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By: Tom Dermody - May 21, 2021 -
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Deacon Nicolas Wilson is pictured outside the church of his home parish, St. Jude in Peoria. He and Deacon Austin Bosse will be ordained to the priesthood at St. Mary's Cathedral in Peoria on Saturday, May 29. (The Catholic Post/Tom Dermody)
Wherever Deacon Nicolas Wilson is assigned to serve in the 26-county Diocese of Peoria after he is ordained to the priesthood on May 29, the odds are good that he’s been there before. The son of Richard and Lori Wilson of Dunlap attended Catholic elementary schools in Chillicothe and Kickapoo and high school at Peoria […]
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By: Tom Dermody - May 21, 2021 -
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Deacon Austin Bosse is pictured outside St. Matthew Church in Champaign, where he will offer his first Mass the morning after his May 29 ordination to the priesthood. (The Catholic Post/Tom Dermody)
After years of ignoring or saying “no” to inner callings to consider the priesthood, Deacon Austin Bosse realized he was arguing with God and wasn’t going to win that battle. When he finally shared the history of those proddings with Msgr. Brian Brownsey after an Emmaus Days retreat, the priest just laughed. “You know you […]
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By: The Catholic Post - May 20, 2021 -
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Father John Burns, who was granted senior status on March 1, is pictured with gifts he received May 2 from members of the three parishes he served since 2005 -- St. John the Apostle in Woodhull, St. John the Evangelist in Galva, and St. John Vianney in Cambridge. The gifts included a handcrafted Hemlock wood portable altar, a handmade missal stand, altar linens and a blud vesperal cloth. (Provided photo)
Twenty-five priests are receiving new assignments in a series of appointments announced this month by Bishop Daniel R. Jenky, CSC. (Click here for the full list.) While most of the appointments take effect on Wednesday, June 9, the transition to senior status of Father John Burns, 75, was granted on March 1. Father Burns had […]
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By: The Catholic Post - May 5, 2021 -
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Father Thomas Taylor gives the homily at the May 3 funeral Mass for Msgr. William Watson at St. Paul Church in Odell. (Screenshot from Watson-Thomas Funeral Home livestream)
EDITOR’S NOTE: Following is the full text of the homily at the May 3 funeral Mass at St. Paul Church in Odell for Msgr. William Watson. (See obituary here.) The homilist was Father Thomas Taylor, who served with Msgr. Watson at St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Peoria Heights for 12 years. An archived video […]
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By: The Catholic Post - April 29, 2021 -
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Msgr. William Watson
ODELL — A funeral Mass will be celebrated at St. Paul Church here at 11 a.m. on Monday, May 3, for Msgr. William Watson, a senior priest of the Diocese of Peoria who served as pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Peoria Heights for 34 years. Msgr. Watson died on Tuesday, April 27, […]
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By: The Catholic Post - March 5, 2021 -
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Pope Francis signs a book with a message for Syriac Catholics at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Deliverance in Baghdad March 5. Also pictured, from left: Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignace Joseph III Younan, Syriac Catholic Archbishop Ephrem Yousif Mansoor Abba of Baghdad and Chaldean Patriarch Louis Sako of Baghdad. (CNS/Vatican Media via Reuters)
BAGHDAD (CNS) — Visiting a Baghdad cathedral “hallowed by the blood of our brothers and sisters” murdered in a terrorist attack that shook the world, Pope Francis said their sacrifice must motivate faith and a commitment to working for the common good. The Syriac Catholic Cathedral of Our Lady of Deliverance, sometimes referred to as […]
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By: The Catholic Post - March 3, 2021 -
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Women stand near a poster of Pope Francis in Baghdad on March 3. Pope Francis plans to visit Iraq March 5-8. (CNS photo/Khalid al-Mousily, Reuters)
By Cindy Wooden / Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) — On the same day that 10 rockets hit an air base in Iraq, Pope Francis said he had to travel to the country because he could not disappoint them. “The Iraqi people are waiting for us; they awaited St. John Paul II, who was […]
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By: Jennifer Willems - February 25, 2021 -
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OTTAWA — Clara O’Neal never intended to write a book. But words came to her one day, so she wrote them down. “The words just came from my heart — they came from God ultimately,” said the Power Preschool teacher at Marquette Academy. “It was something he wanted me to do and I never set […]
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By: Jennifer Willems - February 25, 2021 -
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GERMANTOWN HILLS — Joyce Heiple knows well enough by now that if God wants something, she’ll get the message if she’s willing to listen. That’s what she hopes her new book, “Grace Through the Seasons,” will help others do, too. She’s so attentive to God’s grace because “it’s what’s made me who I am,” she […]
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By: Tom Dermody - February 25, 2021 -
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A friend refers to Steve Mamanella as the “Catholic Forrest Gump” because of his involvement in several major church events, including the visits of two future saints — Mother Teresa to Peoria in 1995 and Pope John Paul II to St. Louis in 1999. But if life is like a box of chocolates, as Gump’s […]
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