Editor’s note: This article was published in the May 2023 issue of the North Star Catholic. ANCHORAGE, Alaska — In celebration of the third anniversary of Pope Francis’s decision to name Bishop Andrew E. Bellisario, C.M., of Juneau as archbishop of the new Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau on May 19, 2020, the North Star Catholic sat…
Below is Archbishop Andrew Bellisario’s homily from the synod mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Oct. 17th: Today is a very special day. Together, as brothers and sisters in Christ, we begin the synod preparation process in our Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau. Pope Francis inaugurated a two-year preparation process for the 2023…
Pope Francis announced that the next Ordinary Synod of Bishops would take place in October 2023. In preparation for this synod, the Vatican has approved a new three-stage process for the next gathering of the Synod of Bishops. It aims to involve the whole Church at diocesan, national and continental levels. The theme chosen by…
Since the inauguration of the Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau on September 17, 2020, I have traveled to many of our parishes to celebrate the sacrament of confirmation. Usually, most confirmation celebrations take place within the Easter season. However, with travel restrictions due to COVID last spring, it was necessary to celebrate confirmations in October and November…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,May the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us always! During the installation Mass in September, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, Pope Francis’ representative to the United States, read the Holy Father’s decree of May 19, 2020, uniting Anchorage and Juneau into the new Metropolitan Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau….
I got lost once, and I was scared. It was night. It was dark. It was clear with no moon. I was alone. I was driving across the desert in Arizona on my way from one interstate highway to another. The trusted GPS on my phone told me to go right. I turned right. It…
The most beautiful banquet table I ever saw was in a parish hall when I was ten years old. It must have been 40 feet long, with another table intersecting it at the mid-point. From end to end, up and down, placed upon it were the most delicious looking foods imaginable. There were all sorts…
Advent is a season of great hope! It prepares us for the Second Coming of Christ and celebrates the Nativity of Christ at Christmas. With themes of faith, hope, longing, preparation, and determination, Advent calls us to wait with faith and hope; to prepare for the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Every…
CatholicAnchor.org In many Catholic schools, you will often find this quote posted prominently in school offices and classrooms: “Let it be known to all who enter herethat Jesus Christ is the reason for this school,the unseen but ever-present teacher in all its classes,the model of its faculty,and the inspiration for its students.” For me this…
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, May the grace and peace of our Risen Lord Jesus Christ be with us always! In Jesus’ time, shepherds used wooden staffs to protect their flocks from wolves and other threats. They used the hook of their staffs to gently bring into unity those sheep who wandered off. During…