Pope Benedict XVI - 60 Years A Priest!

On June 29, 1951 a young Joseph Ratzinger became Fr. Ratizinger, ordained to the priesthood after years of study in Munich, Germany. The young Ratzinger, who we know today as Pope Benedict XVI grew up with a father who was a policeman and a mother who, before marriage, worked as a cook in a number of hotels.

Joseph Ratzinger's youthful years were not easy, experiencing the Nazi regime and a hostile attitude towards people of faith, especially Catholics. The future pope has told the story of witnessing Nazis beating the parish priest prior to the celebration of the Eucharist.

We don't have a crystal ball to see what's around the corner but it was clear that God had a plan for Fr. Ratzinger who went on to become a well known and respected professor of theology, providing notable contributions to the Second Vatican Council.

Much has been written regarding his contributions to the church as Archbishop and later Cardinal, well known in the Roman Curia, most notably as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, among other high profile positions.

As Catholics, we see Pope Benedict XVI as the Vicar of Christ for our family of faith - it may be difficult to picture him as a young priest, an empty book with chapters of ministry and pastoral service waiting to be written. Now we know that this book is indeed filled with pages upon pages of service, counsel, prayer and witness - all elements that each one of us is called to as people of faith.

On the 60th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood, perhaps we can best leave it to the Pontiff himself to share his own reflections on the importance of priests in our world. Below you'll find an excerpt from his letter to seminarians, released in October of 2010. It's a good reminder to us all - in a world that may suggest otherwise, there is still plenty of room for the priesthood:

"When in December 1944 I was drafted for military service, the company commander asked each of us what we planned to do in the future. I answered that I wanted to become a Catholic priest. The lieutenant replied: “Then you ought to look for something else. In the new Germany priests are no longer needed”.

I knew that this “new Germany” was already coming to an end, and that, after the enormous devastation which that madness had brought upon the country, priests would be needed more than ever. Today the situation is completely changed. In different ways, though, many people nowadays also think that the Catholic priesthood is not a “job” for the future, but one that belongs more to the past.

You, dear friends, have decided to enter the seminary and to prepare for priestly ministry in the Catholic Church in spite of such opinions and objections. You have done a good thing. Because people will always have need of God, even in an age marked by technical mastery of the world and globalization: they will always need the God who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, the God who gathers us together in the universal Church in order to learn with him and through him life’s true meaning and in order to uphold and apply the standards of true humanity.

Where people no longer perceive God, life grows empty; nothing is ever enough. People then seek escape in euphoria and violence; these are the very things that increasingly threaten young people. God is alive. He has created every one of us and he knows us all. He is so great that he has time for the little things in our lives: “Every hair of your head is numbered”. God is alive, and he needs people to serve him and bring him to others. It does makes sense to become a priest: the world needs priests, pastors, today, tomorrow and always, until the end of time."

So to the 24 year old discerning today, we need you. And lots more like you. To Pope Benedict XVI we say thank you for saying yes to the call and for 60 years of shepherding your flock, from Germany to Rome and to our entire global faith community. Happy Anniversary, Grazie & Danke!

Photos: CNN, Archdiocese of Toronto

Roman Missal Updates

This September will see plenty of action when it comes to the implementation of the new translation of the Roman Missal, with the bulk of pastoral preparation beginning at that time. At present, parishes have been provided with a number of resources should they wish to get started on educating their parishioners, music ministers and all those who will be impacted by this historic change.

Bishop John Boissonneau, Vicar of Liturgy and Chair of the Archdiocesan Roman Missal Implementation Committee sent communication last week to all parishes in the Archdiocese providing numerous updates to help fill in some of the gaps in response to questions that have been coming in. Part of the challenge is waiting for final approval on certain issues as well as resources from the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.

At the Catholic Media Convention in Pittsburgh last week, I had the chance to attend a most interesting workshop on the new translation from the USCCB Director of Liturgy. We face similar challenges on both sides of the border and the United States and Canada are both beginning official implementation of the new Roman Missal on the same date, the first Sunday of Advent in late November 2011.

Some excerpts from Bishop Boissonneau's communique to parishes can be found below for those who may be interested in learning a little more about plans for the fall:

1. We have been informed by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) that both the English translation of the revised Roman Missal and General Instruction (GIRM) will take effect in dioceses throughout Canada on the First Sunday of Advent (November 27/28, 2011). Archbishop Collins has authorized that parishes may begin to learn the new, sung mass settings and employ them in the liturgy as of September 25, 2011. Other than these settings, the newly translated prayers (collects, prefaces, etc.) of the Missal may not be used without specific permission before the First Sunday of Advent.

