The North Star Catholic Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the Catholic Schools within the Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau were able to provide in-person learning to students for most of this past semester, albeit in a very structured environment with thoughtful mitigation plans. And it was with these plans that the schools have been able to help keep…
By Dominique JohnsonThe North Star Catholic Father Pat Casey, OMI, began considering a vocation in the priesthood when he was in seventh grade while attending Catholic school in Los Angeles, California. He wouldn’t enter seminary until later in life, but on December 30th, the 73 year old priest, will celebrate his 40th ordination anniversary. He…
By Bonnie BezousekThe North Star Catholic Located in the Turnagain neighborhood near the Anchorage International Airport, the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe celebrates its 50th anniversary as a parish faith community this year. Founded in 1970, the parish first met in the Turnagain Elementary School gym. Later they rented from the Turnagain United Methodist…
By Cece LihouThe North Star Catholic There has been a continuous worshiping presence on the same block of Fifth Street in Juneau since 1885 when Fr. John Althoff built the first Catholic Church in the capital city. The Sisters of St. Ann arrived shortly after that, establishing a hospital and school. The present church of…
By Dominique JohnsonThe North Star Catholic Once a month, Archbishop Andrew Bellisario, C.M., leads an hour of prayer to invite the faithful of the Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau to pray together via livestream. During his November hour of prayer, the archbishop asked the people of the archdiocese to join to pray for healing and protection for…
By Anna SchultenThe North Star Catholic As 2020 draws to a close, we spend an Advent season preparing our hearts to receive Christ ever more fully this Christmas season. As Catholics, our lives do not exist in isolation: we come to faith and grow in relationship with God in the context of a Christian community….
This time of year is spent in preparation and waiting – waiting for the celebration of Christmas and the birth of Jesus Christ. The season of Advent this year brings great anticipation and preparation for both the celebration of Christ’s birth and the hope of a vaccine and better tomorrows on the horizon. I often…
By Annie Albrecht The North Star Catholic Back when 2020 was still fresh and new and full of hope, I wrote an article on marriage for Inside Passage, the newspaper of the former Diocese of Juneau. The thesis of that article can be summed up in a simple statement: your marriage matters to the world….
Dear Fr. Leo: When we say the Apostles Creed, we say, “He descended into hell.” It seems to be a direct contradiction to the Bible when Jesus told the thief as they hung on the cross, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” Did Jesus go to Heaven or…
On a cold November day, I noticed on Twitter Sister Helen Prejean, the Catholic death penalty opponent, announcing that her friend Bill Pelke had died in Anchorage, Alaska, where he had retired. He was shoveling snow when he suffered a heart attack. I had heard Bill speak years before and had tried to schedule a…