September 2010
1 post
At 96, sister still keeps everyone on their toes
Sr. Victoria Mazur has just celebrated 75 years of religious life. But she remains active, attending community events and faithfully showing up for her 3 a.m. hour of eucharistic adoration. When something goes astray in St. Andrew’s Parish, Mazur is the first to get things back on the straight and narrow.
Read about this remarkable sister in the Sept. 13 Western Catholic Reporter.
The...
August 2010
3 posts
WCR reports as seminarians arrive
The new St. Joseph Seminary and Newman Theological College are getting closer to opening day. The Sept. 6 Western Catholic Reporter unveils the work that has gone into preparing the landmark statue of Christ the Teacher for its new home. We also talk with a local seminarian while he is moving into his new home — the new seminary residence.
We also have reports for the start of the new...
WCR returns to action
The Western Catholic Reporter is back from holidays and our first issue has a lot to say about young people following Jesus.
Freelance reporter Sara Francis reports on Jean-Pierre Ducharme and Billy Isenor who have just made their final vows as Franciscans. What led them to choose a vocation of poverty, chastity and obedience as Franciscans? Sara’s reports will tell you.
Deborah Gyapong,...
July 2010
2 posts
Issue of July 26
The Lac Ste. Anne Pilgrimage is in full swing this week with more than 50,000 people from across Western Canada in attendance. Our reporter Ramon Gonzalez spent a day at the pilgrimage, interviewing pilgrims and illustrating the event with a variety of photos.
Also in this week’s paper is a report on the drive to have Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha canonized. If canonized, she would be the...
Western Catholic Reporter, July 19, 2010
Is Jesus just a good guy or is he really the Son of God? Father Scott McCaig, general superior of the Companions of the Cross, addresses that question at the annual Catholic Family Life Conference. Another priest, local pastor Father Paul Moret, told the conference that when we deny the devil’s existence, we allow him greater freedom. Bring Satan and his activities out into the open, Moret...
June 2010
5 posts
Western Catholic Reporter, June 21, 2010
The Edmonton Archdiocese will have a new priest on June 28. Dean Dowle is slated to be ordained that day. As a prelude, the June 21 WCR will tell how Dean heard and followed the call to be a priest.
Another vocation is the lay vocation. Bob McKeon, social justice officer for the archdiocese, came to develop a passion for justice in a way that could not be predicted. McKeon told his story to a...
Western Catholic Reporter, June 14, 2010
It’s been five years since perpetual Eucharistic Adoration began at Corpus Christi Chapel on Edmonton’s west side. Regular “adorers” of Our Lord Jesus Christ at the chapel say their time of prayer has made a world of difference, changing their lives and bringing them peace. The WCR this week features a full look at Eucharistic Adoration in the chapel.
Keeping with the...
May 2010
3 posts
May 24 WCR: Wetaskiwin youth hear the Good News
Sacred Heart Parish in Wetaskiwin put its heart and soul into raising funds to bring in a National Evangelization Team to spur greater faith among parish youth. Now the NET team has gone home and more young people are involved in parish life. See the full story in the May 24 Western Catholic Reporter.
The WCR this week also has a full report on the Alberta March for Life held May 13 and a report...
May 17 issue focuses on Knights of Columbus
Alberta’s Knights of Columbus are gearing up for their 100th annual state convention this weekend in Lethbridge. The May 17 WCR brings you highlights of K of C activities from around the province as well as a look-ahead to Supreme Knight Carl Anderson’s May 26-27 visit to Edmonton.
Next week’s Western Catholic Reporter will provide full coverage of the convention of Alberta...
April 2010
2 posts
Issue of April 5, 2010
This week’s Western Catholic Reporter has several stories responding to the attacks on Pope Benedict and his supposed negligence in dealing with sexual abuse cases. At the annual Chrism Mass, Edmonton Archbishop Richard Smith reiterated his “unequivocal support” for the pope while Calgary Bishop Fred Henry’s column responds to coverage of a sexual abuse case in Milwaukee.
...
March 2010
2 posts
Issue of March 15, 2010
The feast of St. Joseph, March 19, will be a special day for Deacon Michael Schumacher. That’s the day he will be ordained a priest at St. Joseph’s Basilica. Next week’s Western Catholic Reporter will tell Michael’s story and how he started on the journey to the priesthood.
Also in next week’s WCR will be our annual Summer Plans supplement. Read about Living Water...
February 2010
5 posts
Issue of March 1, 2010
What do you do when you realize all the myths that you have been taught about the Catholic Church are not true? Become Catholic, of course.
That’s the story of Julie and Darryl Tymchuk of Vegreville who plan to join the Catholic Church at Easter along with their eight daughters. Julie used to think Catholics worshipped Mary. But when Darryl began to research Jesus’ priestly prayer at...
Issue of February 22, 2010
Next week’s Western Catholic Reporter contains a special supplement on Catholic Higher Education. Our reporters tell you about the effort Alberta colleges are putting into preparing teachers to work in Catholic schools as well as the preparation a seminarian gets before he is ordained a priest. Reporter Chris Miller also talks with Jason West, president of the Canadian Society of Christian...
WCR issue of Feb. 8, 2010
Pope Benedict reacts against proposed repressive legislative in Britain by urging the British bishops to stay involved in public debates. The British government proposed restricting the right of churches to turn away candidates for the ministry on the grounds of sexual lifestyle or gender. But as the WCR goes to press, it appears the government has backed down.
