
Just the other night I was with friends and ended up having a conversation about… guess what? Chastity! Well, love, marriage, sex and relationships. One of my friends explained that he didn’t want to get married because for it to end up in divorce would be a failure. Even though he did not see marriage ...read more
While in Canada our national March for Life isn’t until May, in the United States thousands of Americans gathered yesterday in Washington for their annual March. Catholic News Service files this report from Washington. To download Flash Player please click here For more insight into Washington’s March for Life, see some of the news briefs ...read more
Last week, the Downtown Chapel in Portland, Oregon, made a special announcement:  they’re changing their parish name.  A recent degree by the Archbishop of Portland will change the Church’s patronage from St. Vincent de Paul to the Congregation of Holy Cross’ first saint, St. André Bessette. For any of you who have seen the documentary ...read more
Today marks the feast of St. Francis de Sales, who also happens to be the patron saint of journalists. It is on this day that the Pope traditionally publishes his message for the World Day of Communications. This year, the message takes the theme “Truth, proclamation and authenticity of life in the digital age.” In ...read more
We are all in need of conversion. My colleague Pedro mentioned previously in his blog and the weekly edition of Perspectives on Christian Unity (and they talked about this on the show). Hearing the phrase “we are all in need of conversion,” I recall the story of how Brother André begged those around him to ...read more
“That they all be one” is one of Jesus’ last prayers. He was thinking of his followers, and for the next 2000 years, his followers have been trying to figure out just what Christian Unity means. This week, as is every year, from January 18-25, is the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The week ...read more