2. Four musical settings have been approved by the Bishops for use in Canada: three commissioned by the CCCB and the “Chants of the Roman Missal” by the ICEL (International Commission on English in the Liturgy). Thus, in addition to the setting which will be found in the Missal, the CCCB also approved these settings as presented in “Celebrate in Song”:

"Mass Setting A" by Fr. Geoffrey Angeles,
"Mass Setting B" (Mass of the Holy Family) by John Dawson,
"Mass Setting C" by Michel Guimont.

To help provide a spirit of unity and collaboration for all those involved in assisting our parishioners in full and active participation in the Eucharist, we are inviting parishes to utilize two settings during the first year of implementation of the new Roman Missal. We must be fully aware that all other settings presently being used are not to be employed in the parishes after the First Sunday of Advent because they do not reflect the new translation. This will be a significant change for choirs and cantors.

You are invited to choose from a) ICEL Chants setting and b) one of the approved three CCCB sung settings. You can hear the settings by visiting our resources page of the Archdiocesan Roman Missal site: www.archtoronto.org/romanmissal/resources.htm.

This will allow parishioners, music ministers and clergy to collaborate on teaching and implementing musical settings that will become familiar to congregations at all masses. Please note: all the mass settings presently being used at parish liturgies need to be replaced by the new authorized settings effective the First Sunday of Advent 2011. The desire for a unity of musical settings in your parish may be challenging but your guidance and encouragement will make this exercise of decision-making a positive moment in liturgical renewal.

4. We are aware that parishes have received other musical settings, including those from the United States. In order to foster unity, we ask all parishes to use the mass settings from the CCCB for the first year of implementation. Your cooperation is appreciated in adopting this approach in your parish.

Thank you to all those who participated in the recent workshop related to the music settings presented in “Celebrate in Song” and approved for use in Canada. More than 450 people were in attendance for the gathering, a wonderful response to the first of many planned sessions with parish musicians..

The communication also included a link for those parishes wishing to delve into more in depth study this summer regarding the Roman Missal, with suggested resources available to review at www.archtoronto.org/romanmissal/resources.htm.

You can be assured that parishioners will be hearing plenty of information about the new translation this fall, with bulletin inserts, pew cards, catechesis and other "hands on" information regarding this historic moment of evangelization and catechesis for North America.

The important thing for all to keep in mind is that we're not just changing some of the words that are used in the celebration of mass, we hope the experience will provide an opportunity for Eucharistic renewal, to allow all Catholics to reflect on how we can all engage in more active participation in the pinnacle of our faith journey as we gather as a faith community each week.

This transition will not be an easy one so feel free to get the prayers rollin' early for all involved in bringing the new translation to life!

Stay tuned as you'll be hearing a whole lot more both in these pages, the Archdiocesan website and your own parish in the months ahead!

Communicators Gather in Pittsburgh #cmc11

This week in Pittsburgh, hundreds of Catholic communicators from North America (with at least one from Australia and Italy) have come together for the annual Catholic Media Convention. 2011 marks the 100th anniversary of the CPA, the main sponsor of the event.

There's also a good number of Canadians present for the convention, which was held in Toronto just a few years back. About 20 of us are doing our best to represent the true north strong and free, with Canadian communicators from both sides of the country and all points in between present.

The Canadian contingent held a session Tuesday to kick things off as we discussed a most interesting topic, The Rules of Engagement in the Blogosphere, essentially an open conversation about the role of blogs and other social media, how we interact with them, use them ourselves and their contributions to the greater Catholic community.

I was part of a panel that included Deb Gyapong (journalist, author and blogger) as well as John Thavis who is a veteran of the Vatican press corps, covering issues for Catholic News Service from Rome. It provided an opportunity to share some great insights from different perspectives (diocesan, journalist & independent bloggers). John was also able to provide some first hand reporting based from his participation in the Vatican's recent mini-conference on blogging.

One interesting discussion centered around the use of published material in blogs. Is it ethical for bloggers to pull articles that are published and reprint them in full on their own blog when newspapers and news service outlets are paying staff to write the pieces as well as charging other publications to reprint them? If people are "pulling them for free" can these news services continue to sustain themselves? A similar argument was made about pictures. Recognizing this can't be enforced is a huge problem but is there a "code of conduct" or certain bar of expectations that should be leveled for bloggers out there?

