Tag: Timothy Dolan

Pope writes to Americans on the 9/11 anniversary

To my Venerable Brother
The Most Reverend Timothy M. Dolan
President
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

On this day my thoughts turn to the somber events of September 11, 2001, when so many innocent lives were lost in the brutal assault on the twin towers of the World Trade Center and the further attacks in Washington D.C. and Pennsylvania. I join you in commending the thousands of victims to the infinite mercy of Almighty God and in asking our heavenly Father to continue to console those who mourn the loss of loved ones.

The tragedy of that day is compounded by the perpetrators’ claim to be acting in God’s name. Once again, it must be unequivocally stated that no circumstances can ever justify acts of terrorism. Every human life is precious in God’s sight and no effort should be spared in the attempt to promote throughout the world a genuine respect for the inalienable rights and dignity of individuals and peoples everywhere.

The American people are to be commended for the courage and generosity that they showed in the rescue operations and for their resilience in moving forward with hope and confidence. It is my fervent prayer that a firm commitment to justice and a global culture of solidarity will help rid the world of the grievances that so often give rise to acts of violence and will create the conditions for greater peace and prosperity, offering a brighter and more secure future.

With these sentiments, I extend my most affectionate greetings to you, your brother Bishops and all those entrusted to your pastoral care, and I gladly impart my Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of peace and serenity in the Lord.

From the Vatican, September 11, 2011

BENEDICTUS PP. XVI

Labor Day: “the Church has been and is on the side of the worker”

Pope Leo XIII small pic.jpgWhen Pope XIII published Rerum Novarum (On the Condition of Labour) in 1892, it was considered a brilliant piece of  thinking on the Church walking closely with the average man and woman because it demonstrated that in reality, once again, the Church situated herself in the reality of human existence: in the social, political and economic spheres with a keen recognition of human dignity; the protection of basic economic and political rights, including the right to a just wage and to organize associations or unions to defend just claims; the right to private property; the rights of labor over capital; the just organizations of society for the common good.

 

Pope Leo rejected not only a communistic philosophy but he did not ignore the basis of its appeal to workers and condemned the exploitative nature of the liberal-capitalist alternative. He wanted the Church on all levels to be engaged with the social order which slowly took shape in the later years of the 19th century and then in the 20th and 21st centuries.

Continue reading Labor Day: “the Church has been and is on the side of the worker”

The True Meaning of Marriage

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Posted on his blog today, The Gospel in the Digital Age, Archbishop Timothy Michael Dolan wrote a piece on meaning of marriage and family according to natural reason and Catholic belief. His Excellency makes several and crucial points that require our clear attention. A sound-bite understanding of these important issues is insufficient for us.

The stampede is on.  Our elected senators who have stood courageous in their refusal to capitulate on the state’s presumption to redefine marriage are reporting unrelenting pressure to cave-in.

The media, mainly sympathetic to this rush to tamper with a definition as old as human reason and ordered good, reports annoyance on the part of some senators that those in defense of traditional marriage just don’t see the light, as we persist in opposing this enlightened, progressive, cause.

Continue reading The True Meaning of Marriage

Archbishop Dolan to celebrate the St Gianna Mass at St Catherine of Siena Church NYC

TMDolan smile.jpgOn Wednesday, the 27th April, at the Church of St.
Catherine of Siena (411 E. 68th St.) Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan will offer the Sacrifice of the Mass for the intention of couples struggling with infertility &
pregnancy-related difficulties. The evening will begin with Mass at 6:30 pm,
followed by comments by Mr. Robert White, President of the St. Gianna Society followed by a blessing
with the St. Gianna relics by the Archbishop.


At 7:45 pm, there will be time
for personal veneration of St. Gianna relics – with a light reception following
Mass. Physicians, including Dr. Anne
Mielnik, and other practitioners specializing in infertility will be
present in reception area to answer questions and offer support following Mass.
For more info, check out the flyer: St. Gianna Flyer 2011.pdf

Focolare in the USA 50 years: celebrations at hand

This Sunday & coming Tuesday the lay ecclesial movement Focolare is celebrating their 50th anniversary in the United States of America.


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The 50th Anniversary of the
Focolare Movement Sunday, April 3 at 2pm: Archbishop Timothy Dolan will
celebrate a Mass for the 50th anniversary of the Focolare Movement in North
America at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

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Tuesday, April 5 from 9 am – 4:30 pm

On the
occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Focolare Movement’s presence in the
United States, this conference at Fordham University, “The Spirituality of
Unity: a Gift for our Times,” delves into the unique resources that the
Focolare spirituality of unity might offer for transcending divisions and
joining together to sustain constructive projects for the common good. Topics
for discussion include the “Economy of Communion,” featured in Pope Benedict’s
2009 social encyclical, Caritas in veritate; as well as the “Love of Neighbor
and the Law” interfaith project for lawyers, judges and law students.

All those
interested may review the the program & register at: law.fordham.edu/unity.

