Cardinal Wuerl: Education is a Key to the New Evangelization

A day after Pope Benedict XVI warned visiting U.S. bishops about the threat of "radical secularism" to American moral values, Washington Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl reflected on the implications of the pope's remarks, giving special emphasis to the role of Catholic education.

"It's so important in our country right now that we not allow faith to be brushed aside," the cardinal told Catholic News Service. "And the only way that's not going to happen ... is a renewal of our own faith."

Cardinal Wuerl, whose recent book, "Seek First the Kingdom," encourages Catholic laypeople to affirm their faith in various dimensions of secular life, said that Catholic schools are "one of the most tried and proven ways of passing on the faith." Efforts to renew Catholic religious education were proving an "enormous success" at the elementary and secondary levels, he said. "Where we need to concentrate now is on the level of higher education."

Reaffirming Pope Benedict's hopeful words about a "new generation" of American Catholics working to renew the "church's presence and witness in American society," Cardinal Wuerl said that "many of the younger students and some of the faculty" at Catholic colleges and universities have shown themselves willing "to bring the Catholic perspective into the discussion at the level of academia."

Ministries extend compassion to those who've had abortions

Out of 53 million legal abortions performed in the United States in the last 40 years, about 10 million of the women identified themselves as Catholics. “The numbers are staggering,” Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo said at the November meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The Church’s response to them is one of compassion with an invitation to healing. Maryann Gogniat Eidemiller has written an excellent article about Catholic organizations that help women heal through the sacraments and by letting them know they are forgiven. The article is from OSV Newsweekly, 1/15/2012 and can be found at Mourning the Lost Ones (http://tiny.cc/qdul3).

Eucharistic Congresses 2013-2016

The dates for the coming years are as follows:
March 8-9, 2013
March 28-29, 2014
March 13-14, 2015
March 11-12, 2016
Please avoid scheduling other large events on these days.

January is Poverty in America Awareness Month

Today, 37.3 million Americans—and 1 in 6 children (that’s 18 percent of all American children)-are living below the poverty line. They live in families who are of necessity making hard choices between food, health care, heat and rent. To bring attention to this national crisis, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) has designated January as “Poverty in America Awareness Month.” For more information, go to http://old.usccb.org/cchd/povertyusa/povamer.shtml

John Paul II Institute launches new free online review

The John Paul II Institute's Center for Cultural and Pastoral Research offers sustained anthropological and theological reflection on the cultural issues of our time--childhood, bioethics, education, work, issues concerning ecology, medicine, health, and so on-- particularly as these affect the most vulnerable members of society. Humanum: Issues in Family, Culture and Science, the Center's new quarterly review, will engage these themes in articles and book reviews. The first issue on the theme of The Child is online now at http://www.humanumreview.com.

Catechetical Sunday Theme 2012

The USCCB has announced that the Catechetical Sunday theme for 2012 will be "Catechists and Teachers as Agents of the New Evangelization." The date is Sunday, September 16th.

Using Music in the Catechetical Program…Top Music Countdown

Every month Cornerstone Media uses “the music that young people listen to everyday” to create the Top Music Countdown. “This monthly report evaluates the values in 25 of the top songs on the charts, and gives you ways to incorporate these songs into your program. Additional articles keep you up-to-date with youth culture and give you creative and effective ways to incorporate elements of their music and culture into your program. For only $99 per year, your subscription gives access to your entire church, school or organization!” This makes it really affordable because you can share the cost with others in your parish.

If you are interested, check it out at http://www.cornerstonemedia.org/. You can also use some of their Free Resources or even join their E-Club.