Most popular stories and commentaries of 2024 on CatholicReview.org

Here are the most-read local stories and commentaries on CatholicReview.org for 2024:

Local Stories

1. Seek the City to Come Coverage

The Seek the City to Come pastoral plan announced May 22 reduced the number of parishes in Baltimore City and a few surrounding areas from 61 to 23 and reduced the number of worship sites from 59 to 30. Most of the new parishes throughout took shape Dec. 1.

Stories and lists were among the most-read items on the Catholic Review’s website in 2024. The list of proposed parish mergers, published April 14, attracted more than 23,000 readers.

— Catholic Review Staff

Read the most-read Seek the City to Come stories by clicking on the following headlines.

List of proposed parishes with mergers in Archdiocese of Baltimore (April 14)

Nearly 1,000 parishioners weigh in on Baltimore parish reconfiguration proposal at final listening session (May 1)

Seek the City models aim for maximum of 19 worship sites in the city (March 12)

List of final parish alignment for Seek the City to Come (May 22)

Final Seek the City plan released; archdiocese will reduce parishes in Baltimore area by half (May 22)

What happens to real estate, items after church closures? (May 22)

Some Seek the City parishes in Baltimore celebrating Masses of thanksgiving and remembrance (Oct. 18)

Parishioners remember, celebrate faith communities as Seek the City parishes prepare to unite (Nov. 25)

The other top-read stories included:

2. In advance of his Baltimore debut, Andrea Bocelli shares journey of faith (Feb. 15)

For one brief moment at the outset of the coronavirus pandemic, the hopes of the world seemed concentrated on a single man standing alone outside the massive Duomo di Milano in Italy.

Andrea Bocelli, one of the most acclaimed tenors of his time, kept his arms at his sides and remained motionless as his powerful voice filled the cathedral’s empty square with the familiar strains of “Amazing Grace.”

Online, more than 2.8 million peak concurrent viewers around the globe watched the live Easter performance via YouTube in what would become the largest simultaneous audience for a classical music live stream in YouTube history.

Afterward, the video would receive more than 28 million views in the first 24 hours. Four years later, the Catholic singer’s performance has garnered more than 44 million views and counting.

— George P. Matysek Jr.

Read the full story here

3. More than 15 foreign priests could be forced to leave archdiocese after recent visa law changes (Sept. 30)

Unless a recent change in U.S. visa law is reversed, more than 15 priests from other countries who now serve in the Archdiocese of Baltimore may be forced to go home – uprooting their ministries and leaving parishes, schools and Catholic institutions scrambling.

“If this law does not get changed, we will be without the priests, and it will cause a lot of holes,” said Father James Proffitt, archdiocesan vicar for clergy. “This will impact the church’s ability to minister, especially in other languages. Finding non-native speakers is a real challenge. Some ministries just won’t be able to happen if we don’t have priests to fill the void.”

Father Proffitt noted that countries represented among the foreign-born priests serving in the archdiocese include Cameroon, Nigeria, Mexico, Uganda, Korea, Pakistan, the Philippines, Colombia and Italy.

In addition to parishes and schools, hospitals also rely on international priests as their chaplains because the archdiocese doesn’t have enough priests to assign to full-time hospital chaplaincy, Father Proffitt said. Some international priests also serve ethnic communities outside their assigned parishes.

Under U.S. immigration law, two types of visas are available for religious workers. The employment-based EB-4, or special immigrant religious worker, visa permits qualified religious workers to immigrate to the U.S on a permanent basis and to potentially become citizens. The R-1 visa, by contrast, allows religious workers to enter the country on a temporary basis and to perform services for up to five years.

— Lisa Harlow

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4. Father Francis ‘Fritz’ Gollery welcomed back to priesthood after nearly 50 years (Nov. 19)

Almost exactly 50 years after Father Francis “Fritz” Gollery received permission to leave the priesthood, the 86-year-old clergyman has been reinstated as a priest of the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

During a Nov. 18 Mass at St. Joseph in Cockeysville, Archbishop William E. Lori welcomed Father Gollery back into the presbyterate at a Day of Recollection with his brother priests that also honored priests celebrating milestone jubilees.  

