Current News

Most can appreciate beautiful Italian marble sculpture in museums and churches such as Our Lady of Victory Basilica in Lackawanna.

Back in November 2013, Pope Francis released an "Apostolic Exhortation" called "Evangelii Gaudium," "The Joy of the Gospel." It is as wide in scope as it is daunting in length. As a PDF from the Vatican site, it runs more than 200 pages. This has, I am sure, scared many away from even beginning to read it.

On Valentines weekend, 750 teenagers were asked to give their hearts to God. As they poured into the Adam's Mark Hotel in downtown Buffalo to attend the 62nd annual Diocesan Youth Convention, they saw a banner with a broken heart. The more they learned about their faith, experienced their faith and shared their faith, the more that heart healed.

Entering the digital realm for the first time, the Catholic Directory for the Diocese of Buffalo is now available entirely online as a free PDF document at http://www.buffalodiocese.org/directory and via the menu sidebar or Parishes tab on the Diocesan website. Anyone connected to the Internet now has access at no cost to the valuable contact and statistical information contained in the Diocesan Directory.

Father Benjamin Fiore, SJ, has been appointed pastor of St. Michael Parish in downtown Buffalo. He returns to his second home after serving as president of Campion College in Regina, Saskatchewan, for the past eight years.

PORTLAND - Some 627 days after Pope Benedict named him 14th Bishop of Buffalo, and 10 years and four days after Pope John Paul II appointed him 11th Bishop of Portland, Bishop Richard J. Malone's tenure as bishop and Apostolic Administrator of Portland came to an end on Feb. 14, when Bishop Robert P. Deeley was installed as 12th Bishop of Portland.

As the diocese goes through another round of Catholic school closings, Bishop Richard J. Malone maintains it could have been prevented if New York state leaders pass legislation to provide tax credits for school expenses and donations.

Cabin fever on a gray afternoon may be exchanged for open, spacious color along the Niagara escarpment. It's all in a visit to the Castellani Art Museum on the campus of Niagara University. Frequented by local and international visitors, director Katherine Koperski said that for many reasons, it's the most welcoming museum she knows. Admission is free, and there's something for everyone.

If anyone is looking for me on Feb. 14, I will be in Portland, Maine - and not on a vacation! That day, the memorial of Saints Cyril and Methodius (and, though not in the official liturgical calendar, St. Valentine's Day!) is the long-awaited date for the Mass of Installation of the 12th bishop of the Diocese of Portland. Bishop Robert P. Deeley, my successor, was a seminary classmate when we began our studies for the priesthood in Cardinal O'Connell Seminary in Boston in September of 1964. We offer him our prayers for a blessed and fruitful tenure as Maine's new chief shepherd.

St. John the Baptist Parish in Lockport has challenged the media's interpretation of beauty. During a women's conference held in January, a fashion show rooted in virtue and modesty showed that although skin deep, beauty can be seen without showing skin.

The seven sisters who make up the Felician leadership team visited the Buffalo Diocese to meet and share news with their fellow sisters. The leadership team presented the latest happenings throughout the North American province to some 140 sisters at Villa Maria Convent in Buffalo in January.

Host Father Paul D. Seil takes us on a type of travel log through Europe, including Poland, Italy and France, as he talks about pilgrimages on this month's "Our Daily Bread."

Deacon John Leardon has been appointed director of Deacon Personnel. The husband, father of three, and grandfather of five with another due in May, is a good example of the expanded role of deacons in the Church since Vatican II.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the National Day of Prayer for the African-American and African Family. The theme Father Jim Goode, founder of this day and Solid Ground Ministry, chose, comes from St. Augustine of Hippo, "Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you." We celebrate this annually on Feb. 2.

The memory of one of the great African-American heroes was invoked at the Martin Luther King Jr. Mass. The annual tribute, held at SS. Columba & Brigid Parish in Buffalo, was celebrated Jan. 19. The Office of Cultural Diversity sponsored the Mass.

Beginning in September 2014, parents of 5-year-olds in Western New York have a new choice in Catholic education. Buffalo's Nardin Academy is adding kindergarten to its first- through eighth-grade elementary program. The inaugural group will build reading and math skills in extended morning classes, while afternoons will include religion, languages and performing arts, according to Victoria Boreanaz, lower schools admissions facilitator.

Surprised, humbled and grateful were the responses Principal Martha Eadie described on receiving awards for her work at Our Lady of Black Rock School in Buffalo. She was recently honored with the "Lighting the Way for Catholic Education" award by the Catholic School Administration of Western New York.

The adage goes, "Don't judge a book by its cover." The moral behind the adage is that what you see on the outside may be quite different from what you see when you look further. The same is true of our Catholic schools.

During Mass for World Family Day last October, Pope Francis spoke of the Christian family as one that prays, keeps faith and experiences joy. The Holy Father seems to have taken a special interest in the family, even calling the third ever extraordinary general assembly of the Synod of Bishops to discuss "The Pastoral Challenges of the Family in the Context of Evangelization."

Bishop Edward U. Kmiec, bishop emeritus of Buffalo, will be one of two recipients of the Bishop's Medal during the 2014 Making a Difference Dinner, set for Jan. 30 at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center in downtown Buffalo.

