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Joseph Duerr, Record Editor
There was among many Americans a sense of joy, relief and thanksgiving when the last full combat brigade of U.S. troops left Iraq on Aug. 18.
These feelings were particularly felt among military families. They have seen their spouses, sons and daughters, grandchildren, cousins, and aunts and uncles serve multiple deployments in harm’s way during the seven and a half year war. More than 4,000 American troops have been killed, thousands have been injured and many more have suffered emotional trauma that could affect their lives for many years. 
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Thirteen years after her death, the impact of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta’s work and prayer is still felt around the world.
Blessed Mother Teresa once said, “It is not the magnitude of our actions but the amount of love that is put into them that matters.”
More than 25 years ago, the U.S. Catholic bishops published their landmark pastoral letter, “The Challenge of Peace: God’s Promise and Our Response,” in which they emphasized the dangerous threat to the world posed by nuclear weapons and the arms race.
Mark Twain once said, “History doesn’t repeat itself — at best it sometimes rhymes.”
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When Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas, vice president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, spoke to a congressional subcommittee this month about the need for comprehensive immigration reform in the United States, he was not the first Catholic leader to address this issue.
Missionary work often is thought to be the calling of a select group of people who devote their lives to spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ in distant places around the world.
When Pope Benedict XVI recently established a pontifical council for the new evangelization, did he have in mind the United States and the challenges facing U.S. Catholics today in proclaiming and living the Gospel?
With the establishment of a new Vatican agency to promote “new evangelization,” the traditional forms of “old evangelization” — missionary outreach in non-Christian lands — are alive and well around the world.
As we celebrate this week Independence Day and the blessings of freedom, we might give some thought to words written by an interfaith group of U.S. religious leaders more than two decades ago.
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Pope Benedict XVI’s comments in his 2010 World Day of Peace Message become more meaningful each day as the human and environmental costs of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico mount.
The massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has gotten the attention of everyone about the natural environment we take so much for granted and the serious consequences of the destruction of the ecosystem on the planet.
As oil continues to gush into the Gulf of Mexico from BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the damage to the ecosystem and the lives of people in Louisiana and the other gulf states grows each day. As efforts to cut off the broken pipe and stop the oil flow have failed so far, uncertainty heightens about how bad it will get for those whose livelihoods depend on the fishing and tourist industry.
The need for good, safe, affordable housing in the United States has existed for a number of years. This need has been well documented, and today it has become more pressing because of the recent economic downturn.
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The gentle notes of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s “Vocalise” wafted through the Vatican audience hall last week and carried with them hopes for improved relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the Russian Orthodox Church. After years of tense relations and painstaking theological dialogue, the Vatican and the Russian Orthodox Church are hoping music and art can create an atmosphere more conducive to their efforts to promote Christian unity.
Graduations are about recognizing and celebrating achievements in education — at the elementary, secondary or college levels. But this time of the year also is an occasion for emphasizing the importance of education as well as the challenges we face.
The Gulf of Mexico is a natural wonder and an international treasure.
It’s often mentioned that an effective way of promoting a particular vocation in life is through the example of people who are committed to living that vocation day in and day out.
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One reason the U.S. Constitution has served our country well for more than 200 years is that its provisions generally have been applied and interpreted reasonably in light of tradition, changing times and common sense. Occasionally, however, this balance gets out of kilter, making the document seem anything but reasonable.
The film “Thirteen Days,” which was shown last week on cable television, recalled the two weeks in October 1962 when, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the United States and the then-Soviet Union came to the brink of nuclear war. Fortunately, through negotiations war was avoided and the Soviets withdrew missiles with nuclear weapons from Cuba.
When Charlie Strong was introduced as the University of Louisville’s new head football coach last December, he remarked about the student athletes on his team: “Their sole responsibility is academics. I want them to know that their sole purpose here is to get a degree and to go win football games.”
Speaking of the importance of stewardship in the lives of Christians, retired Bishop John J. McRaith of Owensboro, Ky., once remarked: “I am convinced that if we can make stewardship part of our faith life we can truly change the world. We can make this a much better place to live — not just for us, but for everyone.&rdquo
The church will mark on Good Friday the fifth anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II, an event that stirred intense emotion, expressions of faith and worldwide attention in April 2005.
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With most states, Kentucky included, facing budget constraints and cutbacks because of a decline in revenue, legislators are constantly looking for new sources of money to fund programs and services. One such untapped source of income that would benefit education was presented last week to a House committee of the Kentucky General Assembly.
In his Lenten message, Pope Benedict XVI said that conversion to Christ gives individuals the strength to break the bonds of selfishness and work for justice in the world.
When it comes to Iraq, the concern of most Americans is the ending of our military involvement in the Middle Eastern country and bringing U.S. troops home. This concern is understandable in light of seven years of war, the loss of many lives and the tremendous investment we have made in Iraq to bring about security and to foster democracy.
Fifteen years ago the U.S. Catholic bishops, in a document on political responsibility, made some perceptive comments about the state of American public life that echo with much validity today.
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The legislative process can be frustrating to citizens when proposed legislation that has merit and widespread support does not receive consideration or a hearing in one legislative chamber or the other.
A recent preparatory document for an October Synod of Bishops for the Middle East made a forceful appeal to the Christian minority in the region to resist emigration and to openly give witness to the Gospel values of hope, joy, justice and forgiveness in their native communities.
Comments by the U.S. bishops in a statement on criminal justice establish a rationale for proposed legislation in the 2010 Kentucky General Assembly.
Vicki Schieber’s message about the death penalty — given recently at three Catholic high schools and one parish in the Archdiocese of Louisville — is a compelling one for Catholics to ponder. It’s a message about living, in personally difficult circumstances, our Catholic teaching about respect for human life and forgiveness.
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The images of death, suffering and destruction in Haiti that we have seen in newspapers and on television in the aftermath of the Jan. 12 earthquake have left an indelible mark on our hearts and minds.
Two decades ago, a late Archdiocese of Louisville priest, Father Kevin Caster, wrote about conditions in Haiti following a visit. At the time Haiti was undergoing one of the periods of political and governmental upheaval that has marked much of its history.
A preferential option for the poor is one of the key themes or principles of Catholic social teaching. What it means is that the needs of poor and vulnerable people should be placed first — should be given priority.
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