By John Stegeman The Catholic Telegraph  Father Bernard Weldishofer is not claiming that if you build it they will come. He does, however, acknowledge that since the opening and dedication of the new church building, St. Francis de Sales parish in Lebanon has seen a 40 percent increase in mass …

Staff Report The USCCB website, citing the Congregation for Divine Worshipand the Discipline of the Sacraments, says, “Easter Sunday, the greatest solemnity in the liturgical year, is often associated with many displays of popular piety: these are all cultic expressions which proclaim the new and glorious condition of the risen Christ, and the …

By Eileen Connelly, OSU The Catholic Telegraph  The recent election of Pope Francis was a joyful occasion for cradle Catholics worldwide, but it was also especially exciting for Londa Thomas, a young wife and mother who is new to Catholicism and will be welcomed into the church at Easter Vigil. …

By Eileen Connelly, OSU The Catholic Telegraph  Everything happens in God’s time. It’s a lesson Kaitlyn Spradling  has already learned at the age of 23 that will serve her well in life and in her faith. A graduate student in pathology at the University of Cincinnati, Spradling may have been …

By Eileen Connelly, OSU The Catholic Telegraph  When asked recently what makes Jesus so cool, six-year-old Cameron Kleehamer told it like it is, saying, “He sacrificed himself for us.” The little boy, who also took a rosary to school not long ago for show and tell, already demonstrates a love …

By Patricia McGeever For The Catholic Telegraph  When the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey circus pulls into town as it did in March, 120 performers, 40 crew members, 60 souvenir and concessions salespeople, 93 animals and two nuns come with it. More precisely, two Missionary Sisters of the Sacred …

Staff Report On the topic of Holy Saturday, the USCCB Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments says “On Holy Saturday, the Church pauses at the Lord’s tomb, meditating his Passion and Death, his descent into Hell, and, with prayer and fasting, awaits his resurrection. “Popular piety should …

By John Stegeman The Catholic Telegraph  Sometime in the 1870s, the traditional of “Praying the Steps” at Holy Cross-Immaculata Church began. It’s history is well known. In 1859 Archbishop John J. Purcell had the steps constructed to ease pilgrims ways as they came to pray for the completion of the …

By John Stegeman The Catholic Telegraph  In 1909, a group of parishioners was making the long trek home from Mass at St. Aloysius Gonzaga in Bridgetown to Cheviot. A rainstorm broke out, drenching them and turning the road into mud. That was the last straw. The churchgoers decided they needed …

By John Stegeman The Catholic Telegraph  Leah Darrow had a career as a model and on reality TV, but other than that, her story is one to which many young people can relate. Speaking to 250-300 youths March 19 at The Underground in Forrest Park, Darrow told how she started …