It takes more than a polar vortex to stop the Pro-Life Movement. Over 300 people from Western New York bundled up and joined 20,000 others from all walks of life and faith backgrounds to tell the world abortion will not be tolerated

As I watched in shock, the same questions kept coming back to me: How can these soldiers do this? How can they act so brutally against their fellow man?

In a decree dated Jan. 7, 2014, the Vatican Congregation for the Clergy has upheld the appeal of former St. Ann parishioners, who argued against the reduction of St. Ann Church in Buffalo to profane (non-religious) use. The decree also prohibits any potential developer from repurposing the property. Bishop Richard J. Malone is reviewing the decree, and said the diocese will file an appeal before the Apostolic Signatura, the Vatican's highest juridical body. It will also be up to the bishop to decide what will happen with the use of St. Ann Church in the interim.

St. Casimir Church has become a bit more homey since Father Czeslaw Krysa set up a display celebrating the domestic Church. The exhibit is meant to remind people the first church was in the home.

Some might say that Buffalo was built by immigrants. In recent years, the City of Good Neighbors has continued to be a place of welcome. Refugee experiences shown on the nightly news may be painful, yet distant. Refugees arrive in Western New York legally, approved by the Department of State and supported by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Over the past few years, online streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hulu have made hundreds of thousands of hours of content available instantly to anybody with an online connection. Older and newer movies come and go, and couch potatoes can catch up on entire seasons of television shows over a weekend if they so choose. Some people are even cutting the cable cord, relying on high speed Internet to provide them with televised entertainment for a couple of bucks a month.

Today will be a painful day for some, but a new beginning for others, as the Diocese of Buffalo announced the closing of 10 area Catholic elementary schools, restructuring the remaining buildings into community-based schools.

On Nov. 24, 2013, the feast of Christ the King, Pope Francis presented our Church with his first apostolic exhortation "Evangelii Gaudium" which translates to Joy of the Gospel. This exhortation is divided into five chapters: The Church's Missionary Transformation, Amid the Crisis of Communal Commitment, The Proclamation of the Gospel, The Social Dimension of Evangelization and Spirit-filled Evangelizers. The apostolic exhortation speaks both to evangelization and social justice.

Our Lady of Victory National Shrine and Basilica, which has stood as a beacon of faith in Lackawanna for nearly 90 years, has stories buried deep inside its walls, not the least of which was the collapse of the famous dome. With payments slow to be made and the architect in Cleveland during much of the construction, how could the jewel of Lackawanna be built in four years? That question and many others will be answered in "Building a Basilica" the hourlong documentary produced by Daybreak TV Productions.

Niagara Catholic Jr./Sr. High School in Niagara Falls was able to fulfill the dream of 15-year-old twin siblings from the small village of Asturias, a principality in northern Spain.

A $10.8 million goal, "Heart at Work" theme and a Harley-Davidson are at the center of this year's Catholic Charities Appeal, which was announced at a news conference in their Kenmore-Tonawanda office Friday morning.

In this day of TV, electronic gadgets, telephones and other assaults on any effort to have some peace and quiet, St. Francis of Assisi School in the city of Tonawanda has launched a new initiative to help students and faculty enjoy quiet time.

Bishop Richard J. Malone delivered the Invocation at the opening of the 2014 Legislative session for the New York State Senate on Jan. 8, 2014. Bishop Malone was invited to Albany to by Senator Mark Grisanti of Buffalo.

Each January 1 marks a celebration of the "World Day of Peace" and along with that comes a message from the pope regarding our own participation in bringing about a "peaceable kingdom" here on earth. This year Pope Francis, in his first Peace Day message, has chosen to emphasize the idea of "fraternity" as "the foundation and pathway to peace."

On any given night 1,000 people in Erie County experience homelessness. On a cold night in November that number increased by 20 as students from Immaculata Academy took part in the 11th annual Homeless Hangout behind the Hamburg school.

Founded 135 years ago, Immaculate Conception Church in Wellsville is one of Allegany County's foundations of Catholic life. But years of patch-over work have left the interior of the church looking shabby, so pastor Father Sean DiMaria embarked on a plan to restore Immaculate Conception to its original glory.

On the outside, Buffalo Peace House is a cozy brick building on the lawn of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Athol Springs. On the inside, a community of international refugees and Western New Yorkers is coming to quiet life. Speaking directly to Pope Francis's call to host refugees in unused parish buildings, Father Ross Syracuse, pastor, and the social outreach group from St. Francis Parish welcomed Peace House in their former convent building.

The fact that Time magazine chose Pope Francis from among some other very, very compelling possibilities as Person of the Year reveals the worldwide acclaim the man is achieving and the acceptance and the fascination.

The Catholic Directory has become the latest vehicle on the information superhighway. The 2014 edition will be released in a digital format in February.

Physical development of children is just as important as academic and spiritual, a fact recognized by the diocese as Mike Wojcicki, athletic director and physical education teacher at Cheektowaga's Mary Queen of Angels School, has been selected as the 2014 "Making a Difference" award winner.