Father Christopher Heanue to Bike 100 Miles to Raise Money and Hope for Holy Child Jesus Church

By Jessica Easthope

Father Christopher Heanue is in the saddle and pushing himself to the limit, gearing up for a physical and spiritual challenge he couldn’t shy away from. He’s on a mission to uplift his parishioners at Holy Child Jesus Church in Richmond Hill, Queens.

“These have been difficult months the coronavirus has taken a lot of hope away from our parishioners and our world and I think by participating in this 100 miles I want to inspire others and myself that we can do all things through Christ,” said Father Heanue.

Next week he’ll be embarking on a century ride, for those not up to speed, that means he’ll be biking 100 miles.

“From here Richmond Hill Queens out to East Hampton Long Island, it was our intention to go to Montauk but that’s about 150 miles,” said Father Heanue.

Throughout the pandemic donations have kept Holy Child Jesus’ food pantry up and running, the church has even been able to help some families out financially, Father Heanue is riding to keep that wheel in motion.

“What a great feat that would be for our parish to continue doing the great work that we do,” Father Heanue said.

Father Heanue took up cycling more seriously during the pandemic, but says he doesn’t consider himself much of an athlete, that’s partly why he’s calling the ride ‘100 Miles of Hope.’

“We’re going to need prayerful support, I’m going to need them certainly but I just want to use this as a way to inspire hope,” said Father Heanue.

But he won’t be setting out on the ride alone, he’s going with two friends, one is Paul Cerni the head of parish operations at Holy Child Jesus.

“We’ve been gearing up for this and this time I think we’re ready,” said Cerni.

The men say they’re not stopping short of their goal of helping families in need.

“When you’re thinking about a goal like this raising money for the parish, for outreach, for the community it motivates you and we put our trust in God that we’ll find the strength,” Cerni said.

The riders are planning to make the whole trip with only short stops for food to give them energy, it’s expected to take close to 10 hours.

To donate visit:

https://www.facebook.com/101381568093938/posts/167331028165658/

https://www.gofundme.com/f/100-miles-of-hope

Text ‘miles’ to 718-550-6525.

Kanye West Talks Abortion and Harriet Tubman During Emotional Speech at South Carolina Rally

Currents News Staff

Kanye West claims to be running for President and he gave an emotional speech about abortion at a rally in South Carolina on Sunday.

The rapper wore a bulletproof vest when he told the crowd his dad wanted him aborted.

West went on to accuse the well-known abolitionist, Harriet Tubman, of trading slaves. The crowd jeered him over that comment.

Destroying Catholic Statues Points to U.S. History of Animosity Towards Faithful, Says Neil Cosgrove

Currents News Staff

The destruction of Catholic images and statues across the country isn’t getting enough media coverage says Neil Cosgrove, a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, one of the oldest Catholic organizations in the country.

Christ Statue Vandalized at Florida Church Among Latest Attacks on Statues

MIAMI (CNS) — The beheading of a statue of Christ at a Catholic church in the Miami Archdiocese has saddened the parish community of Good Shepherd Church and prompted Miami Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski to call on law enforcement to investigate the incident as a hate crime.

On July 15, the statue at Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Southwest Miami-Dade was found with its head chopped off and knocked from its pedestal.

“It is too soon to arrive to any conclusion, but we have seen other churches vandalized around the country. We totally ‘condemn’ this action. We invite our community to pray for peace,” parish officials said in a statement.

“The statue, located outside the church, was on private and sacred property,” said Mary Ross Agosta, director of communications for the Archdiocese of Miami. She told the local Fox News affiliate Archbishop Wenski requested investigators consider the vandalism “a hate crime.”

The Department of Homeland Security is among the agencies investigating the case.

In recent weeks around the country, angry mobs have toppled statues of figures such as St. Junipero Serra, a Franciscan priest from Spain who founded several missions in California. Statues of historical figures, like Christopher Columbus, Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and Frederick Douglass, also have been knocked down and heavily damaged.

A wave of recent attacks on Catholic statues includes an unidentified person using red paint to deface a statue of Mary in front of St. Mary’s Cathedral in downtown Colorado Springs, Colorado, July 15.

“It does look like a graffiti tag more than anything else,” Father David Price, the cathedral’s rector, told local reporters. “I’m not sure there was any sense or meaning behind it.”

In the Diocese of Knoxville, Tennessee, Father Manuel Perez, pastor of St. Stephen Catholic Church in Chattanooga, found a statue of Mary on the parish grounds knocked over and beheaded. News reports said the 5-foot-tall statue was worth $2,000. The missing head has not been found.

