Palm Sunday is March 25, the last Sunday in Lent. This day marks the beginning of Holy Week and a time when Catholics commemorate the triumphant arrival of Christ into Jerusalem, just days before his crucifixion.
In an ongoing effort to put his finger on the pulse of the Catholic Church in Alaska, Anchorage Archbishop Paul Etienne is continuing a series of listening sessions at parishes across Southcentral Alaska. The next session is Tuesday, March 20, at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Anchorage. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. and Catholics from across the archdiocese are welcome to attend.
The following Holy Week and Easter liturgies and events are scheduled across the Anchorage Archdiocese. Call the parishes for more information.
The Chrism Mass, a profoundly sacred liturgy, with roots in antiquity and hopes in eternity, will be celebrated at Our Lady of Guadalupe Co-Cathedral in Anchorage on March 21 at 7 p.m.
In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Saint Padre Pio’s death, some of his relics are traveling to Fairbanks in May. The visit is part of a nation-wide tour of dioceses across North and South America.
Deacon Van Tuyl has a deep appreciation for area priests who hold a chaplaincy card, which is issued through the state Department of Corrections, but he knows that the existing network of deacons and lay ministers are crucial to serving the incarcerated.
This video by Charlie Ess shows the unique life of a Catholic deacon in Alaska. Deacon Harry Moore serves at St. Michael Church in Palmer, Alaska, but every summer he boards a commercial fishing boat to catch salmon in Bristol Bay.
The aim of the gatherings is to journey into Middle earth in order to discover the Catholic beauty that Tolkien interwove into his famous trilogy. Tolkien considered the book to be a great way to prepare people for the Gospel. He once said of the work: “The Lord of the Rings is of course a fundamentally religious and Catholic work; unconsciously so at first, but consciously in the revision.”
Through person-to-person contact participants were able to engage in dialogue and find out whether someone considers himself a Catholic and feels welcomed by the local faith community. These conversations provided insights into the lives of those on the margins of the church, and allowed participants to further reflect on their own involvement in the faith and to build leadership skills.
Young adults, ages 18-35, are invited to an evening gathering with Anchorage Archbishop Paul Etienne and national speaker Jen Messing, who will lead a conversation about Pope John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body.”