Archbishop’s public schedule

Here’s Archbishop Alexander Sample’s schedule through July 30.
St. Mary of Oregon sisters mark milestones

BEAVERTON — The Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon will pay tribute to three religious sisters who are celebrating significant anniversaries of vowed religious life.
Benedictine sister serves community

MOUNT ANGEL — Benedictine Sister Julia McGanty celebrated her 70th jubilee by renewing her monastic promises during Mass Feb. 10, the feast of St. Scholastica.
25 years a priest: Fr. Liem Nguyen

ST. BENEDICT — Benedictine Father Liem Nguyen of Mount Angel Abbey celebrated 25 years of priestly ordination June 16 with a Mass in the abbey church. Father Liem made his first vows at Mount Angel in September 1989 and was ordained on June 11, 1994.
Business expenses

Even those of us who are not accountants have the opportunity to steal from our employers. Expense forms pose one of the most frequent ethical tests in daily life.
Providence sister sure of calling

Members of the Sisters of Providence, Mother Joseph Province, serve Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, California, El Salvador and the Philippines. This year, one sister with Oregon connections celebrates her 25th jubilee.
Fr. Luan Tran celebrates 25 years in priesthood

Born in Saigon during the Vietnam War, Father Luan Tran was raised Buddhist. But as a 19-year-old in the United States, he made the bold decision to convert to Catholicism.

That choice emerged from a deep love of God — a love that has flourished in the priest during his quarter-century of ministry.
Marian retreat day July 13
Newsletter for ministers

This month marks the first year for Source and Summit, an Archdiocese of Portland quarterly newsletter for extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion. Those are the 6,000 or so western Oregon Catholics once known as eucharistic ministers; the current name, put forward by the Vatican, provides greater precision about the role and its holy importance.
Holy Names sisters honor three golden jubilarians

MARYLHURST — This summer, the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary are celebrating the 50-year anniversary of three women in Oregon.
Msgr. Dennis O’Donovan — He said yes

He had his heart set on being a parish priest for the rest of his life. But when the call came, Msgr. Dennis O’Donovan said yes, and he would help steer the ship during the stormiest period in Archdiocese of Portland history.
Fr. Bob Barricks: A joyful presence

Father Bob Barricks remembers the amazement that gripped him in 1993, after the Christmas Eve Mass at St. Mary Cathedral. He was a transitional deacon there, walking down the center aisle in the darkened sanctuary, locking up.
O Jesus, I pray for your faithful and fervent priests and servants of the church especially (two names here). Keep them close to your heart and bless them abundantly in time and eternity. Amen.
LIFE: Bear patiently those who do us ill

God is patient with us. Let us pray to St. Elizabeth to intercede on our behalf for the grace to bear the same level of patience with others.
‘To respond boldly and with great love’: First cohort completes new Portland Archdiocese formation program

KEIZER — Some were converts, others cradle Catholics. One was a former seminarian. They hailed from across western Oregon — from Eugene, Portland and Grants Pass. Their ages spanned generations.
Liberation and new life: Faith leaders explore spring holy days

For Jews and Christians alike, spring reflects the theme of passing from death to life and from bondage to freedom. That was the focus of a May 23 Portland panel that included a rabbi, a Catholic monsignor, and an Episcopalian priest.
WATCH: Mount Angel Abbey renovates guesthouse, hoping to help guests encounter God

The $16 million guesthouse, expanded from 27,000 to 42,000 square feet, is now one of the largest Catholic retreat centers in the region, able to welcome individuals and group retreats simultaneously. It has an adoration chapel, seven meeting rooms of various sizes, two terraces and a garden. The 41 guest rooms got a full update. A new door means guests can enter from the parking lot.
LIFE: Visiting the imprisoned

“For I was hungry and you gave me food … in prison and you visited me.” Mt 25:35-36
WATCH: New priests inspire joy, confidence

As 50 priests quietly queued up June 15 to bless two men who’d just been ordained, the noontime bells pealed at St. Mary Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. It was as if the joy happening inside were bursting out across the city.
Celebrate the feast of St. Benedict with Benedictines