Father Gollery made promises of celibacy and obedience during the celebration and signed a rescript, a formal document authorized by Pope Francis that allows a previously laicized priest to be restored to ministry.

“Now, as if to prove that God is with us, something is about to happen that will rejoice the hearts of all us priests, past and present,” Archbishop Lori said in his homily. “Today it is official that Fritz Gollery is received back into our presbyterate.”

In celebration of his return, Monsignor Richard W. Woy presented Father Gollery’s former gold chalice to him at the end of Mass, which had been a gift Father Gollery had given to Monsignor Woy when he was ordained.

— Katie V. Jones

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5. Five Catholic prayers for Election Day (Nov. 4)

With another divisive presidential election on the horizon Nov. 5, there’s never a better time to turn to prayer.

Shortly after the United States was founded, then-Bishop John Carroll, the first bishop of Baltimore who led a sprawling diocese encompassing the entire country, showed his devotion to the new nation by writing a prayer in 1791 for the U.S. government. Bishop Carroll, who became an archbishop in 1808 when the Baltimore diocese was elevated to the status of an archdiocese, wrote the prayer shortly before George Washington, the first U.S. president, was elected to a second term in 1792. 

Washington was virtually unopposed in that bid for a second term, winning the electoral vote unanimously. Oh, how the times have changed as Vice President Kamala Harris seeks the top job  against former President Donald Trump.

Here’s a look at Archbishop Carroll’s prayer and four others that Catholics can turn to for solace.

— Catholic Review Staff

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6. Fire destroys rectory at St. Anthony Shrine in Emmitsburg; one seriously injured (Aug. 30)

A priest was injured in an early-morning fire Aug. 30 that destroyed the historic two-story rectory at St. Anthony Shrine in Emmitsburg.

Sarah Campbell, spokeswoman for the Frederick County Division of Fire and Rescue Services, said emergency responders from Frederick County Fire and Rescue were dispatched to the blaze at 12:36 a.m. In total, approximately 60 firefighters and EMS personnel from Frederick, Washington and Carroll counties in Maryland, and Adams, Franklin and York counties in Pennsylvania were involved in extinguishing the fire. Also aiding were several area fire companies.

Campbell said the fire is believed to be accidental and started on an exterior porch, causing an estimated $400,000 in damage.

Three people were in the rectory at the time of the fire: Father Mariano Vicchi, pastor; Father Andrés Ayala, associate pastor; and Andrew Boutross, a seminarian. All are members of the Institute of the Incarnate Word (I.V.E.), the religious community that staffs St. Anthony.

— George P. Matysek Jr.

Read the full story here

7. Archbishop Lori offers support to Emmitsburg parish devastated by rectory fire (Sept. 1)

Before Jim Smith was received into full communion with the Catholic Church two years ago, he made his first confession on the porch of the stately rectory building that has been a beloved landmark at St. Anthony Shrine in Emmitsburg since the 1890s.

One day after an Aug. 30 fire destroyed the building and sent Institute of the Incarnate Word Father Andres (Andrew) Ayala to Johns Hopkins Bayview Burn Center in Baltimore with serious injuries, Smith stood outside the charred structure and shook his head in disbelief.

“It’s real sad,” said Smith, whose wife, Debbie, stood by his side as they surveyed the ruined building. “It was a beautiful old house. But, it’s just a structure. Father Andrew made it out alive and that’s all that’s important.”

The Smiths were among nearly 200 parishioners who gathered for a 4 p.m. Mass celebrated Aug. 31 by Archbishop William E. Lori after he visited the destroyed two-story building. The archbishop offered his prayers and consolation to a shaken faith community.

