“We write in order to express our solidarity with you and the Catholic community under your care and all the people of Arizona and throughout the United States who have raised their voices in opposition to Arizona Law SB1070,” the letter read. “This is a law which undermines the fabric of society by creating an atmosphere of discrimination against certain members of the community, profiling minorities and creating fear among persons of color regardless of their immigration status.”

To read the whole article, please click here.

Supporting our Catholic Values in Albany

From the press release:

In his homily to the priests and people of the Diocese of Brooklyn, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, called upon the priests and people of the Diocese of Brooklyn to stand up with him and “besiege The New York Times. Send a message loud and clear that the Pope, our Church, and bishops and our priests will no longer be the personal punching bag of The New York Times.”

Bishop DiMarzio’s spirited defense of the Holy Father was based on the decision of The New York Times editors to, “Omit significant facts,” and ignore the reality that the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which Cardinal Ratzinger headed up, did not have competency over Canonical Trials in 1996. Moreover, Bishop DiMarzio continued “…the priest in question, Father Murphy was in the midst of a Canonical Trial. He died before a verdict was rendered.”

Reflecting on the timing of the stories, DiMarzio stated “Two weeks of articles about a story from many decades ago, in the midst of the Most Holy Season of the Church year is both callous and smacks of calumny!” He continued “This evening, I am asking you to join me making your displeasure known to the editors by letters or emails.”

The rest of the homily is embargoed until 8 p.m. Stay tuned.

Rocco Palmo, author of the blog Whispers in the Loggia, will be contributing regularly to “Currents,” the daily news show broadcast on New Evangelization Television (NET), the cable station of the Diocese of Brooklyn. The program airs every Monday-Friday at 7:30 pm, with an encore at 11:30. It is also available with live streaming at www.currentsny.net.

Bringing the outlook and analysis that have made Whispers “required reading” for Catholic insiders in the US, Rome and beyond, Palmo will add his own unique stamp to “Currents.”

“We’re delighted to have Rocco joining our team,” News Director Deacon Greg Kandra said. “There is simply no one else out there covering the church with his level of passion and dedication. I know his insights will only enhance a news program that is already unlike any other in the world.”

For his part, Palmo said he was “thrilled” to become part of the NET news team. “The Church can only proclaim the Good News when it’s honest about the day’s news,” Palmo said. “It’s rare to find a place that combines both, but just as I’ve aimed to do that through Whispers, I’ve found a kindred spirit in the Currents crew.” He added, “And when you can cover the Church from the ‘City of Churches,’ well, what’s not to like?”

Cited worldwide for his expertise on the church-beat and as a pioneer of the church’s engagement of new technologies, Catholic News Service has dubbed Palmo “The Church Whisperer” – a title he’s held since December 2004, when Whispers in the Loggia was launched from his parents’ basement with a founding audience of three. Grown since by nothing but word of mouth, and kept alive throughout thanks to its readers’ support, at last count the blog had logged over 12 million readers over the last three years alone.

A former US correspondent for the London-based international Catholic weekly The Tablet, Palmo’s served as a church analyst for The New York Times, Associated Press, BBC, NBC, National Public Radio, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and a host of other print and broadcast outlets worldwide.

A Philadelphia native, Palmo earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania. The Whispers scribe will receive a first-ever honor for Catholic new media this spring as Palmo receives an honorary doctorate from St Louis’ Aquinas Institute of Theology, and delivers its 2010 commencement address.

NET is a Catholic-centered cable TV network based in Brooklyn, New York and is a service of Trans Video Communications. Check us out both on-air in the New York area on Cablevision channel 30, Time Warner Cable channel 97 and online at NETNY.NET.

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