Read John Allen’s NCR article, “Memo to a divided church: meet the Focolare”: Memo to a divided church- Meet the Focolare, John Allen March 10, 2011.pdf

Archbishop Dolan on 60 Minutes

TM Dolan1.jpg60 Minutes aired Morely Safer’s interview with Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan tonight. Watch Safer on Dolan.

This is a profile of a man who is interesting and does interesting things. He’s affable, joyable, personable, cigar smoking with an eloquent defense of Catholic dogma and belief.

If you want to know more about what the “American Pope” thinks gay marriage, politics, etc, watch 60 Minutes Overtime.
Morely Safer comes at the interview with what I and others will call a secular, modernist viewpoint and is dismissive of the Archbishop without objectivity nor does he evoke from the Archbishop a clarity of thought. Safer, 79, freely admits that as a man and as a Jewish he wants to know more because “these type of men” are good company. Good. I agree. But I had hoped that Safer would have done a better job getting at substantive theological and philosophical foundations of the Catholic Church.
60 Minutes opened a few interesting doors into the person and ministry of the Archbishop of NY. But the report also veered into sentimentality that is thin as gruel. One does not have to sell church! Clear Catholic teaching is not based on polls and trends. Truth stands on its own two feet.

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Dolan writes to Members of the 112th Congress

Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan’s letter to Members of the 112th Congress speaks for itself. As he notes, US Catholics are the largest religious body in the USA. 68 million, 22% of the US population. There are 195 archdioceses and dioceses with one apostolic exarchate. Other interesting statistics can be found here.

Dear Member of
Congress,

Abp Timothy M.Dolan NY & USCCB Pres.jpg

As a new Congress begins, I write to congratulate you and to outline
principles and priorities that guide the public policy efforts of the United
States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). As President of the Bishops’
Conference, I assure you of our prayers and hopes that this newly elected
Congress will advance the common good and defend the life and dignity of all,
especially vulnerable and poor persons whose needs are critical in this time of
difficult economic and policy choices. We continue to seek ways to work
constructively with the Administration and the new Congress and others of good
will to pursue policies which respect the dignity of all human life and bring
greater justice to our nation and peace to our world.

As bishops, of course we
approach public policy not as politicians but as pastors and teachers. Our
moral principles have always guided our everyday experience in caring for the
hungry and homeless, offering health care and housing, educating children and
reaching out to those in need. We lead the largest community of faith in the
United States, one that serves every part of our nation and is present in
almost every place on earth. From our experience and our tradition, we offer a
distinctive, constructive and principled contribution to the national dialogue
on how to defend human life and dignity, promote and protect marriage and
family life, lift up those who experience economic turmoil and suffering, and
promote peace in a world troubled by war and violence.

Continue reading Dolan writes to Members of the 112th Congress

Dolan appointed consultor new Vatican Office


benedict XVI amrs bw.jpgPope Benedict XVI is building his new team of consultors for the papal agency, the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization, charged to proclaim the Gospel always and everywhere in a secularized world. This new team really becomes the minds that will build the architecture for the work of the Council. This new Vatican office is slated to be one the most important Vatican offices dealing with building the Kingdom of Heaven. The head of the new council is Archbishop Rino Fisichella.

Today, list has, among others, Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan, Archbishop of New York. He joins the likes of:

The Eminent Lord Cardinals: Christoph Schönborn, OP, Archbishop of Vienna (Austria); Angelo Scola, Patriarch of Venice (Italia); George Pell, Archbishop of Sydney (Australia); Josip Bozanić, Archbishop of Zagreb (Croatia); Marc Ouellet, PSS, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops; Francisco Robles Ortega, Archbishop of Monterrey (Mexico); Odilo Pedro Scherer, Archbishop of São Paulo (Brasil); William Joseph Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith; Stanisław Ryłko, President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity; and their Excellencies: Claudio Maria Celli, titular Archbishop of Civitanova, President of the Pontifical Council for Social Communication; Nikola Eterović, titular Archbishop of Cibale, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops; Pierre-Marie Carré, Coadjutor Archbishop of Montpellier (France); Timothy Michael Dolan, Archbishop of New York (USA); Robert Zollitsch, Archbishop of Freiburg im Breisgau (Germany); Bruno Forte, Archbishop of Chieti-Vasto (Italy); Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham (Great Britain); André-Joseph Léonard, Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussel, Malines-Bruxelles (Belgium); Adolfo González Montes, Bishop of Almería (Spain); Vincenzo Paglia, Bishop of Terni-Narni-Amelia (Italy).

All of the members of the consultors have some experience of and leadership in the ongoing work of evangelization in their respective milieu. Noteworthy, several of the cardinals and bishops have connections with Communion and Liberation and Sant’Egidio, Schonstatt movements, the Emmanuel Community and the Christian Life Community.

This Council is not only orienting its work to Europe but to the entire world, giving God a voice.