New Haven – Communio

A change of heart

The New Haven Register’s Michael Bellmore has something to say to me in “Lapsed Catholic has a confession to make.” His struggle with Christian faith is not unique to him, nor is the struggle for living coherently. Earlier this evening I had a conversation with friends about faith, meaning and struggle for truth in the lives we lead. I was privileged to be invited to a gathering at a friend’s house sharing in an interesting conversation with his niece who’s a freshman at Providence College and who just read Saint Augustine’s Confessions as part of a Western Civ class. Wow! Someone is still reading Augustine’s Confessions. Admittedly, the book is challenging for a well-educated person, and yet I find it clarifies my own journey and the path most people make in life.

To be honest the first line of the article gave me the feeling, “Oh, hear we go again, another angry, complaining, silly reporter trying to give another black eye to the Church.” But I read the article and I found something else. I found a young man searching for meaning, reaching out in anxiety and finding friendship, mercy and forgiveness: a stony heart exchanged for new one.

Continue reading A change of heart

Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument, New Haven

Sao Paolo has Christ overlooking the city, New Haven-ers have a statue keeping the citizens remembering the service of others in 19th century wars.

This picture is of a memorial statue overlooking the City of New Haven which is a familiar sight for residents and those who know where to look in the skyline.

After dinner this evening my parents and I drove up to see the 19th century memorial for those who died serving our country in the armed services.

Let’s pray for those lost their lives in war.

Protestant faith community unable to replace Catholic truth

From the point of view of truth, Ed Stannard’s article in today’s New Haven Register, “New Haven Church to Fill Spiritual Void” is a bit misleading when he fails to distinguish between the Church –meaning the Catholic Church– and the various ecclesial communities such as the Protestant types. He reduces the truth of being one, holy, catholic and apostolic, i.e., being authentically Catholic– to being opportunistic. No doubt there are opportunities for evangelization that the Catholics are unable to engage in now, but the presence of the Catholic remains solidly in New Haven and can never be replaced by a denomination, which the Catholics are not.

One should note, there is no one-to-one correspondence. One church community is not as good as another. They do not believe the same things (dogma and doctrine, the nature of the priesthood, Eucharist and apostolic authority) even though there are some superficial things that are the same (some liturgical practices). Hence, Catholicism is not on par –theologically or liturgically or justice-wise– with the Episcopal Church. And, the Rev. Robert Hendrickson knows this theology and ecclesiology well. What he is doing is poaching Catholics from the truth in a period when the Archdiocese of Hartford has been unable to assign young, vibrant priests and pastoral ministers to the area and frame their work as a call and mission from God and the Church.

While it is true that the Archdiocese of Hartford has not responded as best as it could to the religious needs of the people in the Hill section of town, the Catholic Church is still very present in this area of the city with the fact of Saint Anthony’s Church and the Catholic Worker House and with the people present.

Clearly, the new evangelization proposed by Benedict XVI needs to be enacted today.