The statue of Bl. John Paul II that stands outside of Rome’s Termini train station

Rome, Italy, Jan 10, 2012 / 05:01 pm (CNA).- The much criticized 12-foot bronze sculpture of Blessed John Paul II that stands outside of Rome’s main train station will be revamped.

“I made a design for the sculpture that wasn’t executed well in the foundry,” explained the creator of the artwork, Italian sculptor Oliviero Rainaldi.

“It is not that we have come up with a new statue,” he told CNA on Jan. 10. “We’re correcting those details that weren’t executed well” so that “it will be more faithful to my original idea.”

The redesign will involve replacing the head, modifying the Pope’s cape and touching up the outer coating of paint, since the bronze has oxidized to a light shade of green. The statue will also be raised 15 inches on a new platform, and its lighting will be improved.

When the statue was first unveiled last May, the Vatican’s newspaper L’Osservatore Romano criticized it for bearing “little resemblance’’ to Pope John Paul and described the head as being “excessively spherical.”

The President of Rome’s Cultural Commission, Federico Mollicone, went further, calling it “a permanent and sacrilegious mud stain on his memory.”

The general public also disliked the statue. A poll in the Italian La Repubblica newspaper found that 87 percent of the general public did not care for the piece.

Read the full story here: http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/controversial-john-paul-ii-statue-will-get-makeover/

By Fr. C. John McCloskey III

Way back in 1989 (my, how the years fly by), I wrote an an article for the Christmas edition of the old Crisis magazine entitled “Good Guys Finish First: Ten Reasons to Smile This Christmas.” Over two decades later, I remain bullish on the Catholic Church in America for the New Year of 2012, especially if the year includes persecution and further societal decline.

That’s because the Church flourishes in bad times.

Read Father’s article here: http://www.thecatholicthing.org/columns/2011/desiderata-for-2012.html

Top country singer: This is who I am
‘My fans have responded with great support’

Posted: December 29, 2011
12:20 am Eastern

By Anita Crane
© 2011 WND

Country music star Collin Raye doesn’t just sing his heart out, he also wears his heart on his sleeve.

As spokesman for the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network, Raye boldly defends the fundamental human right to life and calls people to political action.

He recently released “His Love Remains” for the love of God and his late granddaughter, who died at the age of 10 from neurological disorders that impaired her breathing.

“I made a decision years ago, especially during Haley’s illness, to focus on what’s important and my fans responded accordingly,” Raye told WND. “This album is the first time I’ve been able to say, ‘I’m a Christian music artist and I’m lovin’ it!’

“If you take a stand on issues, some people are going to get upset. But for the most part, my fans have responded with great support because they know I’m passionate about my faith and it’s just about deciding to fight the good fight above board and in front of everybody instead of trying to do it behind the scenes.”

Read the rest of the story: http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=381897#ixzz1huS5j7M6

Photo by Jonathan Fowler, courtesy of CollinRaye.com

About the least fashionable thing one can do these days is utter a kind word about the Catholic Church. The idea that the church has been an obstacle to human progress has been elevated to the level of something everybody thinks he knows. But to the contrary, it is to the Catholic Church more than to any other institution that we owe so many of the treasures of Western civilization. Knowingly or not, scholars operated for two centuries under an Enlightenment prejudice that assumes all progress to come from religious skeptics, and that whatever the church touches is backward, superstitious, even barbaric.

Since the mid-20th century, this unscholarly prejudice has thankfully begun to melt away, and professors of a variety of religious backgrounds, or none at all, increasingly acknowledge the church’s contributions.

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/12/25/3337374/the-catholic-church-built-western.html#.Tvlr82SLQp4.facebook#storylink=cpy

Here’s “Gaudete” performed by Anuna

He’s not just away in a manger, He’s at your local Catholic church, maybe your local hospital or in a chapel at the airport you’re traveling through.

Nothing gives me more peace than going directly to the Lord and adoring Him in person – not so much to talk, but to listen. You can go to Him any time of any day. Jesus Christ Almighty is humbly waiting for you in Catholic chapels around the world. Find chapels across the United States and Canada at this marvelous website by the Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament: http://www.acfp2000.com/Chapels/northamerica.htm

Contact the Missionaries of the Blessed Sacrament and read wisdom on the following page, from where I borrowed (or stole!) the image you see to your left: http://www.acfp2000.com/Sections/sec2.htm

Happy Advent & Merry Christmas!

Who is Saint Nicholas? http://www.stnicholascenter.org/pages/who-is-st-nicholas/
What he looked like: http://www.stnicholascenter.org/pages/real-face/
Saint Nicholas in art: http://www.stnicholascenter.org/pages/art/?category_id=3&p=1&n=29

Saint Nicholas, protector of children, pray for all children of God, especially His most vulnerable pre-born little ones!

Sorry to say the Busted Halo Advent calendar is oddly non-Christian, featuring platitudes by celebrities. Wonder why…

By Anita Crane
© 2011 WND

In “The Mighty Macs,” which opens this weekend, Carla Gugino, David Boreanaz, Marley Shelton and Ellen Burstyn take us back to the days when G-rated movies were the norm, not the exception.

Gugino stars in this feel-good movie based on the true story of Coach Cathy Rush, who worked for the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the IHM, and led Immaculata College’s humble team to the first national championship in women’s basketball.

In 1971, Cathy was the 23-year-old bride of NBA referee Ed Rush (Boreanaz) when she chased a challenging job and met the equally challenging Reverend Mother (Burstyn) of the all-girls school in suburban Philadelphia.

When Rush arrived at Immaculata College, there was no gymnasium on campus, the school was in dire financial straits and she had never coached. Yet as the movie motto goes, she dared to dream, and the religious sisters dared to believe.

After writer/director Tim Chambers welcomed Catholic Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia to a red-carpet screening, the archbishop said, “This story of faith and determination is inspirational. The family friendly film reminds us of the power of believing that we can achieve against seemingly insurmountable odds.”

Of course there is much more to the real story behind the movie. Read more here: http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=358585