Catholic Mass

Eight hundred years ago, 18-year-old Chiara Favorone, whom we now know as Clare of Assisi, went to church in the morning with her family. It was a Sunday, but not just any Sunday.

I guess that I shouldn't have been so surprised when the church made its presence known recently at my gym. In unison, everyone began genuflecting and responding to the priest's greeting and prayers.

I was in a positively ebullient mood as I went off to Christmas Mass at St. Mary's with my family in tow. The senses were amped up for the big production. And that's when "it" happened.

Last Saturday night, the smell of overheating lamination machines wafted from Catholic Church basements in the U.S., Canada, U.K. and India. Rome had ordered up a change.

When I first heard about the changes, I was a bit miffed. Not because I was particularly wedded to the old translation, but I wished that other priorities would take preference over this.

The Vatican claims that a translation more faithful to the original Latin is needed. Is this the real reason for this disruption? I don't think so.

CLAYTON, N.C. — English-speaking Roman Catholics who have regularly attended Mass for years found themselves in an unfamiliar position Sunday, n...

RIVER EDGE, N.J. — Each Sunday for decades, Roman Catholic priests have offered the blessing – "Lord be with you." And each Sunday, parish...

Last week was the first mandatory mass. Feeling unsure, even more unsure than any normal 14-year-old girl would, she found herself looking down the barrel of a sacramental shotgun.

The process can seem overwhelming, but a dialogue with God does not need to take on a specific form, and we do not need to be intimidated by the idea.

If churches are for sinners, then why are only gay and lesbian sinners excluded? Why are only sexual sins of gays and lesbians off putting?

The Catholic Archdiocese of Boston, in response to criticism it was sanctioning a celebration of Gay Pride month, announced yesterday that it had orde...

By Francis X. Rocca c. 2011 Religion News Service VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican on Friday (May 13) broadened access to the old Latin Mass with a ...

A list of those being ordained priests this spring elicits hope and joy. Almost 500 men, from age 25 to 63, constitute the class of 2011 and embody what we need in the priesthood.

Christina Aguilera's opening anthem on one of America's biggest feast days was roundly criticized because it fell short of a proper offering.

Roman Catholic mass can be a stolid exercise, perhaps even more so during Midday Mass at Conception Abbey in rural Nodaway County, Missouri.

Anthony Ruff, OSB, a prominent liturgical scholar and professor of liturgy at St. John's University in Collegeville, Minn., has published an open lett...