In his homily, Archbishop Lori gave thanks to God that the lives of the three rectory occupants were spared. Father Mariano Vicchi, pastor; Father Ayala, associate pastor; and Andrew Boutross, a seminarian, made it out of the blaze with only Father Ayala suffering serious injuries. All are members of the Institute of the Incarnate Word (I.V.E.), the religious community that staffs St. Anthony.

He also praised emergency responders from Maryland and Pennsylvania who spent hours battling the blaze.

— George P. Matysek Jr.

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8. New York murder suspect hails from prominent Catholic Mangione family in Baltimore (Dec. 10)

Nicholas Mangione launched his first business enterprise in a modest office on North Avenue in Baltimore in 1950.

Commercial Contractors, Inc., was so strapped for cash that it had to rely on Mangione’s landlord to answer phones, the prominent Baltimore entrepreneur told the Catholic Review in a 2000 interview. And there were many times when Mangione asked the landlord to hold his checks a few days until he had money in his bank account, he said.

From those humble roots, Mangione went on to build a local business empire that included the Turf Valley Resort and Conference Center; Mangione Family Enterprises; Pikesville Hilton Inn; Hayfields Country Club; WCBM, WWLG and WASA radio stations; Lorien Health Systems Facilities and more.

Hand in hand with its business ventures, the Mangione family became one of the most generous donors to a wide variety of charitable causes, including Catholic ministries.

Nicholas and his wife, Mary, parishioners of St. Isaac Jogues in Carney, gave millions of dollars to the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Heritage of Hope capital campaign, parish construction projects, St. Mary’s Seminary and University, the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi and what is now Loyola University Maryland, where Nicholas Mangione served on the board of directors and where a pool bears the Mangione name.

— George P. Matysek Jr.

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9. Baltimore archdiocese ministers to crew aboard ship involved with Key Bridge collapse (March 26)

The Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Apostleship of the Sea is normally a “friendly face” for international seafarers visiting the port.

That role is about to expand, according to its director, Andy Middleton, after a containership was involved in the catastrophic collapse of one of Baltimore’s major thoroughfares.

The Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed about 1:30 a.m. March 26 after a 900-foot container ship collided with one of its major support pilings. According to state and U.S. Coast Guard officials, a search-and-rescue mission was underway for an unknown number of survivors.

Middleton said the Apostleship of the Sea, based at St. Rita in Dundalk, had ministered to members of the crew on March 24 and 25, delivering Easter boxes to the group aboard Dali, which was berthed at Seagirt Marine terminal. 

Middleton said he had been in touch with a member of the crew just hours after the collision and that all of them were safe and uninjured. The organization, begun by the archdiocese in 2003 to serve visiting crews, plans to assist the sailors once bridge debris is removed from the ship and it settles in a berth.

Meanwhile, Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori said he was saddened and asked for prayers for all involved.

“I am saddened, as you are, to learn of the tragic incident overnight that led to the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Baltimore Harbor,” Archbishop Lori said. “Pray with me for all involved, especially the victims traveling over the span at the time of impact, the construction crews on site and all of the first responders acting with urgency to rescue survivors. Let us join in prayer asking the Lord to grant consolation and strength as we cope with this terrible tragedy.”

— Gerry Jackson

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10. Baltimore native Father Michael Martin to take helm of Charlotte diocese (April 9)

It seems as if former administrators of Archbishop Curley High School are carving out quite a niche in the southeastern United States.

Conventual Franciscan Father Michael T. Martin became the first graduate of the Northeast Baltimore High School named a bishop and the second former principal of the school to take the reins of one of the region’s major dioceses.

On April 9, Pope Francis accepted the resignation of Bishop Peter J. Jugis, 67, from the pastoral governance of the Diocese of Charlotte, N.C., for health reasons and appointed Father Martin, 62, as his successor.

Bishop-designate Martin, a Baltimore native, is a member of the Conventual Franciscan Province of Our Lady of the Angels and currently serves as pastor at St. Philip Benizi Church in Jonesboro, Ga.