As in Florida, the Department of Homeland Security is looking into the incident as a possible hate crime.

“Anytime something like this happens it is disappointing and concerning,” said Diocese of Knoxville diocesan spokesman Jim Wogan in a statement. “We don’t know if this was the targeted desecration of a sacred statue, or some kind of misguided prank, but it hurts.

“For whatever reason we are living in a very chaotic time and anger seems to be the default setting for people,” he added. “Our bishop has asked that we live by the example set in the Gospel of Matthew, to treat others as we ourselves would want to be treated.”

Knoxville Bishop Richard F. Stika tweeted about the incident July 13, saying “what a strange time” we live in. “Over the weekend, an outdoor statue of the Blessed Mother was beheaded at St. Stephen Parish in Chattanooga. This is occurring at various spots throughout the United States.”

A statue of Mary was found defaced July 10 on the grounds of Cathedral Prep School and Seminary in the Diocese of Brooklyn, New York.

Father James Kuroly, Cathedral Prep’s rector and president, called the incident “an act of hatred.”

“Obviously, this tragedy saddens us deeply,” he said in a statement, “but it also renews our hope and faith in the Lord as he has shown his goodness in the many people who have already reached out to us.” He urged prayers “for those who committed this act of vandalism and hatred toward Our Lady and the church.”

Police in Boston were likewise investigating a fire that damaged a statue of Mary outside St. Peter Church the evening of July 11. News reports said flowers in Mary’s hands were set on fire, causing damage from her arms up to her face.

Fire also claimed much of two Catholic churches, one in Florida and one in California.

In the Diocese of Orlando, Florida, a man crashed his van through the doors of Our Lady Queen of Peace Church in Ocala early in the morning July 11. Once inside, he set the interior of the church ablaze. There were no injuries reported.

Police later apprehended the suspect who had fled the scene, identified as Anthony Steven Shields, 24, who was charged with several felonies, including attempted second-degree murder, arson to a structure and felony fleeing or attempting to elude.

In Los Angeles a fire ravaged Mission San Gabriel Arcangel church in the predawn hours of July 11. Investigators have not yet determined what started the blaze that gutted the 230-year-old church.

Currents News full broadcast for Mon, 7/20/20 (Catholic news)

Currents News reports secular and religious news from the Catholic perspective.

Some of the top stories on this newscast:

A shooting surge in the so called “safest big city in the U.S.” What’s a parish’s role in stopping the violence? Pastors in the Brooklyn Diocese say the recent crime surge is a pro-life issue.

A woman defaced three Black Lives Matter murals and says she’s proud she did it.

The latest Catholic Church to go up in flames is in France. It could have been done on purpose.

In a bullet proof vest, Kanye West talks abortion at his first campaign event.

Brooklyn Diocese Pastors Say Recent Crime Surge is a Pro-Life Issue

By Jessica Easthope

This year there have been more than 600 shootings in the streets of New York, crime the city hasn’t seen since the 1980s.

“This proves more and more that what we need in this world is some real real real faith,” said Father Frank Black the pastor of St. Matthew’s Catholic Church in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.

Father Black says he barely recognized his parish neighborhood. Crown Heights has seen nearly a dozen shootings just this month.

“Breaking into people’s businesses, shooting other people, drive-by shootings, that’s not pro life,” said Father Black.

Violence is fundamentally at odds with church teaching. To be pro-life is to respect all stages of life from conception to natural death, something Father Black says is not happening in New York right now.

In July alone, 239 shooting incidents have been reported, a 210 percent increase from last year.

The shootings surge comes as the NYPD disbanded its Anti-Crime Unit, a plainclothes group of officers that worked to keep illegal guns off the streets but had a large number of complaints.

Another area hard hit by gun violence is Bedford-Stuyvesant.

“The violence in our community has to come to an end especially for our young people for them to grow in a place where they can walk the streets of the community in a peaceful manner is important,” said Father Alonzo Cox the pastor of St. Martin de Porres church.

Father Cox says the church needs to focus on young people if it ever wants to help curb violence and fulfill its role in the community.

“What we have to do is be an example to our youth and those who we want to guide and it’s our responsibility to be those leaders and those examples,” said Father Cox.

Father Cox has been holding virtual forums for the youth of his parish, allowing them to express their frustrations as well as their hopes for the future of their city.

“Trying our best through the gift of social media to reach out to our youth, our young people here at the parish want to see peace, they want an end to this violence and they want to get out into the community,” said Father Cox.