ST. BENEDICT — The public can spend a summer afternoon with the monks of Mount Angel Abbey at the annual St. Benedict Festival.
Recognizing the sacrifice of dads

“When I was a child, I thought like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.”
Archbishop to lead eucharistic procession June 23

A sequel to last year’s eucharistic procession in central Portland will take place June 23, the feast of Corpus Christi, and will be led by Archbishop Alexander Sample.
Ordination for two on June 15

Archbishop Alexander Sample will ordain two men as priests of the Archdiocese of Portland Saturday, June 15, 11 a.m. at St. Mary Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland.
Vocation talk

Father Jeff Eirvin, vocations director for the Archdiocese of Portland and chaplain for the vocations-fostering Serra Club, spoke on vocations April 17 during a Serra Club meeting at St. Pius X Parish in Portland. He offered the nine keys of vocation ministry as defined by the National Conference for Diocesan Vocation Directors.
Confirmation: A sacred renovation

Archbishop Alexander Sample raises his hands, asking the Holy Spirit to fill the candidates standing before him at the University of Portland’s Christ the Teacher chapel.
Week to focus on religious freedom

The nation’s Catholic bishops have called for a week highlighting the need for religious freedom globally. Set for June 22-29, the week has the theme “Strength in Hope.”
Prayer for Servants of the Church

Prayer for Servants of the Church is a ministry of the Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women. A day each month is set aside to pray for the name of a priest — along with a deacon, woman religious, seminarian or brother — serving in the Archdiocese of Portland. Please remember them, and all who serve the church, in your daily prayers.
Retreat offered by international team

Mount Angel Abbey hosts a retreat Aug. 9-11 led by Texas-based Shalom Media, which produces Catholic catechetical resources including videos.
The Omaha list: Traditional repertoire includes many songs and hymns also in OCP collections

Since 2011, Catholics in the Archdiocese of Omaha have worshipped using a tradition-minded core repertoire of hymns. An Oregon publisher of Catholic worship music offers more of the suggested titles than anyone else.
Documentary gets at soul of LA gang ministry

A newly available film produced in the Pacific Northwest offers a soulful inside look at Homeboy Industries, a ministry to former gang members and felons led by Jesuit Father Greg Boyle in Los Angeles.
Tools to strengthen a relationship with God

MILWAUKIE — Life hit Terry Cappiello hard in 2003. In March, her father-in-law died suddenly. Along with their grief, she and her husband became aware of how much caretaking he had done for Cappiello’s mother-in-law, a task that now fell upon the rest of the family. Then her nephew — her godson — was diagnosed with bone cancer.
Question Box: Church's stance on Medjugorje/ Can we receive Communion?

Q — What is the Catholic Church’s position on Medjugorje? (There is a parishioner who says that the Blessed Mother has a daily message for us.) (Coshocton, Ohio)
Why I'm Catholic: Church’s care for creation convinced him

A strong belief in the environmental movement led to Franciscan spirituality. That in turn introduced Pope Francis and the 2015 papal encyclical “Laudato Si’,” a document that pointed out the latticework of relationships on planet Earth.
Archbishop’s public schedule

Here’s Archbishop Sample’s schedule for the next few weeks:
New priests have Oregon experience

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Four new priests ordained for the Congregation of Holy Cross served in Oregon during their formation.
Virtuous and heroic forerunners, leading us to heaven

The road to heaven can be puzzling, but, luckily, great saints exist throughout history to show the way.
Mother Mary

Brenda Schwartz once found Catholic reverence for Mary unsettling. She wasn’t raised Catholic. It was her devout German Catholic father-in-law who took her aside and explained that Catholics don’t worship Mary but that she’s there to help.
LIFE: Feed the hungry

As Moses’ companion wanderers made clear, each of us needs food and water, daily bread to satisfy our hunger and to survive. On May 15, we celebrate the feast day of St. Isidore, the patron saint of farmers.
Professor: Pius XII issue used as a weapon in culture wars