He was ordained and installed as the fifth Bishop of Charlotte May 29 at St. Mark Catholic Church in Huntersville.

— Gerry Jackson

Read the full story here

Commentaries

1. Changes at St. Dominic hit close to home (Oct. 24)

As the Archdiocese of Baltimore gets ready to merge parishes and eventually shutter some sites throughout Baltimore City, one change hits close to home.

St. Dominic in the Hamilton neighborhood of Northeast Baltimore is one of the 31 churches in the city that will no longer function as its own entity as the archdiocese, for good reason, consolidates its worship and ministry sites in Baltimore.

The parish is merging, along with most of the parishes in Northeast Baltimore, with St. Matthew in Northwood. St. Dominic will remain open for Sunday Masses through November, but what happens with the site after that depends on the needs for space and worship sites at the new parish. It will still be available for baptisms, weddings and funerals upon request and at the discretion of the pastor.

St. Dominic was a place where I made my first holy Communion and first reconciliation; a place where I was confirmed and where my wife and I were married.

It was a place where I spent eight formative educational years – taught primarily by the more-than-patient Daughters of Charity.

It was a place where five of my eight siblings were baptized and all nine of the Jackson crew were confirmed. Three siblings also married their spouses there.

It was a place where I honed my early work ethic, rising to perform the duties of an altar server for 6:30 a.m. weekday Mass.

It was a place where I first met some of the people I still cherish as friends half a century later, a place where you truly learned to get along with everyone with more than 150 students in each of the eight grades.

It was a place where I played my first organized sports (soccer, baseball and basketball). I also attended my first dance – all through the Catholic Youth Organization.

It was a place where my family said the final goodbyes to our parents at their funerals. Our parents worshiped in its pews each week without pause for more than three decades.

Those funerals were the last time many of our large extended family attended a liturgy at the historic parish.

— Gerry Jackson

Read the full story here

2. ‘The best job in the world’ (July 25)

One hour before the start of an Orioles game at Camden Yards in April of this year, I did what had become a work routine that I first started doing 30 years prior: I stood in my broadcast position on the field near the O’s dugout in front of a live television camera awaiting the news anchors in the studio to toss to me for my sports segment the 5 p.m. news. As I listened for my cue to begin, I thought about how many times I’d been in that familiar spot, and how much I enjoyed being at the ballpark, interviewing the players and team personnel to present the latest updates to the viewing audience.

After I completed the live report, a man standing nearby caught my attention. He was an Orioles fan who had a pre-game field pass, and while watching batting practice he also watched my report.

“You have the best job in the world,” he said to me with a smile.

“I really love what I do,” I replied. “I never take this for granted.”

I also knew it was likely that I wouldn’t have “the best job in the world” much longer. My TV contract was expiring in June and that would mark 40 total years in the business. I had begun to discern a transition out of broadcasting to focus fully on my family and on service to those in need in the Baltimore community.

Being a sports reporter was something I wanted to do since I was seven years old. My parents gave me a tape recorder for Christmas when I was that age, and I proceeded to interview family members and call play-by-play of imaginary games in the backyard with my brother, Joseph. Years of fun and fantasy gave way to reality when I turned 17 and told my mother I wanted to go to journalism school. She told me that I would be good at that job, and I carried her encouraging words with me for the rest of my life. 

Sports reporting jobs at local TV stations in Iowa, Ohio and Baltimore highlight my career resume, along with a network sports position at CNN in Atlanta. I traveled to wonderful places, met and interviewed memorable sports figures, worked with talented professionals and made life-time friendships. I thank our Lord for the blessings of a full and complete working life, one that exceeded my dreams and expectations. 

— Mark Viviano

Read the full story here

3. Feast for the senses: Bocelli makes Baltimore debut (Feb. 22)

Andrea Bocelli’s first-ever performance in Baltimore was a feast for the senses.

As the famed Italian tenor serenaded a sold-out crowd of more than 13,000 at CFG Bank Arena Feb. 20, beams of streaming lights sometimes swirled rhythmically overhead.