All in all, a great exchange between panelists and those in attendance for the session. As social media is constantly in flux, there are no definitive answers, rather strategies and sharing that provided important insights from a variety of perspectives.

Some of the most helpful "moments" are found during the informal discussions on the convention floor between sessions. As participants represent a wide range of vocations (from Catholic publications to Communications Directors, some wearing both hats) you tend to get a few pointers, free advice or some plain old venting in your travels. Consider it a support group of sorts...

Msgr. Paul Tighe from the Pontifical Council for Social Communications in Rome is also present in Pittsburgh - great to see Vatican representation on the ground here to get a pulse on the opportunities and challenges facing Catholic communicators in 2011.

Personal development, fellowship, prayer and strategic thinking - not a bad combination and a wealth of knowledge coming together this week in Steeler country...

Location:Pittsburgh, PA

A Communicator Called Home to God...

On a sombre note, it's with great sadness that we mourn the passing of a colleague in communication this week. Mary Jo Deighan, who served faithfully as the Manager of Communications for the Toronto Catholic District School Board for many years, succumbed to cancer this past Friday. Mary Jo battled the disease on and off for the last couple of years. She faced her diagnosis with as much of a positive attitude, prayerful disposition and good cheer than could ever be expected.

We intersect regularly with our colleagues in communication at the five english Catholic school boards in the Archdiocese. It's important to maintain regular contact with these communication channels as so much of our work overlaps and we collectively work together to nurture the home, school and parish triad.

During difficult days for the TCDSB, Mary Jo battled not only complex communication issues but her own personal health challenges yet always had time for colleagues and maintained a watching brief on issues as long as was possible. I can still recall with embarassment reaching her by cell phone on an "urgent" matter only to learn that she was in the midst of a chemotherapy treatment, IV in arm and cheerfully reassuring me that it was no problem to call as her treatments went on for the better part of the day and it was an opportunity to catch up on phone calls and emails.

With Catholic Education at the forefront of many discussions in our own Catholic family or to the community beyond our family of faith, we are constantly looking for the success stories, the good news to share, the examples to point to of those who are strengthening our community and the overall system. Mary Jo is one such example of this lived faith in action.

At the end of the day, in our publicly funded Catholic system, we hope that our graduates will embrace the following traits, what we refer to as the Expectations of the Catholic Graduate:

A Discerning Believer Formed in the Catholic Faith Community
An Effective Communicator
A Reflective and Creative Thinker
A Self-Directed, Responsible, Life-Long Learner
A Collaborative Contributor
A Caring Family Member
A Responsible Citizen

As spokesperson (among many other duties) for the TCDSB, Mary Jo embodied the attributes the board sought in its graduates in all of her actions. Gone too young at the age of 54, we mourn her loss but know that she is now at peace, directing communications of a different sort, surrounded by love, free of pain and filled with joy.

Our condolences go out to her family as well as the TCDSB community and all those who mourn her loss.

Working in Catholic communications presents its own set of great challenges. Yet we are blessed by those we encounter in this field - those who have a passion for their work, see their day to day tasks not as a job but a ministry; those who truly believe that faith is infused in the work they do. When you can begin a meeting with a prayer and sometimes end it with a hug, you know you're in a circle of trust.

As communicators, we field plenty of calls. Mary Jo's last call was the most precious - for now, she is home.

Dad & Father...Thank You.

Father's Day is upon us. Yes, it's that time of year when Hallmark salivates at the prospect of selling millions of cards and propane suppliers hail the increased sale of bbq tanks for the Sunday afternoon celebrations that will likely ensue!

Just remember that Sunday morning also gives us a chance to thank the other "fathers" in our lives: priests who faithfully serve the flock each week in parishes around the world. In the Archdiocese of Toronto reside more than 800 priests: half serve as diocesan clergy while the other half represent religious communities and are usually a little more nomadic in nature.

This spiritual squad of 800 serve a Catholic population of 1.8 million in the Archdiocese. Now that's what you call an extended family.

You can also draw many parallels between "Dad" and "Fr. John" - both likely have experienced sleepless nights, up to care for the flock at all hours or worrying about the family for whom they provide. They befriend others who assist us in strengthening the community around us and they sometimes have to make tough decisions, ones which we don't always understand but ultimately are meant with the "big" picture in mind.

