On June 7 the Archbishop’s Golf Tournament will support the ongoing efforts of the Seminarian Endowment Challenge, a fund which helps cover the expenses of Alaskans pursuing the priesthood to serve the archdiocese.
One of the most prominent and long-serving priests in the Anchorage Archdiocese, Father Steven Moore, has been diagnosed with an aggressive and inoperable form of cancer.
In a letter sent to pastors and parish leaders, Anchorage Archbishop Paul Etienne explained the details of Father Moore’s situation. Father Moore is currently the pastor of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in south Anchorage.
It all began the Monday of Holy Week. After my exercises I was literally brought to my knees by a deep pain coming from my left side. I tried to muscle through it for a few hours, but it only grew worse.
“I don’t believe there’s ever been a partnership where the three hospitals in town have come together around an issue like this,” she observed. “You have to remember that this is a business industry and there’s competition. So what’s happened here is that leadership teams at our hospitals have seen the bigger picture, and they’ve come together with passion and good intentions to help the most vulnerable people in our community. It’s amazing.”
His homily noted that the women who went to Jesus’ tomb did not find what they were expecting, and they were frightened and shocked to find it empty.
“When we truly search for the risen Jesus in our lives, we too will be shocked at what we find,” he said. “Because God will set us on the path and a journey and will ask of us things we would never have dreamed or imagined we would even be capable of accomplishing.”
Alaskans are preparing for an April “Walk for Life” through the streets of downtown Anchorage.
Sponsored by the Knights of Columbus and Alaska Right to Life, the Saturday, April 22, event will begin at 12 p.m. at the pro-life memorial in the Anchorage Memorial Park Cemetery (at the corner of 9th Ave. and Cordova St.). From there participants will walk to the St. John Paul II Memorial site on the Delaney Park Strip.
The Catholic Church in Alaska and around the world is in the midst of the most holy week of the year. With the start of Holy Thursday the church entered the Easter Triduum, the three days marking Christ’s Last Supper with the Twelve Apostles, his crucifixion and glorious resurrection.
Here is what Jesus said according to the Gospel of Saint Luke: “But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” How can this seemingly impossible command ever be accomplished? We can assume Jesus knew how hard this would be.
Abortions reported in Alaska dropped last year, but increasingly, abortion practitioners are performing chemical abortions later in pregnancy – killing later-term unborn babies and exposing mothers to greater risks of complications that result in surgery.
While it might not be strange to see a priest teaching theology in a Catholic school, Father Mark Francis Manzano packs a background heavy in the sciences as part of his calling. He told the Catholic Anchor that, as a Dominican priest, the emphasis of his training lies in the sciences as stepping stones to theology.