A 1962 play penned by a lapsed German Protestant and produced by a communist activist planted a pesky misperception that Pope Pius XII was a tool of the Third Reich. On occasion, the old idea springs up as a noxious weed in the culture wars.
40 Days for Life campaign affected by movie

The 40th day of the 40 Days for Life campaign was a Sunday. That was when Jasmine Price and her mom, Audra, volunteered to hold signs outside the Lovejoy Surgicenter. The office was closed but the trio of volunteers, the Price women along with campaign organizer Therese Ruesink, stood outside praying, holding signs and smiling at passersby.
Vocations rally draws 500

Serra Club of Portland supported the 12th annual vocations rally, held this year at St. Anthony Parish in Tigard March 14. The rally provides sixth graders an opportunity to spend a day with priests, brothers and sisters
Archbishop Sample to speak on Mary

STEUBENVILLE, Ohio —The 25th annual St. John Bosco Conference for Evangelization and Catechesis is set for July 15 – 18 at Franciscan University here.
Annulment is not ‘Catholic divorce’

The Bible is clear about divorce, both Old Testament and New.
God hates it. “For I hate divorce, says the Lord, the God of Israel,” (Mal 2:16) wrote a prophet five centuries before Christ.
Stories of four new Catholics

About 750 people were initiated into the church this Easter in western Oregon. Each one seems to have a story about confusion followed by clarity. Their progression is an encouragement to everyone in the church. Here are the stories of four new Catholics.
An invitation to confession

One of the most challenging but richest parts of Catholic life is the sacrament of reconciliation, also known as the sacrament of penance or confession.
Entering the mystery

Catholics around western Oregon last month experienced the stunning story of the Paschal Mystery. Here is a taste of what happened here during Christianity’s holiest week.
Romero celebrated in Portland

As a boy walking the streets of San Salvador, Edilberto Valladares heard the pleading voice of Archbishop Oscar Romero sounding from radios in every home. In the late 1970s, the archbishop, once a bookish churchman, had evolved into a feisty advocate for El Salvador’s poor.
Scripture: God’s guiding love and encouragement

The Bible tells the story of God’s repeated attempts to form a link with humanity. For Catholics, the implication is that God continues to reach out to us now, out of pure love.
How we find the Risen One

"When we love, in the face of only searing hatred, we find Jesus, the Risen One,” Holy Cross Father Chris Brennan told worshippers Easter morning at Holy Redeemer Church in North Portland.
WATCH: Passion re-enacted

At St. Luke Parish in Woodburn, Hispanic faithful carried on the tradition of a realistic enactment of Jesus’ last hours and death. Parishioners dressed as Roman guards, apostles, Sanhedrin officials and the people of Jerusalem moved through the tragic story as hundreds of onlookers sat spellbound in gymnasium bleachers.
Prayer for Servants of the Church is a ministry of the Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women. A day each month is set aside to pray for the name of a priest — along with a deacon, woman religious, seminarian or brother — serving in the Archdiocese of Portland. Please remember them, and all who serve the church, in your daily prayers.
Paschal musicals offered

The Sisters of Reparation provide an outreach ministry through paschal musical presentations. Meditations, music and liturgical dance plus a reenactment of the life of Christ are meant to enhance the journey during the Easter season.
Fr. Dave Pivonka to lead daylong retreat in Oregon City

A Franciscan friar who has become famous for reminding Catholics about the reality and power of the Holy Spirit will lead a daylong retreat in Oregon City Saturday, June 1.
High hopes for Archdiocesan Liturgical Handbook

KEIZER — Msgr. Gerard O’Connor believes that if western Oregon Catholics increase devotion and reverence at Mass, overall zeal might return to the local church.
Palm Sunday offerings

The public is welcome as friends and Donnes of Reparation gather with the Sisters of Reparation for Palm Sunday. Stations of the Cross begin at 2 p.m. Sunday, April 14. Father Jon Buffington will bless braided palms and offer Mass at 3 p.m.
Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women to hold annual conference

The Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women will hold their 2019 conference Saturday, April 13, at The Grotto in Portland. All are welcome. The morning session will feature Father Jon Buffington, who will share his knowledge of church heroes, modern and ancient.