Friday, July 29, 2016

Mother Teresa’s Formative Years in the Periphery

Appeared first in "The Catholic Thing" on July 13, 2016

Mother Teresa is known worldwide. Much less well known is the importance of her early years, in the Balkans, to what was to come later. September 4, 2016, the day of her canonization, will also be, appropriately, the Jubilee for Workers and Volunteers of Mercy. This is a happy coincidence because she will probably become the patron saint for all those who labor and suffer in the name of God’s love and mercy.

... continue reading in The Catholic Thing

Albanian martyr a classic example of ‘genius of women’

Appeared first in "Crux - Taking the Catholic Pulse" on July 18, 2016.

On July 13, 2016, Albania’s bishops (all nine of them) received a decree from Pope Francis announcing the conclusion of the canonical process that recognized “the testimony of martyrdom to faith and country” of 38 Albanian martyrs, including 37 men and one woman, Maria Tuci.

The news was relayed by the Archbishop of Shkodër, Angelo Massafra, president of the Albania’s Bishops Conference, who considers it “a historical moment for the Church and the nation.” The beatification ceremony for Albania’s 38 martyrs, executed brutally by the Communist regime from 1945-1974, will be held in the city of Shkodër, northwestern Albania, on November 5, 2016.

The beatification will come fifteen days before the conclusion of the pope’s Holy Year of Mercy and two months after the canonization of Mother Teresa (September 4), who’s also a celebrated daughter of the Albanian nation. The new martyrs are from a marginal country with a Muslim majority, as Catholics make up less than 15 percent of the Albanian population.

... continue reading in Crux - Taking the Catholic Pulse