When I think of my own journey, I also draw parallels between Dad and Father by reflecting on key life decisions, talks, prayer and advice that has been invaluable as I've navigated the ups and downs of life. Both my own dad and priests I've come to know as friends have provided the fatherly insight that is most welcome, a sober second thought in unique or challenging circumstances.

Dad and Father have provided those pearls of wisdom, stood alongside us as a loved one struggles through illness, demonstrated by example the values of honesty, charity and love.
Whether it be as a young one or not so young one, you just feel the world is a little less intimidating with Dad or Father beside you.

Since early days in the history of our Church, the title "Father" has been used for religious leaders. Bishops, our shepherds of the flock and teachers of the faith, were given the title "Father." Until about the year 400, a bishop was called "papa" for Father - at that time, the title was left solely to addressing the Bishop of Rome, the successor of St. Peter, and in English we settled on the word "pope." At any Wednesday audience at the Vatican, you'll hear chants of Il Papa resound throughout St. Peter's Square.

It's often said that we don't take the time to say thank you to those close to us, sadly, at times, until it's too late to do so. In that spirit, this weekend, whether it's Dad or Father, take a moment to say thank you for the many blessings these men have brought to our lives. They deserve to hear those words now - it doesn't cost a penny but can change the day from overcast to sunny skies.

To all the dads, dads-in-law, dads in spirit and all the priests, bishops, archbishops, cardinals and popes we've been honoured to call "Father", we say thank you for making an impact on us that you may never realize. Yet, as shepherd of hearts and souls, your legacy will live on in so many whom you've impacted around you!

So while you may not all get a Hallmark card this weekend you've got our life-long respect, admiration and gratitude. Thanks to this little warm fuzzy, you won't be getting any dress socks...that may be the best news of all!

St. Joseph, patron saint of Fathers, pray for us!

Graphic: desktoppublishing.com

Ongoing Maintenance - $30 Million...

The next time you’re faced with an overwhelming home reno, consider this: collectively, the Catholic, Anglican and United Churches own 3,000 buildings in the province, requiring $30 million to operate annually. Another $30 million is spent on maintaining “historic properties” – that’s a lot of shingles.

Before there were town halls or schools, arenas or the local Tim Horton’s, parishes were the spiritual and community hub of Ontario society, bringing people together to strengthen the neighbourhood. Over the years though, the role of the parish as community centre has changed, and so have the neighborhoods they serve.

While many historic churches continue to thrive, sadly, some churches are facing significant challenges, often the result of a dwindling congregation, with little or no funds to maintain their facilities. While desirable, maintaining all of these churches is just not feasible.

A “heritage designation” has been applied to about 12% of the 3000 churches in the province. Designated churches have to get permission from their municipal council to change in any way the parts of the building that are considered culturally significant, often including the pews, windows, altars and other parts of the building used for worship. So if the bishops, priests and laity agree that it makes the most sense to renovate or (as a last resort) demolish a church that is no longer viable, they don’t even have the ability to CONSIDER such activity.

In the Archdiocese of Toronto, 100 years ago, churches were predominantly constructed in the downtown core where the population was concentrated, with some churches just a few blocks from each other. Fast forward a century: most young families now settle in the suburbs. The result? An abundance of churches downtown while those in outlying regions find themselves hard pressed to meet increased attendance.

The cost of maintaining church buildings that are no longer viable siphons funds away from other churches or ministries. Dioceses are simply not capable of financing the long-term preservation of historic buildings they no longer use. Until 2005, the Ontario Heritage Act allowed that churches could make decisions about the use of their properties based solely on the needs of their congregations and those they served. However, changes to the Ontario Heritage Act in 2005 gave municipalities the authority to permanently block demolition or alteration of historic buildings.

Criteria for deciding whether a site should be designated under the Heritage Act are so general any church in Ontario could be said to meet them – a property just has to have “direct associations with a theme, event, belief, person, activity, organization or institution that is significant to a community.” City Councils, meanwhile, face no negative consequences if they designate a property with little or no historic value. Designation can even be used to block unpopular changes — one council in southwestern Ontario used the Heritage Act to designate a golf course that was proposed for redevelopment.

