In feeding the body, they feed the soul BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC The Catholic Church teaches that human beings are made up of both bodies and souls – and both must be cared for, having been created in the image and likeness of God.

Says ‘future is bright’ as Church undergoes ‘time of purification’ BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC If Bishop Anthony B. Taylor were to summarize in one word the keynote address he will give at Vocare 2019, it would be about “believing.”

BY WKC STAFF On Aug. 10, approximately 60 directors of religious education, youth ministry leaders, Catholic school educators, catechists and volunteers gathered at Christ the King Parish in Madisonville for a day of formation.

BY DANNY MAY, OFFICE OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY LIFE Pornography is a complex issue. With today’s advances in technology, pornographic images and videos are more prevalent and easily accessible than ever before, particularly when young people handle devices.

BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC A six-week group for adult male survivors of sexual abuse by clergy is beginning in October.

BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC Faith formation is just as much “Christian living as Christian believing” for Jeff Andrini, the Diocese of Owensboro’s new director of the Office of Faith Formation.

Two women with a passion for catechesis find a way to immerse Catholic kids in the Bible BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC Debi Hopkins knew something was seriously wrong the year that a little boy at Vacation Bible School said, “You mean these are true stories? These actually happened?”

In 1775 the first band of Catholic families uprooted their lives in southern Maryland to travel to the Kentucky frontier to establish new homes in the area of Pottinger’s Creek in what is today Nelson County. Within 10 years they had organized the first Catholic parish in the state at Holy Cross in 1785.

BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC The sheer exhaustion – from walking across a desert for weeks. The hunger pangs – from not having a good meal in who knows how long. The questions – Will I ever see my family again? Will I ever feel safe?

BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC A new report indicates that the Diocese of Owensboro’s 17 Catholic schools have exceeded national averages in teaching the Catholic faith.

BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC In his ministry as an annulment advocate, Deacon Michael Wiedemer works to meet people “where they’re at.”

BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC His transitional diaconate ordination on April 13 was “one of the biggest moments of my life,” but Deacon Stephen Van Lal Than also emphasized that this is “not the end, just the beginning” of his vocation to the priesthood.

BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC Successfully donating one of her kidneys to her husband has been described to her as “rare” or “crazy,” but Amanda Van Bussum says something like this doesn’t happen by chance.

BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC The election of a Kentucky native as the first-ever Mother President of an international monastic congregation of nuns is historic, to say the least.

BY ELIZABETH WONG BARNSTEAD, THE WESTERN KENTUCKY CATHOLIC Eddie Miller remembers the conversation. It was the same day as one of the last school Masses that his friend Tony Kraus attended before lung cancer took his life in November 2017.