St. Patrick's Day: The history of LGBT people wanting to march in St. Patrick's Day Parades dates back to the 1990s.
In Vatican shakeup, pope redefines role of second-in-command
Shanghai -- Head of underground Catholic church, Bishop Joseph Fan Zhongliang, dies. He was held under house arrest for much of the last two decades.
The Sacramento Bee (daily newspaper) profiles local prelate: Bishop Jaime Soto leads vast diocese with a smile
Newark, N.J. -- Archdiocese releases new policy for funerals of priests removed from ministry for sex abuse. A sampling of policies from nine dioceses finds only one, the policy of the diocese of Rochester, N.Y., requires the priests to be dressed in secular clothing.
What's the social media policy and practice for your parish, church or justice group? Some ideas from CatholicTechTalk.com
Munich Cardinal Reinhard Marx: German Catholic bishops pick pope aide as new leader
Commentary: Francis' anti-imperial papacy by E.J. Dionne (You may have missed this last week.)
The Philippines -- President Benigno Aquino apologizes for government's slow response to Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) victims
Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference Parliamentary liaison addresses parliamentary committee on gender and development. Says no church should be allowed to harbor criminals.
India -- A court in Odisha sentenced three men for the rape of a Catholic nun in 2008, at a time when anti-Christian riots ravaged the eastern Indian state.
Niagara Falls, N.Y. -- St. Francis students joining the fight to keep their school open with letter-writing campaign
Springfield, Mass. -- Holyoke Polish historic district dispute features battle over Mater Dolorosa Church
Australia's Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to child sex abuse: A senior Catholic church official has admitted he swore a "deceptive" and wrong affidavit for court proceedings for a priest on trial for abuse of a minor
Philadelphia -- Archdiocese ponders sale of seminary artworks, including portraits by Thomas Eakins, Philip Pearlstine, and Alice Neel. Sources close to the diocese say the appraisal process has begun.
Looking for a little inspiration to begin your day? NCR's sister publication, Celebration, gives you two options, both based on the Scripture readings of the day:
Pencil Preaching is a blog in which Celebration editor Pat Marrin combines Scripture and sketching to reflect on the Word.
Daily Bread is a series of short reflections written by four authors who meet regularly to share the readings. Daily Bread is intended to help daily preachers and others who pray from the assigned Scriptures each day to orient themselves to the Living Word addressed to the church in the world. It's a great way to begin the day.
