Featured News

EAST AURORA — Immaculate Conception School has been educating the children of East Aurora and the surrounding suburbs for over a century; and for good reason. The school remains dedicated to providing a well rounded quality education true to the Catholic tradition of academic excellence.

Trinity Pediatrics is not like any other doctor's office. Copies of Theology of the Body for children sit in the waiting room. Parents are given full information on vaccines. The doctor prays for her patients.

Students at Sacred Heart Academy will venture to Zambia this summer in an immersion trip sure to change lives of the locals, as well as their own.

KENMORE — St. John the Baptist School lives by the following mission statement: "We teach children to read, so that they may eventually read to learn - and hope that through this process, they develop a lifelong love of reading."

When people hear the word "charity," thoughts of feeding the poor or giving shelter to the homeless are common. But people have needs far beyond the basics. Since its inception, Catholic Charities of Buffalo has offered services to strengthen families and communities. From domestic abuse counseling to school intervention to parenting classes, Catholic Charities works to support the family unit.

For one local Catholic school alumna, a solid foundation early in her academic career led to a life passion for working toward resolving complex global issues.

EAST AURORA — The Catholic Diocese of Buffalo is hosting a free workshop, "Good News for Social Media: How Parishes and All Catholics Can Share Faith Online," at Christ the King Seminary on Tuesday, Feb. 27, from 9:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.

For engaged couples making wedding plans, most are typically concerned about reserving a date and venue, hiring a photographer and DJ, and sending out save the date cards and invitations. However, if they plan to have a Catholic ceremony, those who wish to adhere to these practices have other things to plan out.

"Go, therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:19-20). It is precisely this directive, from Christ at His ascension, that the third component of the newly-implemented "Forming Disciples" diocesan Lifelong Faith Formation curriculum seeks to illuminate.

On Saturday, Feb. 24, Catholic Women of Buffalo will present their third-annual conference. This year's conference, "The Heart of a Woman," will be held at Cardinal O'Hara High School in Tonawanda, starting at 7:30 a.m., with registration and continental breakfast. It will also include three speakers.

EAST AURORA — Leading national and international speakers, and top creative minds working in theology and philosophy, will converge on Christ the King Seminary on the weekend of Feb. 23-24 for the 2018 Conference for Collaborative Philosophy, Theology and Ministry. The conference's keynote speakers represent institutions from three continents - the U.S., Europe and Australia.

The Venerable Nelson H. Baker earned his title "Servant of God" by helping those with the greatest need. Well known as the "Padre of the Poor" and father figure to the orphaned Baker Boys, the Lackawanna hero also had a hand in helping the African-American population in the Diocese of Buffalo.

Following the 18th United States school shooting of 2018 that killed at least 17 people at a Parkland, Fla., high school Feb. 14, Bishop Richard J. Malone called for prayers and action to stop the ongoing "culture of death."

Hundreds of people spent their lunch hour at St. Joseph Cathedral Feb. 14 to celebrate Mass and receive ashes from Bishop Richard J. Malone on Ash Wednesday.

WASHINGTON, DC (CNA/EWTN News) - "Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return."

When I mentioned to a friend that I intended to write this month's column on the new evangelization, he accused me of having an obsession - a "holy" obsession, he qualified - with that theme. I told him that if I do indeed have such an obsession, it is because I am convinced that the work of helping people encounter Jesus Christ and His saving message is the primary mission of the Church ... at this time, and at all times. Evangelization is, as Blessed Paul VI declared in his 1976 encyclical "Evangelii Nuntiandi," the "deepest identity" of the Church. The Church, he wrote, "exists in order to evangelize" (#14).

A full Church witnessed history on Feb. 11 as Deborah Brown became the first layperson installed as pastoral administrator in the Diocese of Buffalo. Bishop Richard J. Malone installed Brown at St. John the Baptist Parish in Alden during the 11 a.m. Mass.

The oldest priest in the Diocese of Buffalo, Msgr. Paul R. Juenker, died Feb. 8, 2018, at the Brothers of Mercy Nursing Home in Clarence after a short illness. He was 97.

"We value tremendously the service that you render to us," Bishop Richard J. Malone told a gathering of healthcare workers Saturday afternoon at the annual White Mass at St. Joseph Cathedral. "We pray that all of you in the healthcare professions will be guided by the hand of God and sustained by Christ's grace as you engage the art and science of healing body, mind and spirit."

"Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst'" (John 6:35).

As you are likely aware, St. Valentine's Day falls on Ash Wednesday this year. This is the first time these two occasions have overlapped since 1945. As a result, some people have inquired as to whether a dispensation from the Ash Wednesday fast and abstinence will be granted.

Bishop Richard J. Malone has named the first lay woman to lead a pastoral team at a parish.