A pair of dancers glided across the stage during several ballads, their movements accented on massive video screens behind them. And Bocelli himself – clad in a black bowtie and a shimmering gold jacket – wrapped his arm around guest soprano Larisa Martínez for a spin on the floor during a couple of their duets.

Several times, the white-haired singing sensation seemed to have a playful competition when performing with the likes of Martínez and guest baritone Edward Parks – holding operatic notes for what seemed an eternity.

While Bocelli and Parks sang a lush rendition of Bizet’s “Au fond du temple Saint,” artist David Garibaldi frantically slapped paints against a canvass. By the time the song was finished about six minutes later, Garibaldi flipped the image to reveal he had created a colorful portrait of Bocelli – upside-down. The artwork, signed by Garibaldi and Bocelli and emblazoned with “Baltimore,” was auctioned that very night for a high bid of $24,000, the proceeds slated to benefit the Andrea Bocelli Foundation.

Clearly, this was not your grandfather’s classical music concert.

— George P. Matysek Jr.

Read the full story here

4. That Pommel Horse Guy (Aug. 3)

His name is Stephen Nedoroscik, but they call him Clark Kent. After hours of waiting for his turn, he pulls off his glasses, strides up to the pommel horse, swings around with incredible skill and strength, and dismounts.

He’s an athlete and an artist. He has an eye condition that prevents him seeing while he’s moving across, around, and above the horse, so he makes all the movements by feel. He is so clearly in the zone up there, making it all look so smooth, seamless, and easy. And then he’s off.

Stephen Nedoroscik is at the Olympics to do one thing—the pommel horse. I love that about him. He excels in one aspect in men’s gymnastics. He realized years ago that he doesn’t have to be good at all of it. He focuses on one task and gives that his all. And he dominates.

Often in life, we think we have to be good at many things. Or we get caught up in what we aren’t doing well. My house is a mess, I don’t make enough homemade dinners, I can never keep up with all the work I want to get done, I’m not sure we’ve taken enough family time this summer, and on and on and on. It’s reassuring to think that maybe God doesn’t intend for me—for any of us—to excel at all of it. He gives each of us gifts in different ways. Then he asks us to use those gifts to make the world a little better, and the darkness a little lighter.

I’m not sure what my pommel horse is—or yours. But in this life that can feel like one big acrobatics competition, maybe there is one piece that we can focus on and do well. God has a calling for each of us. He invites us to discover it, to lean into our talents, and to do it in a way that no one else can. Whether we’re singing or dancing or swimming or scoring goals or cheering on those who are, we have a gift that is ours to share with the world.

— Rita Buettner

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5. Here comes a saint who give parents hope (July 3)

Carlo Acutis has been called “God’s Influencer.”

He was born in 1991. He played the saxophone. He enjoyed video games and Pokémon. As a child and as a teen, he loved Jesus and the Eucharist. He showed kindness to those who had less than he did. He brought others closer to God.

Sadly, he was only 15 when he died of leukemia—not so long ago, in 2006. But even though Carlo Acutis lived a short life, it was a powerful one.

Now the Vatican has announced that Carlo will be canonized a saint. People around the world will have the chance to learn more about this young man who loved Jesus so much. I’m excited for them.

I can’t remember when Blessed Carlo Acutis first caught my attention. But ever since then, we have crossed paths from time to time. Every time he enters my sphere, I am filled with curiosity about this young man, along with gratitude for the life he lived and hope for young people everywhere.

I would have been intrigued by him regardless of where I am in life. But as a mother of teen boys, I find such hope and power in his story.

Carlo shows us that you can live for God even in this modern era. He reminds us that you can become a saint without founding a religious order or dying as a martyr or doing something that seems remarkable and significant. You can become a saint by living the life God invites you to live.

Carlo was raised and baptized by his Catholic parents, but in many ways he shaped his own faith journey as he came to love Jesus in the Eucharist. As a teen, he created a website dedicated to Eucharistic miracles, and he lived life for God—all while enjoying life as a teen, too. His life is inspiring thousands—and bringing people closer to God.

