Georgia Bulletin

Georgia

• 8 spiritual tools for families

  

  By ANDREW NELSON, Staff Writer
  Published August 29, 2013

  ATLANTA—As a mother of two and a longtime leader in teaching the Catholic faith, Rosanne Bowen has tools that can help families pulled apart by today’s fast-paced world to come together. “Mothers have always been busy, and fathers. With technology, it has filled in all the spare time,” she said. Families now have to make […]

• March set direction for his life’s work

  

  By GRETCHEN KEISER, Staff Writer
  Published August 29, 2013

  Attending the March on Washington 50 years ago solidified the commitment of 22-year-old Charles Prejean to make “human betterment” his life’s work. Prejean, 72, the director of the Office for Black Catholic Ministry, looks back on hearing Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech and the unfinished goals of the march. How did you get […]

• ‘Cyberpilgrim’ sister urges use of Internet to spread the faith

  By ANDREW NELSON, Staff Writer
  Published August 29, 2013

  ATLANTA—As people video chat with friends, send Tweets, and post instant photos on Facebook, religious educators need to become “digital disciples” to continue to spread the faith. And it is a sister in a century-old religious community who is encouraging people to embrace social networks, blogging and “Web 2.0.” “We are in a participatory culture,” […]

• Archdiocesan office facilitates forming the faithful

  

  By SUZANNE HAUGH Special to the Bulletin
  Published August 29, 2013

  ATLANTA—There’s no question that Cathy Marbury and others of the Office of Formation and Discipleship receive a thorough workout helping pastors and catechists from 88 parishes and 11 missions across 69 counties that are home to an estimated 1 million Catholics. Serving the diverse catechetical needs of these parish communities is akin to playing dodge […]

• Growing in the faith requires lifelong dedication

  By SUZANNE HAUGH Special to the Bulletin
  Published August 29, 2013

  ATLANTA—Embracing more of the faith through study begins anew in every parish on Catechetical Sunday, Sept. 15. Amy Daniels, the director of the Office of Formation and Discipleship in the Atlanta Archdiocese, spoke at the beginning of this important milestone in parish life about the vital importance of lifelong dedication to growing in the Catholic […]

• Archbishop: Many ‘great souls’ advanced civil rights movement

  Published August 28, 2013

  ATLANTA—On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the historic March on Washington, Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory answered these questions from The Georgia Bulletin about its significance and his reflections as a Catholic and African-American then and now. What is your memory of the original March on Washington, where you were, and how acutely aware […]

• Deacon elected officer of National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus

  Published August 19, 2013

  Deacon Jerry Lett of the Atlanta Archdiocese was elected treasurer of the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus during the organization’s joint conference with other black Catholic associations in Chicago July 28-Aug. 1. The National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus is an organization based in Montgomery, Ala., that brings together black Catholic priests and religious brothers, and […]

• Schools renovated for greater security

  

  By ANDREW NELSON, Staff Writer
  Published August 15, 2013

  ATLANTA—Students at Catholic schools will be returning to classrooms with enhanced security on some campuses, with the addition of new alarms, greater control of access and closer relationships with local police departments. “Like everybody, after the Newtown tragedy, (security) was on everybody’s radar,” said Frank Moore, the long-time principal at Blessed Trinity High School, Roswell. […]

• Our Lady of the Assumption parishioner wears a gold medal

  Published August 15, 2013

  Our Lady of the Assumption parishioner Kate Ward traveled to Sofia, Bulgaria, this summer, participating in the 2013 Deaflympics, hosted by the International Committee of Sports for the Deaf. Kate, the daughter of Tony and Joan Ward, is a member of the U.S. Deaf National Women’s Soccer Team. She scored the first goal against the […]

• New leader is second-generation Catholic school administrator

  By ANDREW NELSON, Staff Writer
  Published August 15, 2013

  ATLANTA—Rebecca Hammel is the new associate superintendent in the Office of Catholic Schools for the Archdiocese of Atlanta. She started in the number two administrative post this summer, moving from serving as a principal in Catholic schools in Texas and Indiana. She answered some questions about her background, experience and new role. Q. Where did […]

