Over several months, Bishop Knestout, along with Deacon Paul Mahefky, director of real estate for the diocese, and others, looked at several properties, including the bishop’s residence at the Cathedral, which the bishop termed “ideal.”

“It is well-suited in terms of design and plan for what a bishop does and for the expectations of his office,” said Bishop Knestout, noting that if a different house had been purchased, extensive renovations would have been required in order to accommodate the bishop, especially with an eye toward his official duties.

“Both the type of audit being carried out, as well as the audit instrument itself must be changed, ensuring that the audit is more than simply a compliance review,” Cesareo said. “The audit must also include a review of parishes and Catholic schools to ensure that the data they submit is accurate.”

A primary topic of discussion was the hiring of a director for the Office for Black Catholics. Comboni Missionary Sister Inma Cuesta, director of the diocese’s Office of Hispanic Ministry, has been serving as interim director of the office since July when the director, Pam Harris, left to take a position with the Diocese of Columbus, Ohio. 

Sister Bowman, a Mississippi native and the only African-American member of her order, the Wisconsin-based Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, was a widely known speaker, evangelizer and singer until she died of cancer in 1990 at age 52. She even made a presentation at the U.S. bishops' spring meeting in 1989, moving some prelates to tears.

Sister Bowman was a trailblazer in almost every role: first African-American religious sister from Canton, Mississippi; the first to head an office of intercultural awareness; and the first African-American woman to address the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The document, “Open Wide Our Hearts: The Enduring Call to Love — A Pastoral Letter Against Racism,” passed 241-3 with one abstention. It required a two-thirds vote by all bishops, or 183 votes, for passage.

“Despite many promising strides made in our country, the ugly cancer of racism still infects our nation,” the pastoral letter says. “Racist acts are sinful because they violate justice. They reveal a failure to acknowledge the human dignity of the persons offended, to recognize them as the neighbors Christ calls us to love,” it adds.

On the eve of the fall assembly, the Vatican Congregation for Bishops asked the USCCB to not take a vote on the protocols until the presidents of the bishops' conferences around the world meet in Rome in February.

While crediting the bishops for efforts to reduce child sexual abuse and to implement the charter, Cesareo said their response to the abuse crisis "has been incomplete."

"Specifically, current events reveal a continued lack of transparency about past cases of abuse and the way they were handled, as well as a lack of accountability for bishops," he said.

The U.S. bishops took the first steps toward approving a pastoral letter against racism with the document's introduction Nov. 13 during their annual fall general meeting.

The proposed pastoral letter, "The Enduring Call to Love: A Pastoral Letter Against Racism," has been in the works for four years, although its issuance was put on the front burner following the September 2017 "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.

When Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, president of the conference, made the announcement within the opening minutes of the meeting, the entire room — bishops, staff and journalists — were gobsmacked.

This, after all, was the meeting when the bishops were going to get their own house in order following the latest wave of sex abuse stories — Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick, the Pennsylvania grand jury report, and the subsequent flood of subpoenas and investigations and self-published lists of priest offenders.

Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, USCCB president, informed the bishops as they opened their fall general assembly Nov. 12 that the Vatican wanted the bishops to delay any vote until after a February meeting with the pope and presidents of the bishops' conferences around the world that will focus on addressing clergy abuse.

Affected are proposed standards of episcopal conduct and the formation of a special commission for review of complaints against bishops for violations of the standards.

Cardinal DiNardo said he was disappointed that no action would be taken during the assembly, but that he was hopeful that the delay "will improve our resp

Thirteen people, including the suspected gunman and a 29-year veteran of the Ventura County Sheriff's Department, died in shooting at the Borderline Bar & Grill on what was college night, with lessons on country two-step dancing.

The pope underlined the importance of viewing possessions and wealth from the Christian perspective of gift and generosity, saying "what I truly possess is what I know how to give."

Parishes throughout the Diocese of Pittsburgh will take up a special collection for the three Jewish congregations that worship at the Tree of Life Synagogue, which was attacked by a gunman.

40 Days for Life

By the start of Advent, Sunday, Dec. 1, the Diocese of Richmond will launch a competition for the design of the bicentennial logo and composition of the bicentennial hymn. Details will be available on the diocesan website www.richmonddiocese.org.

It’s a long way from Fallujah to the peaceful countryside surrounding Benedictine. Staying on the sidelines in either place was — and remains — not an option for the school’s headmaster.

Father John Joseph Dorgan

St. Benedict Parish, Richmond, will conduct a pilgrimage to Mount Calvary Cemetery on Saturday, Nov. 10. 

Committee members instructed the bishops’ Committee on Canonical Affairs and Church Governance to develop proposals for policies addressing restrictions on bishops who were removed or resigned because of allegations of abuse of minors or adults.

They also initiated the process of developing a code of conduct for bishops regarding sexual misconduct with a minor or adult or “negligence in the exercise of his office related to such cases.”c

The Church, based on Scripture, understands purgatory in complementary ways. Together, these various formulations profess a doctrine that is realistic and hopeful. The teaching on purgatory takes into account the incompleteness of our conversion and offers hope that our imperfections can be wiped away. 

