CatholicAnchor.org In an effort to better serve parishioners with developmental disabilities, national trainers from Chicago will be in Anchorage in July to assist parishes in launching SPRED ministries (Special Religious Development) in local parishes. SPRED establishes faith formation groups in participating parishes with the aim of integrating those with developmental disabilities into the larger life…
CatholicAnchor.org Alaskan scholar shares first hand impressions of Pope Francis’ trip Some things are serendipity. More than a year ago, I knew I would be on a sabbatical from Alaska Pacific University (June 2013 to July 2014). Between Easter and the end of May I planned on being in Jerusalem where I would be living…
CatholicAnchor.org In an effort to promote Catholic education, three Anchorage youth were awarded scholarships for winning essays on the theme: “Jesus loves us; How do we spread that love?” The Catholic Daughters of the Americas court in Anchorage organizes the annual student essay scholarship. This year the Daughters partnered with the Knights of Columbus council…
CatholicAnchor.org Holy Family Cathedral in Anchorage lost an energetic priest with a passion for pro-family and pro-life outreach. Father Paul Raftery, who first arrived at the cathedral in 2012, has been reassigned to serve again as head chaplain at Thomas Aquinas College in Santa Paula, Calif., a post he previously held from 2006 to 2012….
“Why Catholic?,” a scriptural and catechetical program for parish small groups presented by Renew International, has experienced increasing popularity since beginning two years ago in the Archdiocese of Anchorage.
In an effort to solidify relationships that have provided the Anchorage Archdiocese with much needed priests and religious, Anchorage Archbishop Roger Schwietz visited South Korea earlier this spring.
Earlier this year, Father Michael Shields received an invitation to give an eight-day retreat in Rome for nuns of Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity congregation. He had no idea that the invite would land him face to face with Pope Francis, in the pontiff’s private chapel.
Having just completed 8th grade at Holy Rosary Academy in Anchorage, Lucas’ success on the mat is a continuation of his wrestling dominance the past five years in Alaska.
Cardinal Dolan: Smaller and mission-minded church may be the future of U.S. Catholicism A leading voice of the Catholic Church sees Alaska as where the rest of the U.S. church may be heading in the future. Cardinal Timothy Dolan, archbishop of New York, stopped in Anchorage March 24-26 to spend three days teaching, celebrating…
Earlier this year, during a missionary journey to Ireland, I was privileged to preach to a couple thousand Irish youth. In these young people I saw enthusiasm and beauty, but also pain and alienation. What most astounded me was the deep reverence they had for the sacredness of the faith. I watched hundreds of youth…