BALTIMORE (CNA/EWTN News) — Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Archbishop Edwin O’Brien of Baltimore as the grand master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. Archbishop O’Brien will move to the headquarters of the order in Rome, where he will be elevated to the rank of cardinal.

“It has been a singular privilege to serve as archbishop of Baltimore,” said Archbishop O’Brien at a media conference in Baltimore Aug. 29. “It is with a heavy heart that I will be departing. … I pray that I will carry out the will of God and that of (the Pope) in preserving the faith in the Holy Land.”

Archbishop O’Brien’s new post means that he will leave for Rome immediately, leaving his...READ MORE

The Iconography of St. John the Baptist - Fr. Ryan Erlenbush, New Theological Movement

On the Martyrdom of Evangelization - Msgr. Charles Pope, Archdiocese of Washington

Benedict Performs Miracle, Renders Dick Vitale Speechless - Carl Olson, Ignatius Insight Scoop

A New Kind of Rebel: The Young Catholic - Colleen Carroll Campell, Catholic Lane

Picking Your Nose & Confession - Brent Stubbs, VirtuousPla.net

Mainstream Media Misunderestimating Archbishop Chaput - Mollie Ziegler, Get Religion

What is the Essence of Catholic Spirituality? - Fr. John Bartunek, Catholic Spiritual Direction

2011 Catholic New Media Award Winners - Brandon Vogt, The Thin Veil

Our Media are Self-Absorbed...READ MORE

Irene hit the United States as an 87mph hurricane in North Carolina on Saturday, Aug. 27, and left the country as a weakened 60-mph tropical storm late Sunday, Aug. 28.

In its wake, it left more than 4.5 million people without power, at least 25 dead, many downed trees and severe flooding in parts of North Carolina, New York, New Jersey and Vermont.

In parts of northern New England, New Jersey and upstate New York, the nearly 17 inches of rain turned already swollen creeks and rivers into raging torrents. In New York City, an 8-foot Atlantic storm surge sent floodwater into Lower Manhattan, and the Hudson River was overflowing its banks in places.

Flooding was widespread throughout...READ MORE

VATICAN CITY (EWTN News) — The leadership of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X has confirmed that they will meet with Vatican officials next month to discuss their future relationship with the Catholic Church.

“The superior general (Bishop Bernard Fellay) and his two assistants, Father Niklaus Pfluger and Father Alain-Marc Nely have, on 14 September 2011, been asked to a special interview in Rome,” announced the superior of the Society in Germany, Father Franz Schmidberger, on their website Aug. 25.

The three men will meet with Cardinal William Levada, the prefect of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, and the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei. Created in 1988,...READ MORE

CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy (EWTN News/CNA) — Pope Benedict XVI has encouraged the new class of seminarians at the Pontifical North American College in Rome to be unafraid to carry the cross of Christ.

“Dear seminarians, do not be afraid to take up the challenge in today’s Gospel to give your lives completely to Christ,” he told the new students during his Sunday Angelus address on Aug. 28 at Castel Gandolfo, his summer residence 15 miles south of Rome.

“Indeed, may all of us be generous in our commitment to him, carrying our cross with faith and courage.”

The Pontifical North American College was founded in 1859 in response to an appeal by Pope Pius IX for an American seminary in Rome. Its...READ MORE

AKRON, Ohio — Over the past few years, several different organizations have pioneered the use of mobile-ultrasound units to bring crisis-pregnancy services to the places where abortion-vulnerable women are.

ICU (“I see you”) Mobile’s Image Clear Ultrasound, based in Akron, Ohio, pioneered the use of mobile-ultrasound units. Founded in 2003 by Sylvia Slifko, the organization has gone from one initial unit in 2004 to 17 mobile units today. In addition to their 17 affiliates, ICU plans to deploy another six, including units in India, Australia, Ghana and Thailand within 18 months.

“We partner with pregnancy centers,” said Michael Homula, executive director of ICU Mobile. “We allow them to...READ MORE

The 7 Sorrows of Mary Conform to the 7 Gifts of the Holy Spirit - Taylor Marshall, Canterbury Tales

Meet Ten Amazing Young Catholics - Mary O’Regan, Catholic Herald

The Pornification of Marriage - Elizabeth Esther

Capitalism vs. Distributism - John Couretas, Acton Institute/PowerBlog

A Church Closed by Animal Rights Law - Christopher Howe, The Daily Telegraph

Catholics: Misguided Compassion Will Come Back to Bite Us in the Rear - Leila, Little Catholic Bubble

Why Personhood Matters - Foxfier, The American Catholic

The Spirituality of Me, Myself, and I! - Carl Olson, Ignatius Insight Scoop

Serving With Mustard - Julie Robison, VirtuousPla.net

Card. Canizares (Prefect CDW) on Vatican...READ MORE

Growing from a small group Chiara Lubich gathered around herself in Italy in the 1940s and 1950s, there are now approximately 140,000 members of Focolare and outposts in more than 180 countries, with many millions of affiliated people of all faiths interested in its mission.

In Focolare, Amy Uelmen and Thomas Masters tell the story of the movement and its charism for the world and explain its spirituality and reach in the United States.

The book combines narrative exposition with individual case studies and examples of living in communion, a central Focolare precept. Lubich concentrated on the figure of the forsaken Christ: He is always present in the other, and we must not turn away...READ MORE