Bishop Richard J. Malone, bishop of Buffalo, will distribute ashes at the 12:05 p.m. Mass at St. Joseph Cathedral, 50 Franklin St., Buffalo, on Wednesday, February 14, Ash Wednesday.

Someone should name an energy drink after Murphy McDermott. The 14-year-old spends her days studying, singing and taking care of her pets, all 19 of them. Her hard work is paying off as she will perform at Carnegie Hall this month.

At SS. Columba-Brigid Parish in Buffalo, a packed church came together to remember the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr., a day before what would have been the slain civil rights leader's 89th birthday and months before the 50th anniversary of his death. Bishop Richard J. Malone served as celebrant at the annual Martin Luther King Jr. diocesan celebration on Jan. 14, with Deacon LeRoy T. Gill Jr., from the Archdiocese of Chicago, serving as guest homilist.

The Foundation of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo's largest annual fundraiser, GALA 22:6, kicked off the festivities Feb. 1 at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center, raising funds for needs-based Catholic education tuition assistance. The tuition assistance helps students attending Catholic elementary schools throughout the eight counties of Western New York.

The 2016 Mount Mercy Magic varsity soccer team was named the winner of the 2017 Soccer Officials Sportsmanship Award. The award is given to the girls' soccer team in Western New York that exhibits the best sportsmanship throughout the season. All schools, both private and public are considered for this honor.

If there were an award for the Canisius student involved in the most extracurricular activities, Matthew Sullivan would certainly be a top contender. He has embraced the Ignatian concept of magis by taking the lead on several projects to help children in Buffalo and around the world. "My mom always says that nothing you have matters if you can't share it," said Sullivan.

As the Diocese of Buffalo celebrates its educational institutions during Catholic Schools Week, Bishop Richard J. Malone made a pastoral visit to St. Aloysius Church and Regional School in Springville Thursday morning.

Please join us on Saturday, Feb. 10, at St. Joseph Cathedral in Buffalo for the annual Diocesan White Mass, with Anointing of the Sick, at 4:30 p.m. All doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals will receive a special blessing from our principal celebrant, Bishop Richard J. Malone.

SWORMVILLE — The dream of one-to-one computing has been realized at St. Mary School, thanks to the generosity of the St. Mary's faith community and the creativity of the St. Mary's faculty. All students are benefiting from the latest technology and teaching methods that technology brings to the classroom.

Since Bishop Richard J. Malone approved the diocese's newest faith formation curriculum, "Forming Disciples," for gradual implementation over the next few years, parishes have been making changes in religious education programs in terms of how parish communities learn together.

Students of SS. Peter & Paul School in Williamsville learn about the atrocities of Auschwitz in art class. They develop pride in their school in art class. They discover confidence in art class. They learn about art from Mary McIntyre.

SANTIAGO, Chile (CNA/EWTN News) — Cardinal Giuseppe Versaldi, prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, recently proposed five keys for pastoral education "to respond in depth to the current challenges of society."

Technology has created quite an effect at St. John the Baptist School in Kenmore, and now the students have the tools to measure that reaction.

The Department of Pro-Life Activities of the Diocese of Buffalo will hold the 7th annual St. Gianna Benefit Banquet on Tuesday, Feb. 27, at 6 p.m. at the Millennium Hotel, 2040 Walden Ave., Cheektowaga. The St. Gianna Molla Pregnancy Outreach Center, the pastoral outreach of the Department of Pro-Life Activities for the Diocese of Buffalo, provides material, emotional, and spiritual support to mothers, fathers and young families in need from pregnancy through the first years of life. The center follows the example of St. Gianna Molla, the patron saint of physicians, pregnant mothers and unborn children, in respecting, protecting, and cherishing all human life as a precious gift from God. Proceeds from the dinner will be used to support the center. Buffalo Bishop Richard J. Malone will provide opening remarks and this year's keynote speaker will be Catholic activist Gloria Purvis.

On Saturday, January 27 at 4:00 p.m., Bishop Richard J. Malone will celebrate an Asylum Seekers and Refugee Awareness Mass at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Athol Springs. It will mark the fifth anniversary of Buffalo Peace House. A reception will follow in the Parish Social Center with a meet and greet with the bishop as well as residents and alumni of the Buffalo Peace House. Tours of the house will also be available.

Bishop Richard J. Malone has reappointed Msgr. Salvatore Manganello as pastor of St. Louis Parish for a third term of six years.

Catholic Charities announced on that Project HOPE (Helping Older People Excel), a care coordination program for seniors in Erie County who have been diagnosed with a mental health illness, recently relocated from 20 Rich St., Buffalo, to its former location at 128 Wilson St., Buffalo.

In honor of their 50th anniversary, alumni of St. Gerard School's class of 1968 are planning a special celebration in April, and have been trying to touch base with classmates in the area who would be interested in participating.