Gunderson is an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado. She was invited by Anchorage Archbishop Roger Schwietz and Juneau Bishop Edward Burns to speak to the public about the impact of pot use and abuse since its legalization in Colorado last April.
On Tuesday, Oct. 28, Theology and Brew in Anchorage will host a talk by Colleen Duncan, a Holy Family Cathedral cantor and the music teacher at Holy Rosary Academy. She has a bachelor’s degree in music from Gonzaga University. Duncan’s presentation takes place at 7:30 p.m. at Sea Galley Restaurant. Titled: “Music of Devotion: The Rosary Sonatas of Heinrich Biber,” the talk will look at the role of devotional music in the Catholic journey.
Catholic Men for Life, a lay apostolate at Anchorage’s Holy Family Cathedral, has invited all local Catholic men to gather on Saturday, Oct. 25, to peacefully pray for an end to abortion. The all-day vigil will begin with a 7 a.m. Mass at Holy Cross Church.
In an effort to combat the effects of domestic violence in Alaska, the Archdiocese of Anchorage is teaming with several other faith communities around Anchorage for a joint prayer service on Oct. 23 at St. Anthony Church (825 South Klevin Street).
The debate in favor of legalization has largely been framed in the language of personal freedom. Our personal freedom exists in the context of the communities to which we belong. As Catholics, we believe we have a responsibility to one another and to the wider community. Personal freedom that is not balanced by sensible regulation for the common good destroys the communities that are the guarantors of our personal freedom.
Anchorage’s Holy Rosary Academy is once again back among a select group of U.S. Catholic high schools honored by The Cardinal Newman Society for excellence in Catholic identity and education. The Cardinal Newman Society is a non-profit organization seeking to renew and strengthen Catholic identity in education. In September it announced the winners of its Catholic High School Honor Roll competition.
Longtime Alaskan and servant to the church in the Fairbanks Diocese Ursuline Sister Maria Clarys died on Sept. 9 in Fairbanks. Born in Belgium in 1936, she later attended school for fashion and design. In 1962 her life took a different course when she joined the Ursuline Sisters of the Roman Union at Boxtel Brabant, the Netherlands, where she made first profession on April 26, 1965.
The Little Sisters of Jesus, with a unique charism and a long history of service to Western Alaska, have left their longtime home in the Nome area. The religious order has been a quiet presence in remote places like Diomede, Nome and King Island’s fish camp at Woolley Lagoon since the 1950s. Today, Alaska’s nine remaining Little Sisters live in an Anchorage convent, most in the St. Anthony Church area.
The ruling against Alaska’s marriage amendment comes at a time when the Catholic Church is grappling with how to support and defend long-standing ideals regarding marriage as the life-long union of one man and one woman and family life as the basic institution for the rearing of children.
“I got the idea as I was praying last week for Iraqi Christians,” explains Deacon Charles Rohrbacher. “I was pondering what I might have to offer that could be of help to the Christians in Iraq who are in such dire need and it occurred to me that donating this artwork might be a way to help out.”