Just like St. Therese of Lisieux, who defied her illness to practice her faith, the Diocese of Buffalo is finding a way to break free of COVID-19 restraints to carry out the sacraments of the Catholic faith. Parishes across the diocese have found new methods to prepare students for confirmation. Confirmation is one of the […]
Russell “Rusty” Browning finally went home after 101 days of hospitalization and quite the tour of Catholic Health’s facilities. First diagnosed with COVID-19 in late March at Mercy Hospital, he survived 67 days on a ventilator at the Catholic Health COVID-19 Treatment Facility at St. Joseph Campus in Cheektowaga. Browning spent the longest time on […]
With unexpected financial need growing as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Canisius High School community stepped up to help during the school’s online Day of Caring fundraiser on May 28. Nearly 400 donors raised more than $111,000 to help the school carry out its mission and provide tuition support so that no student […]
Dr. Mark St. Marie, a longtime Mercy Hospital of South Buffalo gastroenterologist, proudly held up a sign reading “COVID-19 Champion” as staff Kenmore Mercy Hospital bid him an emotional farewell on June 5. His 67-day journey started at Mercy Hospital where he was diagnosed in March, followed by two weeks on a ventilator and his […]
St. John the Baptist School in Kenmore celebrated its 88th graduating class on June 16. Festivities began with the awarding of diplomas during a reverse parade at the entrance of the parish church followed by an evening celebration at the Transit Drive-In. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic that resulted in the March closure of […]
Rays of sun shone through the domed basilica with its contour of the Northern Hemisphere of the globe that makes up the ceiling of Niagara County’s iconic Fatima Shrine as Father Peter Calabrese, provincial vicar for the Barnabite Fathers USA, opened its doors on Saturday, June 13, for a Mass that signaled the beginning of […]
The locks are off, the doors are open, and people are once again welcome to enjoy a full Mass inside their church. In a quick turnaround, houses of worship were allowed to open during phase 2 of the post COVID reopenings, instead of phase 4 as originally planned. On June 6, houses of worship were […]
When President Trump declared houses of worship to be “essential,” the first question everybody had was, “When will my parish open?” The simple answer is, when the pastor says so. Gov. Andrew Cuomo agreed to let churches open in New York state on June 6, tweeting, “The metrics and health data across the state are […]
BALTIMORE — Amid a global food crisis – made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic – Catholic Relief Services launched a new campaign aimed at engaging Catholic communities across the United States to support efforts that address global hunger. “Lead the Way on Hunger,” kicked off May 14 and is a multiyear effort that calls on […]
The horrifying death of George Floyd exposes the sensitive state of racial relations and the volatility of our current climate for social unrest. This merits our utmost efforts as a community to advocate for justice in this case and to be a voice of calm and reason in the ongoing conversion that must ensue to […]