The front stoop of the family’s trailer had rotted out to the extent that they had stopped using the front door. Many of the floors were soft with rot, and the house had no heating system. The family had been using a woodstove until the flue fell out. Then, they tried setting up an electric heater, but faulty wiring caused the cord to melt. 

The trailer was home to a woman and her husband, their nephew, and his wife and their adult son. 

National Vocation Awareness Week

At the Vatican Oct. 28, Pope Francis prayed for those affected by the deadly attack, calling it an “inhumane act of violence.” “May the Lord help us extinguish the fires of hatred that develop in our society,” the pope prayed after reciting the Angelus prayer.

That same day and in the days that have followed a cascade of interfaith services have been held in cities around the country to mourn the loss of life in what is being called the worst attack on a synagogue in U.S. history.

Also known as All Hallows’ Eve, Halloween is the eve of All Saints’ Day, Nov. 1, which is a holy day of obligation for Catholics. All Souls’ Day is Nov. 2. The word “hallows” means “holy ones” or “saints,” noted the bishop.

“The custom of dressing up for Halloween is devotional in spirit,” he added. “By dressing up as the saints whom we most admire, we imagine ourselves following their example of Christian discipleship.”

"We condemn all acts of violence and hate and yet again, call on our nation and public officials to confront the plague of gun violence," said Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston.

"Violence as a response to political, racial or religious differences must be confronted with all possible effort. God asks nothing less of us," he said. "He begs us back to our common humanity as his sons and daughters."

There are many issues that require our attention – for example, the defense and protection of all life at every stage, and issues impacting the poor, immigrants, the family, religious liberty, and the environment. Love of God and neighbor means being attentive to all issues that affect the common good.

“We continue to welcome the opportunity to meet personally with victims, to hear their stories, and to support them in their journey toward healing.”

The pope reiterated his call for stronger and more effective catechesis in preparation for marriage. This new catechumenate is necessary, he said, because "you can't play around with love," especially when it comes to making a vow that lasts a lifetime.

Calling abortion a “scourge” on America, Bishop Knestout encouraged the group to continue praying for an end to abortion and to promote the sanctity of life in how they live their daily lives.

Bishop Knestout was honored with the Saint Luke Award on Monday, Oct. 22, at the Saint Luke Institute of Silver Spring, MD.

As he watched the new film “Indivisible,” which opens in theaters Oct. 26, he couldn’t help appraising the actors’ performances. At some points, he remembered things playing out a bit differently; at others, the re-enactment was astonishingly, perhaps uncomfortably, accurate.

If St. Romero is declared a “doctor of the Church,” it would indicate that the newly canonized saint’s writings are considered to offer key theological insights for the faith.

“There are a lot of people in jail who don’t want anything to do with us. You’re not going to reach everyone, but if you can make a difference, you have to try,” she said. “There’s nothing worse than being in jail and having no hope of anything. That’s what we try to bring. Hope to a hopeless situation. Hope and love.”

Of the nearly 9,000 students enrolled in diocesan schools, more than 2,300 are non-Catholic, 1,064 are Hispanic, 724 African American, and 577 Asian. There are several reasons Catholic education has become increasingly popular across all demographics. 

“Some are tempted to see old fashioned virtues of justice, prudence, temperance and fortitude as unnecessary or unhelpful in a new landscape where old injustices have not been resolved,” Bishop Knestout said. “But these virtues are needed all the more, and it is our faith that can provide the clarity and guidance to lift these virtues up once again.”

Displayed on tables in the Sacred Heart school gym, the relics were viewed during the day by nearly 200 students and staff and more than 230 visitors in the evening. As he did at each of the parishes, Father Martins gave a presentation to explain his ministry, defined relics and why they’re important and powerful and which he brings to churches, schools and prisons. A former atheist, he also shares his own conversion story, spurred by a single item: a pamphlet on Catholicism.

In keeping with its mission, the Virginia Catholic Conference aims to educate and inform Catholics about a wide range of issues. The Conference neither supports nor opposes any candidate for public office.

The physical impact of Hurricane Michael and the anticipated recovery period for parts of the Florida Panhandle appear to be on a scale of last year's Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, according to the Church's top emergency management specialist in Florida.

"The devastation is so large that we looking at couple of years at least in recovery," said Gabe Tischler, who is working full time on the Hurricane Michael response for the Tallahassee-based Florida Catholic Conference following the storm's Oct. 10 landfall.

The residence is one of the order’s six houses in Williamsburg and Quinton providing long-term assisted living and day care for the severely mentally ill as well as the severely developmentally, intellectually, and physically disabled. Collectively more than 33 men and women live in the homes. The sisters also run a senior center and are active in the community, serving as Eucharistic ministers, catechists, greeters, and sacristans at area parishes.

Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston used his episcopal motto — "Hail O cross, our only hope" — as the title of his speech to the Synod of Bishops on young people, the faith and vocational discernment.