• Faith community celebrates new pastor

  Published August 15, 2013

  Bishop David P. Talley joined with the community of St. John Neumann Church in Lilburn to celebrate the installation of the community’s new pastor. Father Sunny Punnakuziyil is the spiritual leader of the Lilburn parish.  He is a member of the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales. Bishop Talley is a former pastor of St. […] Full Story

• New young adult leader seeks to help others find Christ

  By MARY ANNE CASTRANIO, Staff writer
  Published August 15, 2013

  ATLANTA—Alejandro (Alex) Rodriguez has taken on the leadership of the young adult community in the Atlanta Archdiocese. He was named the new YAM director in July by Amy Daniels, director of the Office of Formation and Discipleship. Daniels said, “The OFD has been under construction since the end of 2011,” with an important aspect of […] Full Story

• Looking Back: Aug. 15, 1963

  Published August 15, 2013

  The fascinating early history of the Catholic Center at the University of Georgia in Athens was the subject of a column by Father R. Donald Kiernan in the Aug. 8, 1963 edition of The Georgia Bulletin. Father Kiernan’s “Georgia Pines” column gave him a place to introduce many of the more unusual and interesting parts […]

• Holy Family Parish celebrates 40 years as a faith community in Cobb

  By GRETCHEN KEISER, Staff Writer
  Published August 15, 2013

  MARIETTA—While the landscape has changed completely, some of the people who filled the church were remarkably the same. Couples who started Holy Family Church greeted each other at the 40th anniversary Mass July 10 after a standing-room-only liturgy celebrated by Bishop Luis R. Zarama. “This was farmland when the church was built. There was a […] Full Story

• Free English classes give immigrants freedom, better opportunities

  By LINDSAY WOOD Special to the Bulletin
  Published August 15, 2013

  ATLANTA—Last year Catholic Charities Atlanta’s English Literacy and Civics program improved the lives of 144 non-English speaking immigrants one syllable at a time. This federally funded grant program teaches adult students English within a cultural context. Increasing the students’ language proficiency not only helps immigrants find better job opportunities and earn citizenship, but it allows […]

• iConnect Singles celebrates second anniversary

  By CHRISTINE ZIMMERMAN, Special to the Bulletin
  Published August 15, 2013

  ATLANTA—In late 2010, a small group of single adult Catholics from the Atlanta Archdiocese found themselves often hanging out together and discussing how they had “no place to go” when it came to a singles community in which they felt comfortable. Feeling out of place in young adult groups but not yet ready for senior […]

• In Denver, Rome, Paris, World Youth Day changed their lives

  By ERIKA ANDERSON Special to the Bulletin
  Published August 1, 2013

  ATLANTA—The top shelf in Khristina Followell’s office is covered with World Youth Day memorabilia, and the memories have never left her heart. Followell, 36, has attended three World Youth Days—Denver in 1993, Rome, Italy, in 2000 and Toronto, Canada, in 2002. The former parishioner of Good Shepherd Church in Cumming now lives in Knoxville, Tenn., […] Full Story

• Villa International: An oasis of friendship in Decatur

  

  By JEAN DRISKELL, Special to the Bulletin
  Published August 1, 2013

  DECATUR—Just north of Emory University and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is an oasis called Villa International Atlanta on Clifton Road, where people from around the world come to study and do research at Emory’s Rollins School of Public Health and the CDC, as well attend other universities and seminaries in Atlanta. The […]

• Planning ahead for immigration reform

  

  By ANDREW NELSON, Staff Writer
  Published August 1, 2013

  SMYRNA—Some 70 pastors and lay leaders attended the first public meeting of the Atlanta Archdiocese’s Immigration Reform Task Force July 19, as federal lawmakers wrestle with renewed attempts to rewrite the nation’s immigration laws. The goal of the task force is to organize people in parishes and church social services to prepare for what they […] Full Story

• The blooming of youth

  By FATHER JAMES S. BEHRENS, OCSO, Commentary
  Published August 1, 2013

  I recently baptized my new grandniece, Mary Margaret Michalak. My sister Mary had everyone over to her house after the ceremony. Mary and Brian now have eight grandchildren and they all live in the Atlanta area. And they are all young—there are several toddlers among them. And they all came to the party. And they […] Full Story