At a time when a swirl of violence is moving rapidly through the city, pastors say the power of prayer and peace can be much stronger.

Pope Francis Calls For International Ceasefire in Order to Help Pandemic Victims With Humanitarian Aid

Currents News Staff

According to Johns Hopkins University, the number of global coronavirus deaths already exceeds 600,000 people. Thus, Pope Francis insisted on the proposal for a global ceasefire by the United Nations to help care for the sick and prevent the spread of the virus.

“I renew the call for an immediate and global ceasefire that will allow the peace and security that is essential for the necessary humanitarian assistance to be given,” Pope Francis said.

The pontiff is also concerned about a conflict that has been reactivated these days in the Caucasus Mountains. Armenia and Azerbaijan have resumed armed conflict for control of the Nagorno Karabakh region and have caused more than a dozen deaths.

“I hope that, with the effort of the international community and through dialogue and the good will of the parties, a lasting peaceful solution can be reached,” Pope Francis said.

In Italy, although there is greater freedom of movement, crowding is still prohibited to avoid contagions. That means the Vatican is far more emptier than usual, with fewer pilgrims this summer in St. Peter’s Square.

Pope Francis addressed his concerns after the daily Angelus prayer in Rome.

“Dear brothers and sisters, in this time, when the pandemic does not seem to be stopping, I want to assure my closeness to all those facing the disease and its economic and social consequences,” he said.

Archdiocese of Madrid Builds Burial Structure for Coronavirus Victims’ Remains

Currents News Staff

In record time — only 15 days — the “Túmulo del Recuerdo” or Tumulus of Memory was created and opened in Madrid. It’s a seven-and-a-half-foot-tall hexagonal structure that will hold the ashes of more than a thousand people who died from the coronavirus.

“Like all priests, the archbishop must respond to the needs of the faithful,” said Father Nelson Nájera, chaplain of the San Justo Cemetery where the structure is located. “The archbishop, aware of this need, opened this tumulus of memory where the ashes of around 1,900 people will be deposited for families who don’t have a place to put them. It’s a way to say there is a place for them.”

The structure was developed by the Sacramental de San Justo Foundation. The designers included a marble finish to the structure that will be covered by a canopy, according to Sacramental de San Justo’s architect Licinio Rivero.

“A canopy is a structure with an altar or coffin inside, so it’s perfect,” Rivero said. “That way, even if it doesn’t cover the whole interior, when you look at it, you can clearly see the silhouette of a temple.”

Families who were affected by the health and economic crises will now have a final resting place for their loved ones.

“They were counting on being able to choose what to do with the ashes of their loved ones, but they were left without options and without the possibility of burying them,” said Francisco Belmonte, from Sacramental de San Justo.

The “Túmulo del Recuerdo” is ready for use. Cardinal Carlos Osoro blessed it. It’s yet another example of the Church in Madrid’s closeness to the people amid the pain and crisis sparked by the coronavirus.

This American Priest Wants to Make the Church a ‘Field Hospital for Mercy’

By Melissa Butz

In 2016, During the Jubilee Year of Mercy called for by Pope Francis, 1,071 priests were sent out as Missionaries of Mercy. They were given the special grace to forgive sins that hold penalties only the Apostolic See can lift.

“In this case we speak of the five sins reserved to the Holy See. Only the Missionaries of Mercy can absolve from such sins, no other,” said 2016 Jubilee organizer Monsignor Rino Fishichella.

Even though the Jubilee year ended, this ministry continues. Father Jeffrey Kirby is one of the most recent to be nominated as a Missionary of Mercy at his parish in Charleston, South Carolina.

“The Holy Father appoints the priest and then the local bishop gives the decree. That’s what’s happened in my case. My bishop encouraged, he’s promoted me,” Fr. Jeffrey explained. “I was given the appointment by the pope and now the bishop is presenting me with this decree.”

As an author, he said his writings on mercy could be a reason why he was selected. In 2016, he wrote a study called Doors of Mercy and then another on how Maria Goretti is a witness of mercy.

“Throughout my writings or different talks that I’ve done, I’ve always tried to accentuate that message of mercy because I think of all the messages the world is hearing – hate, intolerance – it seems we are told everything’s permissible, but nothing is forgivable,” he said. “I think it’s so important in our world today that the message of mercy be the predominant, emphasized message, especially from the Church.”

Fr. Jeffrey explained his mission will be carried out in his parish, with his parishioners. His goal is for his Charleston church to become a “field hospital for mercy,” as Pope Francis has asked, and for an overflowing of mercy throughout the world.