To address this issue, the Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Culture has been in close collaboration over the last two years with a diverse interfaith group, gaining valuable input around the realities faced by religious communities. A draft Guideline addressing issues around Historic Places of Worship has been posted and can be accessed online at www.archtoronto.org/heritage.

The Environmental Registry of the Ontario government is requesting comments from the public on the guidelines by June 19 before they are finalized. The hope is that the document will provide guidance on the conservation, protection, disposal and demolition of heritage properties built or adapted as places of worship in Ontario.

The ultimate goal? Keeping places of worship alive and relevant while journeying with faith communities as they weigh difficult decisions on the conservation and stewardship of heritage places of worship.

Now, doesn’t fixing your roof sound so much easier?

Photo: Stonegate Masons

(The post above also appears in the June 12 edition of the Catholic Register).

2 Priests: 130 Years of Service

We often hear about couples celebrating their "golden" anniversary, commemorating 50 years of commitment and dedication to one another. This past weekend, the Archdiocese had the chance to celebrate an historic occasion in our diocese - two brothers, a third deceased who have given their life to the church - more than a century of commitment that is worthy of our admiration and prayers.

When a priest celebrates a milestone like a "golden" anniversary to the priesthood you take notice. But our diocese has the good fortune of recognizing not just one but two milestone anniversaries well beyond the "golden" landmark.

Msgr. Gerard Breen celebrated 70 years or ordination and his brother, Basil, marked 60 years as a priest with a Mass and luncheon at St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Markham on June 5. Even more remarkable, a third brother Bill also served many years as a priest in the Archdiocese, passing away in 1994.

Rather than rewrite an already well written story about the Breen brothers, below you'll find this week's story from the Catholic Register's Luc Rinaldi, highlighting the tremendous vocation story and contributions made by the family over 130 years. Nothing short of inspiring for us all!

TORONTO - When Gerard and Basil Breen were in the seminary, Cardinal James McGuigan, then the archbishop of Toronto, said to all the seminarians, “What’s this I hear about priests having business hours?”

Priests, he said, were to be available to everyone all the time.The Breen brothers took the cardinal’s words to heart. At 94 and 84 respectively, Msgr. Gerard and Fr. Basil have been “open to the people” for a combined 130 years.

This year, the brothers are celebrating the 70th and 60th anniversaries of their ordination to the priesthood.The brothers were born in Toronto nine years apart. Together with their middle brother, Bill, they were a living example of the famous words of the iconic Canadian short story, The Hockey Sweater: “We lived in three places — the school, the church and the skating rink.”But for the Breens, it was the church, not the rink, that became the true focus of their lives.

The brothers Breen, who all became priests, belonged to Toronto’s St. Vincent de Paul parish as they grew up in a deeply religious and musical family, where faith and music lived in harmony. Their father, a violinist, was the choir director at the parish and their aunt was an established organist. Together with their parents, the Breen brothers would pray the rosary daily, and Mass on Sunday was a given, said Basil.

The brothers credit shovelling coal with St. Vincent de Paul caretaker Tony Doherty as a formative experience. They recall spending time in the boiler room under the parish with Doherty, “a faithful man,” discussing faith and hockey, often in that order.

“There was never a time when I didn’t want to be a priest,” said Basil, who was ordained in 1951, 10 years after Gerard and four years after Bill.

After being ordained by Cardinal McGuigan, Gerard served as an associate pastor at several parishes in and around Toronto before his first pastorate at the Mission Church of St. Louis. He was founding pastor at St. Benedict parish, a west-end Toronto Salesian church, in 1955, and would later start Holy Family Church downtown.

Basil, also ordained by McGuigan, began his service as a priest at St. Michael’s Choir School, where he had been a member of the first-ever graduating class several years prior. He then moved from St. Mary’s to St. Mary’s, the first in Brampton and the other in Richmond Hill — “and there’s more,” he assures. Basil would go on to serve at five different St. Mary’s parishes before spending 22 years at St. Thomas the Apostle parish in Markham.

“Every one you go to is really your home,” said Gerard of the parishes he’s served at throughout the years. “People make the parish.”

In 1992, Gerard became a monsignor — much to his surprise.

“I didn’t expect it,” he said. “I got a call from Cardinal Aloysius Ambrozic and he said, ‘I’m making you a monsignor.’ ”Toronto Archbishop Thomas Collins will celebrate a Mass for the Breen brothers June 5 at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Markham, Ont.It was with good reason though. In addition to founding two parishes, Gerard had served as the chairman of the Catholic Women’s League, helped build Chaminade College School and was a trustee for Toronto’s Metro Separate School Board.

