Fr. Ron Hicks, vicar general for the Chicago Archdiocese, blesses a new shrine containing a first-class relic of Blessed Oscar Romero during Mass in late May at Immaculate Conception Church in Chicago. (CNS/Chicago Catholic/Karen Callaway)
by Peter Feuerherd
Editor's note: The Field Hospital blog shares parish and other grassroots efforts across the U.S. and Canada to accompany those on the margins and in need. Pope Francis said he sees the church as a "field hospital" that labors "from the ground up" to "heal wounds."
A Toledo, Ohio, parish welcomes Muslim immigrant refugees, all women and children, to a summer camp that introduces them to American ways. (In the Age of Trump, some would consider this a subversive act).
A Jesuit parish in St. Paul, Minnesota, is prepared to offer sanctuary for immigrants in danger of deportation.
In Quebec, a religious sister presides over a Catholic wedding ceremony and it's all canonically kosher.
Oklahoma parishes pay homage to martyred priest Stanley Rother, killed in Central America, who has begun the pathway to canonization. Rother was an Oklahoma native.
An opioid Overdose Detection Mapping Application Program, collecting information from first responders, is seen July 19 at a conference in Arlington, Massachusetts. (CNS/Reuters/Brian Snyder)
The Jesuit magazine America says that parishes should be on the frontlines in the fight against opioid addiction. The numbers are staggering in some regions.
Sacred Heart Cathedral in Raleigh, North Carolina, is closing. In a twist, it's not because the pews are empty, but because they are overflowing.
A Catholic parish in El Paso, Texas, continues its summer bazaar this year. However, there will be no more carnival rides, as the parish responds to the tragic death of a teenager at last year's event.
St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan, New York (Wikimedia Commons/Gabriele Giuseppini)
The New York Archdiocese discovers there's gold in those Manhattan skyscraper canyons. It is looking to sell the air rights to its valued midtown properties. Meanwhile, on the ground, Dorothy Day's parish church and other now-shuttered properties are up for sale.
Happy birthday, Oscar Romero! Parishes around the country are being asked to observe the centennial on Aug. 15.
Catholics in San Francisco travel beyond their neighborhood to find a parish. Question not asked here: Is the parish simply another consumer item, to be tossed aside when there's a better option down the road?
[Peter Feuerherd is a correspondent for NCR's Field Hospital series on parish life and is a professor of journalism at St. John's University, New York.]
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