And missing the mentor who loved it and the family life it reminds me to cherish By George Valadie It’s my new favorite song. I’ve always felt like a bit of a music oddball when compared with my friends, but it was especially true when I was growing up. While …
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Addressing an epidemic of violence
We are all invited to do an examination of conscience and a conversion from the culture of death By Bishop Mark Beckman On Thursday, Sept. 11, I celebrated Mass for the students at Notre Dame High School in Chattanooga on the 24th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The day before, …
The culmination of the sacraments of initiation
Pope Francis: baptism, confirmation, and first Communion ‘form a single saving event’ By Father Randy Stice In recent columns, we have explored the relationship between the Eucharist and the other sacraments. In the final column in this series, we will look at the Eucharist as the culmination of the sacraments …
A Loving Option Adoption—living the Gospel of life
A Loving Option Adoption—living the Gospel of life By Beth Schmitt On Sept. 20, I was privileged to be a member of a team of volunteers that organized and hosted the second annual Barn Dance to raise funds for Catholic Charities of East Tennessee’s (CCETN) adoption ministry, A Loving Option …
The Eucharist and the anointing of the sick
All that Christ did during His earthly ministry, He now does in the sacraments By Father Randy Stice In the Eucharist, we encounter “the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ Himself.” This is why the Eucharist is “the source and summit of the Christian life” and why the …
Where are we going?
We are part of this great living chain of God’s holy ones in East Tennessee By Bishop Mark Beckman When I was a child and we would see my father heading to the door, we would often ask, “Where are you going?” And sometimes with a smile he would answer, …
What the Church teaches on organ donation
This columnist is in need of a kidney transplant and asks for prayers from his readers By Deacon Bob Hunt This is going to be a more personal column. People have been asking about my health. I am in need of a kidney transplant. People who love me have been …
Report cards can be stressful for all concerned
But if we can’t be good at all things, we can surely be good at some things, right? By George Valadie I don’t know how it’s possible, but it won’t be long before schools will arrive at report-card time. There are quarter versions and six-weeks versions, not to mention the …
The call of God
We are asked to nurture gentle servants of the Gospel By Bishop Mark Beckman The Second Vatican Council speaks of conscience as the “most secret core” and “sanctuary” of the person, where we are alone with God. There the “voice of God speaks deep within.” St. John Henry Newman, recently …
Spouses’ total gift of self ‘has a eucharistic dimension’
The integral relationship between the Eucharist and matrimony is profound By Father Randy Stice In recent columns, I have been discussing the relationship between the Eucharist and individual sacraments. The seven sacraments of the Church “touch all the stages and all the important moments of Christian life: they give birth …
In Nicaea: settling the Arian controversy
The council 1,700 years ago used the word ‘consubstantial’ that remains in the creed By Deacon Bob Hunt The Catholic Church in Alexandria, Egypt, was abuzz in the year 318. A priest of the diocese named Arius was preaching a doctrine that was attracting a lot of attention and growing …
Back-to-school time for family routines
Lunches, homework, and uniforms have evolved but still need a schedule By George Valadie Praying for Perspective—the back-to-school edition. Because can there be a family experience where we need it more? In our diocese, as I write on this Sunday morning, teachers have been working a week already, and all …