Archbishop William E. Lori has announced clergy appointments, including new pastors.

Buoyed by dedicated staff members and seminarians from nearby Mount St. Mary’s Seminary, the Seton Shrine in the Baltimore Archdiocese created a prayer hotline last April that has proven so successful, it plans to continue well after COVID-19 has receded.

Catholics throughout the Archdiocese of Baltimore are being encouraged to pray for vocations to the priesthood and religious life in the week leading up to a special April 25 Mass to be celebrated by Archbishop William E. Lori on the World Day of Prayer for Vocations.

Sister Mary Patricia Cummings, a Sister of Providence who taught at then-Ascension Catholic School in Halethorpe in the 1950s, died on Apr. 12 in Mother Theodore Hall in St. Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind. She was 96.

The Archdiocese of Baltimore and the Independent Review Board that assists with child protection efforts released the fourth annual reports from the archdiocesan Office of Child and Youth Protection and the review board.

“As citizens, we must insist on the elimination of all forms of racism in our societal structures,” Archbishop Lori said.

John Mulderig of Catholic News Service and Daughter of St. Paul Sister Rose Pacatte talk about about how the pandemic affected moviegoing in 2020 and also give their expert takes on each of the nominees for Best Picture at the upcoming Oscars.

Carol Clews, the former longtime leader of the Center for Pregnancy Concerns in Baltimore who spearheaded the expansion of pro-life pregnancy resources centers throughout the region and was part of a protracted legal battle to defend free speech rights, died April 15.

Father Martin H. Demek, pastor of Corpus Christi Catholic Church in Baltimore, has been removed from ministry pending an investigation of child sexual abuse.

Citing years of declining enrollment exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic and a deficit approaching half a million dollars, leaders of Our Lady of Victory School in Arbutus announced April 16 that the Catholic elementary school will close at the end of the current school year.