St. Rita Catholic Church

Prayer for the 2023 'Synod on Synodality'

What is an archangel? This is a common question. Simply put, an archangel is an angel of high rank. Three are mentioned in the Bible. Saint Michael, Saint Gabriel, and Saint Raphael.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church informs us - The existence of the spiritual, non-corporeal beings that Sacred Scripture usually calls 'angels' is a truth of faith. The witness of Scripture is as clear as the unanimity of Tradition (328).� Charged by God to supply us aid, our guardian angels are eager to help us as our spiritual allies in the earthly battle. They do not begrudgingly engage in this effort, merely as half-hearted servants, but rather pour themselves into it with the full ...

"In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, "Hail, O favored one, the Lord is with you!" (Or "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you" Lk 1:28).

In the second Republican presidential primary debate, one topic that was conspicuously absent from the spotlight was abortion politics and policy. Unlike the first debate in August, where abortion discussions dominated a substantial portion, this time, it only received a brief mention towards the end of the event, sandwiched between debates on the federal government's size and the GOP's challenges with Latino voters.

A prominent Catholic theologian, Dr. John Bergsma, has generated significant buzz in the world of archaeology by proposing that recent discoveries in Jordan strongly align with the biblical narrative of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Bergsma, a theology professor at Ohio's Franciscan University and a prolific author, asserts that the site of the ancient event recounted in the Bible has likely been identified.

In his address at the Vatican to around 200 participants in a meeting of university rectors from Latin America and the Caribbean, Pope Francis unveiled the title of his next Apostolic Exhortation on the environment. The new document will be named "Laudate Deum" and is set to be published on October 4, the feast day of St. Francis of Assisi. During this event, the Pope discussed various pressing issues, including climate change, migration, and the culture of waste.

The Shroud of Turin, a cherished Catholic relic for many, has long intrigued the faithful and the curious alike. This 14-foot linen cloth, bearing a faint image of a man on its front and back, is believed by numerous members of the Catholic Church to be the burial shroud that enveloped the body of Jesus of Nazareth after his crucifixion. Over the years, the Shroud has been shrouded in mystery and controversy, but recently, artificial intelligence (AI) has played a pivotal role in bringing us ...

My Dear Sons and Daughters in Christ: I write to you today to discuss more fully the fourth basic truth that I spoke of in my first pastoral letter issued on August 22, 2023, and to ask that we reflect more deeply on this important truth of our faith: "Every human person is created in the image and likeness of God, male or female, and all people should be helped to discover their true identities as children of God, and not supported in a disordered attempt to reject their undeniable ...

North Carolina just became the 10th U.S. state to implement "universal" school choice, effectively removing barriers to a state program that provides tuition assistance for students attending private schools. This transformative move is set to reshape educational access and opportunities across the state.