Legendary director Alfred Hitchcock once said, "In feature films the director is God; in documentary films God is the director." And considering all the stories about how the auteur treated star Tippi Hedren, it certainly seems like he had a bit of a God-complex himself. Now, a church in Astoria is exploring the world of "Hitchcock and the Catholic Conscious" with a free film series! more ›

Newly-installed Archbishop Timothy Dolan is continuing to make his presence felt in the media, keeping open discussions about hot button issues such as gay marriage and the possibility of marriage within the priesthood. Dolan seems to be making a concentrated effort to put a positive spin on the church's stance on topics that he knows might not sit well in a town as socially liberal as New York. more ›

Governor Paterson held a press conference today introducing legislation to legalize gay marriage in New York. The governor was not the least bit tepid in his strong support of the issue, saying he has been on record as an advocate for same-sex marriage since 1994. The state's first black governor drew a strong connection between the fight for marital rights and the abolition movement, citing the names of Harriet Beecher Stowe and Frederick Douglass. Paterson said: more ›

Standing on the steps in front of St. Patrick's Cathedral with a Bible in his hand, incoming Archbishop Timothy Dolan spoke to reporters for the first time since arriving into town. Dolan did not waste any time addressing hot button topics for the church, such as the possibility of New York legalizing gay marriage. He said, "If we let that definition of marriage go and begin to include other relationships, it will be to a detriment to the civilization." But Dolan tried to stay positive saying that "we support them...(and) will defend their rights." He also plans to fight the popular notion that the church is unenlightened saying, "I think we Catholics just need to stand up and say, 'we're above the times, we're timeless in our beliefs in our values and in our ethics and in our morality, and we don't take our cue from the winds and the trends of the day." Dolan will be installed as archbishop Wednesday afternoon at St. Patrick's. When asked about the responsibility of leading 2.5 million Catholics, he said, "I hope at my core, I hear Jesus say, 'Timothy be not afraid.'" more ›

When it comes to the Catholic church in this city, Brooklyn and Queens tend to get left out in the cold. A lot of people don't even realize while reading headlines about the cardinal that the Archdiocese of New York doesn't even include our boroughs on Long Island. So how have they decided to grab our attention during the homestretch of the Liturgical Calendar? By posting an ad for confession that parodies the much beloved ShamWow! commercial of course! more ›

As he prepares to retire in just a few weeks as archbishop of New York, Cardinal Egan has made some open-ended remarks about the possibility of marriage in the priesthood. In a radio interview with Fred Dicker, Egan said, “I think that it’s going to be discussed; it’s a perfectly legitimate discussion...I think it has to be looked at. And I am not so sure it wouldn’t be a good idea to decide on the basis of geography and culture not to make an across-the-board determination.” Naturally with such a hot button issue that is rarely addressed by as major of a church figure as Egan (and the conservative cardinal in particular), figures from both sides of the issue are downplaying/lauding it accordingly. Neither spokespeople for Egan nor incoming Archbishop Dolan would comment—Dolan notably squashed the issue when his priests in Milwaukee attempted to bring it to the table. One priest told the Times that no matter how people read Egan's remarks, "It was kind of brave for him to say what everybody’s been thinking." more ›