Archive for June 2013

The day we accidentally marched in the Gay Pride Parade

Gay Pride Parade 2013 is Sunday, June 30 here in Chicago.  Or in my case, it was the Accidental Pride Parade. Yep, it’s true.  I was in one of the earliest Gay Pride Parades.  That summer my friends and I spent every day at the beach.  Before work, after work and our days off were... Read more »
By Pam Spano,
June 30, 2013 at 6:47 am • 

How Should Catholics Respond to the Supreme Court Marriage Decision?

How should Catholics respond to the Supreme Court marriage decision?  After reading articles on both sides of the issue, I thought my brain would either explode or leak out of my ears. I was beginning to get more and more confused. The article The Catholic Activists Behind Edie Windor’s DOMA Victory by Jamie L. Manson that appeared in the... Read more »
By Pam Spano,
June 28, 2013 at 7:23 am • 

What is Resistance?

What is resistance?  Resistance is what keeps us from our creative work.  It can be our own undoing or outside forces that so affects us that we can’t do the work. My husband and I have been singing at Mass together for a long time.  There was one particular incident that rattled me whenever I... Read more »
By Pam Spano,
June 24, 2013 at 6:14 am • 
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Cardinal George Refused Communion to a Gay Activist

Cardinal George refused Communion to a gay activist, but the lesbian cantor gave it to him anyway.  Yes you read that right. Joe Murray, is the activist who was refused.  He is the founder of the US Rainbow Sash Movement and attended the Archdiocesan’s Gay and Lesbian Outreach’s (AGLO) 25th anniversary liturgy held at Our Lady of... Read more »
By Pam Spano,
June 20, 2013 at 7:29 am • 

Being Catholic: It Don't Come Easy

Being Catholic, like the song, “It don’t come easy, you know it don’t come easy” (Ringo Starr).  I learned that years ago while attending a weekly prayer group.  I learned so much about God there, but I also learned about His people. One of the women in the group was that rare Christian who practiced... Read more »
By Pam Spano,
June 18, 2013 at 6:23 am • 

If anything should ever happen to my marriage, you'll find me in a convent

If anything should ever happen to my marriage, you’ll find me in a convent.  I’m serious.  Before we got married, my husband-to-be told me he would never give me a divorce.  I shrugged and said, “Okay.”  I lovingly refer to it as our “pre-nup.” But if we were to ever split up, I am headed... Read more »
By Pam Spano,
June 7, 2013 at 7:20 am • 
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Eight Reasons Not to Go to Church

Here are eight reasons not to go to church: I’m too busy to go to church. I don’t like the priest(s). I don’t like the music (or the choir director). The usher was rude to me. No one returned my call when I called the rectory and asked about baptism, wedding or funeral arrangements. All... Read more »
By Pam Spano,
June 5, 2013 at 5:39 am • 

Rev. Andrew Greeley: Chicago Catholics and the Struggles Within their Church

Rev. Andrew Greeley’s recent passing reminded me of one of the many studies he has done. Specifically the one he did about Chicago Catholics and the struggles within their Church. “[Leaders] have to be aware that the church is [perceived as] too authoritative, makes too many rules. Its sermons tend to be uninspiring,” U. of... Read more »
By Pam Spano,
June 3, 2013 at 7:17 am •