This week’s WCR also has a...
January 2010
3 posts
Street preacher under fire
Calgary Bishop Fred Henry reacts against the decision of the Canada Revenue Agency to revoke the charitable status of a street preacher who speaks against abortion and homosexuality. “Who’s next?” the bishop asks. See the story on the front page of the Feb. 1 Western Catholic Reporter.
Also featured this week is a story about a group for girls in Stony Plain and Spruce Grove...
Youth in WCR spotlight
Father Stefano Penna tells youth ministers from across Western Canada that they need to do more outreach through the Internet. The Jan. 25 issue of the Western Catholic Reporter features a full report on the youth ministers conference.
Also big in the news this week is Pope Benedict’s visit to the synagogue in Rome, the first papal visit there since 1986. The WCR features a report on the...
December 2009
4 posts
Last issue until mid-January
At the Western Catholic Reporter, we’re taking our annual Christmas break and our office will re-open on Tuesday, Jan. 5. The next issue of the newspaper will be dated Jan. 18, 2010.
In the meantime, however, we believe we’ve left you with what we hope is a special issue to tide you over into the New Year. Topping the list of stories this week is our annual Worker in the Vineyard...
Oblates look to the future
Father John Malazdrewich, 50, is the new provincial superior for the Oblates of Mary Immaculate in English Canada. With an aging membership, the Oblates foresee a rapid decline in numbers in the coming years. How will they respond? Will their charism of bringing the Good News to the poor attract new members? Read about some of the questions the Oblates face in the Dec. 7 Western Catholic...
November 2009
8 posts
A very full issue
The Nov. 30 issue of the WCR highlights a number of issues of justice — hunger in Alberta, child poverty, the abandonment of the mentally ill and human trafficking.
As well, news editor Lasha Morningstar tells how a special St. Nicholas Day prayer tradition has been important in her life and the weekly editorial highlights the 45th anniversary of celebrating the Mass in the vernacular...
Advent is coming
Advent is coming and the WCR for Nov. 23 will help you mark the season that prepares us for the two comings of Christ.
Our series of articles for the Year of Priests continues with a story about Father Wellington Santana, today the pastor in Beaumont after three years in Villeneuve. Reporter Chris Miller also took in a weekend liturgy conference at St. Theresa Church, featuring Bishop Gerald...
The Church on climate change
More and more Church leaders are speaking out on the need to address climate change as the UN Summit for Climate Change in Copenhagen next month draws near. This week’s WCR highlights recent statements from the Vatican, the Irish bishops and Caritas Internationalis.
At the Oct. 29 Nothing More Beautiful session, Edmonton teacher Lydia Cristini made an impact with her testimony on how God...
WCR looks at rural parish life
In the Nov. 9 Western Catholic Reporter, Chris Miller travels to parishes in outlying regions of the Edmonton Archdiocese to give a flavour of Catholic life in rural Alberta.
In the city, Ramon Gonzalez drops in a very special celebration of All Souls Day. And this issue also includes coverage of the first Nothing More Beautiful session of 2009-10.
In other news, Archbishop Sylvain...
October 2009
6 posts
Religious education, Anglicans on news agenda
The November 2 Western Catholic Reporter celebrates Catholic Education Sunday. Our special supplement includes a look at religious education in Catholic schools.
We continue to follow the story of the Vatican’s olive branch offered to traditionalist Anglicans and talk with a leader of a local Anglican group that may decide to cross the Tiber.
In international news, a leading African...
Coming next week
We’ve just started working on our Oct. 26 issue of the Western Catholic Reporter. But it should be an interesting issue.
Calgary Bishop Fred Henry has strong words and clear analysis of the breakdown in Alberta’s health-care system.
Our reporters will be busy this weekend covering the convocation of Newman Theological College, the archdiocesan youth rally and a celebration marking...
Issue of October 19, 2009
This week’s WCR includes updates on the situation of Bishop Raymond Lahey, charged with possession of child pornography. The pope’s man in Canada, Archbishop Luigi Ventura, is calling Catholics to “prayer, silence and hope” that the Church can overcome its sins.
The WCR also includes a full report on the Synod of Bishops for Africa and the canonizations of St. Jeanne...
July 2009
4 posts
Issue of July 20, 2009
This week’s Western Catholic Reporter will be the last before we take our annual four-week summer break. But before we hit the beaches, there are a few more stories we’d like to share with you.
We’ll tell you about Pope Benedict’s meetings with Stephen Harper and Barack Obama.
In Alberta, alumni of the the John Paul II Bible School will celebrate the school’s 25th...
Issue of July 13, 2009
Look to this week’s Western Catholic Reporter for full coverage of Pope Benedict’s new encyclical on the social situation of our time — Charity in Truth.
What else is in the news? Ramon Gonzalez was at the annual Catholic Family Life conference at Lac Ste. Anne and will file a full report. And Chris Miller dropped in on Archbishop Richard Smith celebrating the Mass in American...
June 2009
7 posts
Issue of June 29
This week’s Western Catholic Reporter features reporter Chris Miller’s article on the Edmonton Archdiocese’s search for another $15 million to pay for the construction of St. Joseph Seminary and Newman Theological College.
Also on the front is an article quoting Archbishop James Weisgerber as saying the Canadian bishops have concluded that Development and Peace did not nothing...