— Rita Buettner

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6. Building the team (June 3)

Dedicated Orioles fans went through more seasons than we care to remember in the doldrums. Our team was near the bottom in the American League East. Attendance was down. Gone were the glory days of Cal Ripken Jr. Thoughts of winning another World Series were a mirage.

Some questioned the future of the Orioles. “Would the team stay in Baltimore?” they wondered. Attendance was down. Fans were angry and disappointed. But some fans remained as dedicated as ever, believing and hoping that better days lie ahead.

All the while, something good was happening. The team was rebuilding itself. It was attracting new players. It was making improvements to Camden Yards and investing in its future in ways different from the past. As it went through this process, there were critics and skeptics but over the last few seasons, the performance of the Orioles has improved dramatically.

A similar process is going on in the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

It’s no secret that the Seek the City to Come process has left more than a few people angry and disappointed. While this two-year public process has involved thousands of people across Baltimore and its environs, many either did not know about it or perhaps did not become involved until it became apparent that decisions were about to be made.

To many, the closure of parishes looks like decline. Pundits speculate: “Is it the scandals?” Or “Chapter 11?” “Is it celibacy?” – overlooking the fact that the population of the City of Baltimore is less than half of what it was when the 61 parishes in and around Baltimore were flourishing.

Like Orioles teams in the down years, the clergy, religious and lay leaders have labored heroically to keep parishes going, often depending heavily on Catholics driving in from the suburbs on Sunday morning. Burdened with aging buildings badly in need of expensive repairs and renovations, many of these parishes found it difficult to evangelize the very neighborhoods they are in.

— Archbishop William E. Lori

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7. How Toby Keith’s music and faith inspired me (Feb. 6)

When I saw that Toby Keith had passed away at 62, I was stunned. Somehow it didn’t seem possible.

I’m a country music fan, and his music was part of the soundtrack running in the background of my life. I remember listening to his music with my sister Treasa during the ’90s when he was capturing the attention of so many people.

When Toby sang about how he should’ve been a cowboy, Treasa and I sang right along—even though we couldn’t have lived farther from cows and cowboys. There was something about the way that Toby delivered a song, though, that made you feel like part of the story. And we were definitely along for the ride.

My father had introduced me to country stars like Loretta Lynn and Patsy Cline when I was a child. Then, in the late-1990s, when I was a new college graduate—and newspaper reporter—I spent part of every day driving from interview to interview. I realized quickly that the best radio stations in central Pennsylvania all played country music, and I started listening.

That era for country music was rich with talent and variety. Toby Keith’s music stood out. His songs were rich with narratives and personality—and he was so different. No one else was like Toby Keith.

Toby could present a song with poignant emotion, but he also had incredible skill for putting humor into his music. Some artists can’t put across such a variety of pieces, but Toby did—and I appreciated that about him. He was so very human.

You could also tell Toby wasn’t the kind of person who would be boxed in or held back in any way. I was finding my way on my first steps into adulthood, and I was struck by how he threw himself into what he did. He was so confident and self-aware, someone who was doing what he loved to do—and did well. And he was sharing his talents with all of us.

— Rita Buettner

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8. Pray the rosary (May 2)

In the late afternoon, if the weather is nice and if it is still daylight, I will often take my dog, Bayley, on a long walk – about 3.5 miles. It is certainly my dog’s favorite activity (except for eating) and it is also something I enjoy. I find that a long walk is not only good exercise, but it also clears my head.

But not always. Years ago, when I first started taking long walks, I would use the time to mull over problems and challenges. Before long, though, I found that doing so defeated one of the prime benefits of walking, namely, clearing my head. As I walked along, rolling over in my mind whatever it was that was worrying me, my mind and heart grew more cluttered, not less. In fact, I returned home more worried than ever.

