News

FEW LIBERAL DEMOCRATS of President Obama’s first term possessed as much power and political savvy as former congressman David Obey. In the secular political world, he was the principal architect of the federal stimulus package, and he chaired the session of Congress that voted to enact the controversial health-care plan known as “Obamacare.” Perhaps less well known in that secular political world is that Obey believed his actions were rooted not in secular political philosophy but in the religious traditions of his native Wisconsin. He encountered this tradition growing up in a Roman Catholic parish in Wausau and reaffirmed it…

Read More

Madison Catholic Bishop Robert Morlino remembers Pope Benedict XVI once telling a group of priests they must have the courage and humility to rest when they are tired — to take days off when needed. “I think he’s displaying the courage and humility he told priests to have,” Morlino said in an interview Monday, the day Benedict announced his surprise resignation.

Read More

Milwaukee-area churches are using Valentine’s Day to engage the faithful in some unabashed discussions about sex, love and romance. “These are real issues that affect people’s everyday lives,” said the Rev. Danny Parmelee of Epikos Church, which will explore a host of topics – including sex as part of God’s design, homosexuality and pornography – in a four-part series that launched Sunday.

Read More

Milwaukee Working is a fledgling faith-based nonprofit aimed at creating jobs in the heart of one of the most impoverished cities in America. Housed in a former ice-cream factory near W. North Ave. and N. 30th St., its four start-up ventures employ about 15 workers, most of whom have spent time in prison or on the streets and had never held full-time jobs before. “This is a resurrection story – not just of a building, but of people’s lives,” said the Rev. Mike Murphy, an associate pastor at Elmbrook Church in Brookfield and one of Milwaukee Working’s founders.

Read More

MADISON, Wis. -While the snowstorm kept many people indoors, not everyone is fortunate enough to have shelter from the cold. Hypothermia is a serious concern across the state on the very cold nights. People looking for a place to stay out of the cold are turning to various organizations for help, including the Salvation Army. The organization’s homeless shelter on East Washington Avenue received extra cots and blankets from the Red Cross.

Read More