Cardinal Séan O’Malley Will Talk Haitian Restoral Efforts During Holy Week on CatholicTV

During Holy Week, Cardinal Séan O’Malley will discuss Haiti and relief efforts on CatholicTV. Cardinal O’Malley has a regular show on CatholicTV called “Conversations With Cardinal Sean” which involves interviews of Cardinal Sean talking about a wide range of topics from hot subjects such as stem cell research and abortion, to memories of how the Cardinal realized his own calling from the Lord.

In March, Cardinal O’Malley travelled to Haiti to assess the needs of the Church there along with fellow clergymen.

This special episode of Conversations With Cardinal Sean, in which Fr. Robert Reed interviews the Cardinal, will air at CatholicTV.com and on CatholicTV at the following dates/times (all times Eastern):

Tuesday at 1pm and 6pm, Wednesday at 12:30am, Good Friday 10:30am and Easter Sunday at 3:30pm.

Conversations with Cardinal Séan takes viewers into the mind of a man who studied 7 languages, wears sandals during the Boston winter, and once voluntarily lived in a prostitution and drug-infested slum in order to experience and alleviate the sufferings of oppressed Washington D.C. tenants.

At the age of 12, then-named Patrick O’Malley entered the St. Fidelis Minor Seminary. . According to “Current Biography Magazine”, a fellow student at St. Fidelis said that "Most of us were ballplayers hoping to be priests one day. Sean was a little priest the whole way through . . . he was a little Franciscan the whole way through. He was the real thing from day one."

More information about the show Conversations with Cardinal Séan and full episodes are available at http://www.CatholicTV.com/shows/default.aspx?seriesID=28

CatholicTV and Catholic Relief Services Team Up For Operation Rice Bowl

During Lent, CatholicTV will air videos promoting Operation Rice Bowl (ORB), a Catholic Relief Services (CRS) program which helps the poor overseas as well as in the United States. Some of the videos were shot in the countries where CRS is focusing much of its efforts.

The ORB promotional videos will air at CatholicTV.com and on CatholicTV throughout the season of Lent.

ORB began in 1975 in the Diocese of Allentown, PA as a response to the drought in the African Sahel. For 34 years, ORB has called participants to pray with their families and faith communities; fast in solidarity with those who hunger; learn about the global community and the challenges of poverty overseas, and give sacrificial contributions to those in need. CRS’ website offers a detailed Lenten schedule full of fasting, praying, and almsgiving on their website at http://orb.crs.org/.

Seventy-five percent of ORB gifts will go to CRS to help farmers in Bolivia receive training to improve crop yields, children in Afghanistan gain more opportunities for quality education, communities in Ethiopia access reliable water sources even during times of drought, and fund many other vital projects.

25% of what’s raised in the Operation Rice Bowl stays within each (arch)diocese to support local hunger and poverty alleviation efforts.

Catholic Relief Services was founded in 1943 by the Catholic Bishops of the United States to serve World War II survivors in Europe. Since then, we have expanded in size to reach more than 100 million people in more than 100 countries on five continents. The mission of CRS is to assist impoverished and disadvantaged people overseas, working in the spirit of Catholic Social Teaching to promote the sacredness of human life and the dignity of the human person. Although our mission is rooted in the Catholic faith, our operations serve people based solely on need, regardless of their race, religion or ethnicity. Within the United States, CRS engages Catholics to live their faith in solidarity with the poor and suffering of the world.

As the official international humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic community, CRS is governed by a Board of Directors made up of clergy, most of them bishops, religious and Catholic lay men and women.

A prayer for Haiti from Catholic Relief Services

Let Us Pray

God of all creation, as we weep with our family in Haiti, console us.

In this time of crisis, open our eyes to look beyond the disaster
to see Christ in our brothers and sisters in Haiti, as Christ sees us.

Be with all creation; strengthen us in solidarity with those living and working in Haiti. All creation returns to you in mourning and your grace guides our efforts to feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, comfort the grieving and stand for justice.

With your mercy, sustain us at this time
as we continue to work for peace and justice.

Amen.