As we celebrate this autumn season of harvesting, I am mindful of gatherings in October that feature a smorgasbord. The Swedish tradition of smorgasbord is a buffet of plenty with many small dishes. My article this month is going to be a smorgasbord of plenty, featuring a number of delectable delights. Read more >>
The Let’s Listen sessions held by the Diocese of Duluth formed the basis for the diocese’s contribution to the 2021-2023 Synod called for by Pope Francis and being conducted by the Catholic Church worldwide. Below are the contributions from the Diocese of Duluth as well as a link to the national synthesis put forward by the U.S. Conference of Catholic bishops.
“Catholics are called to be faithful citizens and to infuse public life with the values necessary to protect human dignity, combat injustice, and promote the common good. Because of this duty, it is necessary that we, your pastors, reflect with you on the state of our public life and the choices Minnesotans face as we go to the polls in a year in which all state legislative and executive officers are up for election.” Read more>>
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ANNIVERSARY MASS: Couples celebrating anniversary milestones are invited to the eighth annual Anniversary Mass and Dinner Sunday, Oct. 2. Mass will be at 10:30 a.m. with Bishop Daniel Felton at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Rosary with lunch to follow at Stella Maris Academy’s Holy Rosary campus. Registration closes Sept. 21. There is no charge for this event. Register >>
STRATEGIC PLANNING: The Diocese of Duluth Five Year Strategic Plan, effective from 2012 to 2017, along with the implementation handbook, is available here. You can find an update on what’s been implemented so far here.
FINANCIAL STATEMENT: The Diocese of Duluth has released its audited financial reports. Please see the document here.
COMPUTER SECURITY: The Diocesan Technology Committee offers some best-practices guidance for computer systems here.
12/08/22 12:03 pm
My favorite piece of real estate on earth (as I have probably mentioned before) is Rome, Italy. For years, I have led small group tours of six to eight people there, and I never tire of doing it. I tire of the flights, but not of Rome. You can learn more about church history and even theology in one week in Rome than you would a whole semester in college, and that is what I love.
Father Richard Kunst
Read More12/08/22 12:02 pm
I dreaded the sign of peace when we brought all our children to Mass. I am not sure what the priest or those around could see, but there was the excessive squeezing of hands and toes that were stepped on, hugs that were attempts to pull the locks of the other, and an occasional jab into their siblings’ ribs.
Betsy Kneepkens
Read More12/08/22 12:01 pm
Concern about the commercialization of Christmas has been a trope for so many decades that most of us likely don’t remember a time when it wasn’t well known. To cite one example, “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” dating all the way back to 1965, famously had it as a central theme, contrasting focus on presents and gaudy fake Christmas trees and “a big commercial racket” that is “run by an Eastern syndicate” with the true meaning of Christmas, which unfolds as Linus recites the story of the Nativity from the Gospel of Luke.
That theme rumbles in the background of other disputes, such as retailers betting their bottom lines on people overspending on Christmas gifts while nevertheless recoiling at using the holiday’s name, or simply our collective amazement at seeing the “holiday shopping season” begin earlier and earlier each year, now starting long before a single Thanksgiving turkey goes in the oven.
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