Lake County Ohio Weal

   ON LOVE OF THE POOR  Apostolic Exhortation: Dilexi Te Pope Leo CHAPTER ONE A FEW ESSENTIAL WORDS   4. Jesus’ disciples criticized the woman who poured costly perfumed oil on his head. They said: “Why this waste? For this ointment could have been sold for a large sum, and the money given to the poor.”   However, the Lord said to them in response: “You always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me” (Mt 26:8-9,11).   That woman saw in Jesus the lowly and suffering Messiah on whom she could pour out all her love. What comfort that anointing must have brought to the very head that within a few days would be pierced by thorns! It was a small gesture, of course, but those who suffer know how great even a small gesture of affection can be, and how much relief it can bring.   Jesus understood this and told the disciples that the memory of her gesture would endure: “Wherever this good news is proclaime...

  ON LOVE OF THE POOR  Apostolic Exhortation DELIXI TE of Pope Leo 1. “I HAVE LOVED YOU” (Rev 3:9). The Lord speaks these words to a Christian community that, unlike some others, had no influence or resources, and was treated instead with violence and contempt: 2. This declaration of love, taken from the Book of Revelation, reflects the inexhaustible mystery that Pope Francis reflected upon in the Encyclical Dilexit Nos on the human and divine love of the heart of Jesus Christ 3. For this reason, in continuity with the Encyclical Dilexit Nos, Pope Francis was preparing in the last months of his life an Apostolic Exhortation on the Church’s care for the poor, to which he gave the title Dilexi Te, as if Christ speaks those words to each of them, saying: “You have but little power,” yet “I have loved you” ( Rev 3:9).  I am happy to make this document my own — adding some reflections —  

  CNN & AccuWeather: Sugar Drinks and Hot Weather Scientists find a surprising reason why people are eating more sugar Hotter weather makes bodies lose more water, causing people to crave hydration and cooling. By Laura Paddison, CNN (CNN) —  Ice creams, frozen desserts and super-chilled sodas take on a new appeal in  sticky summer heat . As climate change drives hotter temperatures, Americans are consuming more and more of them, new  research  finds, with worrying health consequences. There is plenty of evidence climate change will shape food availability and quality, leading to  shortages ,  price increases  and even affecting  nutritional value , said Pan He, a study author and a lecturer in environmental science and sustainability at Cardiff University. But far less is known about its effects on what we choose to eat and drink, she told CNN. The researchers   scoured US household food purchasing data between 2004 to 2019 allowing...

  The following article was published in the  Church Life Journal , of the McGrath Institute for Church Life, part of the University of Notre Dame: Religious Transmission: A Solution to the Church's Biggest Problem   The regular text below summarizes the article, often directly quoting to give the flavor of the author's comments. The boxes give my analysis and review of the article. The Catholic Churches Biggest Problem??? For over fifty years, the General Social Survey has asked a large, representative sample of Americans a battery of questions, including questions about religion. These data reveal a major problem—indeed, arguably the single biggest problem—for the Catholic Church in the United States. In 1973, 84% of all those raised Catholic still identified as Catholic when surveyed as adults. In 2002, that figure was 74%. By 2022, it had dropped to 62%. More and more of those raised Catholic are leaving. Pew has recently done a fine study of Catholic Identity that I ...

  The Current State of Climate Science

   Envisioning a Livable Future The Current State of Climate Science What’s happening? Are we too late? Can we bend the curve even now? What has changed since 2015? Further, what needs to be done, by when, and how to do it? Speakers:  Katharine Hayhoe, Chief Scientist for the Nature Conservancy & Paul Whitfield Horn Distinguished Professor and Endowed Chair in Public Policy and Public Law, Texas Tech University Ben Sovacool, Director of the Boston University Institute for Global Sustainability and Professor of Earth & Environment, Boston University Nancy Tuchman, Founding Dean of the Loyola University Chicago School of Sustainability and Professor of Biology, Loyola University Chicago

The following article was published in the Church Life Journal , of the McGrath Institute for Church Life, part of the University of Notre Dame: Religious Transmission: A Solution to the Church's Biggest Problem   The text below summarizes the article, often directly quoting to give the flavor of the author's comments. The boxes give my analysis and review of the article. For over fifty years, the General Social Survey has asked a large, representative sample of Americans a battery of questions, including questions about religion. These data reveal a major problem—indeed, arguably the single biggest problem—for the Catholic Church in the United States. In 1973, 84% of all those raised Catholic still identified as Catholic when surveyed as adults. In 2002, that figure was 74%. By 2022, it had dropped to 62%. More and more of those raised Catholic are leaving. Pew has recently done a fine study of Catholic Identity that I have reviewed in my post:   US Catholicism: The...

From Commonweal Magazine   Handing on the Faith: Are Catholic Enclaves the Answer? Paul Baumann August 30, 2025 This article is a response to the following article in Church Life Journal , where Michael Rota and Stephen Bullivant have an analysis of why those who are raised Catholic continue to flee the Church in extraordinary numbers and what might stanch the exodus. Religious Transmission: A Solution to the Church's Biggest Problem  

  STATISTA: Cost of Living is the Biggest Challenge That Americans Face by  Felix Richter,   Sep 1, 2025 While inflation has long come down from its 2021/2022 highs, when it peaked at 9 percent, it is still slightly elevated at 2.7 percent. More importantly though, people are still struggling to cope with the lasting effects of the inflation crisis. According to a Statista Consumer Insights survey conducted in June and July 2025, 49 percent of U.S. adults said that the high cost of living was one of the biggest challenges they currently face – making it by far the most common answer. It is a common misconception that prices come down when inflation cools, when in reality a period of high inflation leaves a legacy of high prices. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. consumer prices have increased 22.7 percent since January 2021, with some categories seeing even steeper price increases than that. Food prices have are up 25 percent, rents have increased almost 2...