I happened to mention this to a mentor. He proceeded to ask me why I would waste such a valuable opportunity really to clear my mind and heart. “Why don’t you pray the rosary while you walk?” he asked. And he added, “I mean the whole rosary, all four sets of mysteries – the Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful and Glorious.” He was right, of course, but why?

Pope St. John II described the rosary as a prayer in which we see Christ and the saving events of his life “through the eyes of Mary.” As I pray the rosary on my walks, it rescues me from stewing about problems and worries and instead elevates my mind and heart to contemplate all that the Lord said and did for the world’s salvation – and for mine too!

Repeating the Hail Mary over and over again, Christ himself comes more clearly into focus. With Mary’s help, I am reminded how deeply the Lord loves me, what an undeserved grace it is to be an adopted son of the Heavenly Father, and indeed what a grace and joy it is to serve the Church. Along the way, I also remember the many people who ask me to pray for them. As for my problems and worries? I commend them to Christ together with the prayers of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

This doesn’t mean that I’m entirely free of distraction as I walk along the streets of Baltimore. There is plenty to divert my attention away from Christ and his Mother. It might be a helicopter overhead or a flashy new car or the unpleasant scent of marijuana. But the rosary always pulls me back to the Lord and to Mary.

— Archbishop William E. Lori

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9. Cardinal Shehan to the rescue (March 18)

Forty-five years ago, Patti and Donald Matulonis Sr., wanted to have their infant son baptized. But they kept hitting obstacles.

They were parishioners of St. Peter the Apostle Church in Baltimore, but the pastor, Father John Delclos, had fallen ill and left the parish, and there wasn’t a resident priest to baptize little Anthony Jason in early 1979. They asked another parish near their home, but they were turned away since they weren’t members. Anthony’s father didn’t know what to do.

“I got down on my knees and asked the Almighty to help me,” Don said. Not knowing where to turn, he decided to go downtown to the Baltimore Basilica to see if he could speak with Cardinal Lawrence Shehan, hoping he might be willing to intervene.

He talked with the cardinal’s secretary, who told him the cardinal was much too busy to see him.

“When I left the archdiocese that day, I felt alone and crushed. Again, I asked God for help. This time I wept,” Don said. “The thought came to me that I should go to the St. Patrick’s Parade downtown.”

He walked to the reviewing stand outside the Enoch Pratt Central Library to see if he could approach the cardinal.

“When the parade was over, he came out from the reviewing stands,” Don recalled. He walked up to Cardinal Shehan and asked if he could see him for a minute. The cardinal listened as the father explained his problem, how he and his wife wanted to baptize their son but didn’t have a resident priest currently at their parish.

— Rita Buettner

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10. Sadness after the closing of adoption from China (Sept. 8)

On one of our adoption trips to China, we visited an orphanage.

Several of the children there had significant special needs. The director of the orphanage explained that their files would never be put together for international adoption because they knew that no families would adopt them. I wasn’t surprised, but it was still hard to hear. There are moments when you feel completely helpless, and that was one of them for me.

I walked out of that orphanage 13 years ago, but I have never left that visit behind. I think often of the children who never find families, the children whose family are the orphanage staff and the other kids there. I pray that those children have found a way in the world, that they have received all the care they might have needed, and that they have experienced love.

I thought of those children when I learned last week that China has closed its international adoption program. More than 160,000 children have been adopted by families outside of China since 1992, according to Reuters. The closing is a blow to a program that has brought so many families together.

With the closure, families who had been matched with children and waiting—some since 2019 before Covid—will not be able to travel to their children.

Children who had been matched with families—and were likely aware that they were waiting to meet their new parents—will never meet them.

It’s heartbreaking.

Adoption isn’t perfect. It doesn’t solve everything. It doesn’t erase the loss. But it does bring beauty to brokenness. It provides space for love and healing. It creates families. It builds a path for a bright future. At its best, adoption embraces the loss and grief and tragedy, picks it up, and moves into a new chapter with light and hope and love.

— Rita Buettner

Read the full story here

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