Unfortunately, middle brother Bill will not be joining his brothers as they celebrate their anniversaries. Bill passed away in 1994.

“Bill was the centre of the three of us because of his humour,” said Gerard. “He was a great guy for joy and happiness.”

Bill, a “social animal,” always seemed to be in between his brothers’ personalities. Gerard admits to always having a plan and staying organized, while Basil takes it “one day at a time.” But neither is hesitant to compliment the other.

“Caring, for sure, as always,” Basil describes his brother.

“Not any more than him,” Gerard says quickly, pointing to Basil as if it were a rebuttal.

After retirement, both brothers remained involved with the Church, helping to celebrate Masses when priests were away from their parishes.

Now the brothers can be found in their Scarborough condominium, where they live with their cat, Junior.

The two concelebrate Mass daily at their homemade chapel, and occasionally get the chance to celebrate Mass at their old parishes when their health allows. The brothers remain in good spirits and still have a sense of humour, even when Basil is wired with oxygen tubing — “watch the fishing lines,” he jokes.

On June 5, Msgr. Gerard and Fr. Basil will join Archbishop Thomas Collins at St. Thomas the Apostle parish to celebrate their ordination anniversaries.

“The brothers Frs. Breen are greatly respected among the priests and people of God wherever they have served and beyond,” said Fr. Richard Andrews, pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle.

“Their zeal for souls and enthusiasm to serve God and Holy Mother Church in pastoral ministry is remarkable — an inspiration for holiness.”

The Breen brothers have made countless contributions along their faith journey. But of all their accomplishments, both agree on the one that makes them particularly proud, said Gerard.

“The extension of God’s kingdom.”

Photos: Catholic Register

NBC's Today Show At the Vatican...

NBC’s national morning program, “The Today Show” is spending several days at the Vatican, with Thursday's edition including a number of profiles about the life and activity of the "home base" of the global Catholic Church. They’ve been privileged to have clearance not normally provided to media outlets. No doubt the openness can also be attributed to New York Archbishop, Timothy Dolan, accompanying the crew as they explore the epicentre of our faith community.

You can find numerous clips on the Today Show website including a profile of the Swiss Guards, Archbishop Dolan discussing the sex abuse crisis an inside look at St. Peter’s Basilica and a most interesting Day in the Life of Pope Benedict XVI. Here are a few links to the clips (note you may have to sit through a short 30 second ad before hand...) It's well worth it to see the great coverage that's been provided. Most run anywhere from 3-5 minutes so they're bite sized morsels for you to enjoy.

Here are the links if you're interested in catching these vignettes:

Church seeks new followers through social media: http://t.co/vRQgPdZ

A Day in the Life of Pope Benedict XVI: http://t.co/xcIRtEu

Matt Lauer meets the Pope, tours the Vatican: http://t.co/h5ReXLS

Meet the Swiss Guards of the Vatican: http://t.co/vPQkFg4

The social media clip includes a brief conversation with Msgr. Tighe, the Secretary for the Pontifical Council for Social Communications. He discusses the launch in the next month of news.va a new platform which will allow all the news coming out of the Vatican to be shared in numerous forms using an approach that will be social media friendly.

If you look at some of the wide angle shots especially in the Msgr. Tighe interview, you'll see this is no average stroll through St. Peter's. A significant set and crew can be clearly seen, the result no doubt of considerable logistics and extensive planning.

The project was the brainchild of late NBC News Correspondent, Tim Russert, a devout Catholic, who had a private audience with Pope Benedict weeks before his death in 2008. Along with ever increasing coverage of the presidential elections that same year, the piece was shelved for almost three years. Originally planned for March of this year, again, things were put on the back burner until this week. As we can appreciate, sometimes ideas for stories take years to become reality.

Today Show host Matt Lauer had a chance to connect with the Holy Father following his weekly audience, presenting him with a crystal cat, in keeping with the Pontiff’s love for felines.

Let's view this as another example of proactive media relations – when given the opportunity, the media can also help tell many positive stories as witnessed through the Today Show profiles at the Vatican. And in the days leading up to World Communications Day to boot. With an average 5+ million viewers every day, it’s an excellent example of proactive communications reaching an audience beyond the pews. That’s good news for everyone

Photos: NBC