The Diocese of Owensboro was established on Dec. 9, 1937, when the 32 westernmost counties of the Commonwealth of Kentucky were separated from the Diocese of Louisville.
A Word From Bishop Medley
Mary our mother and her role in salvation history
As we look ahead to just the next few weeks in the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church, we might be struck by prominence of the veneration of Mary reflected on these days. Over a period of about six weeks there are at least six feasts associated with Mary – some major, some lesser known.
Calling our national leaders to be genuinely pro-life
After the Nashville school shooting of a few weeks ago that saw six people, including three nine-year-olds, die, I began to consider writing my next article for The Western Kentucky Catholic on the subject of gun violence. I had done some research and begun to organize the article in my mind. As I sat at my desk to write on Easter Monday morning, my phone alerted me to the first reports of a mass shooting at a workplace in downtown Louisville.
Holy Thursday: Do this in memory of me
As April begins we are within sight of the last days and hours of Lent. Palm Sunday is April 2, so Holy Week is here and Easter but days away. The heart of our observance of Holy Week is the Sacred Triduum, when the Church “solemnly celebrates the greatest mysteries of our redemption, keeping by means of special celebrations the memorial of her Lord, crucified, buried, and risen.” (From the Roman Missal)
A Word From Bishop Medley: A silent witness
When it comes to the Church’s liturgy and practice, most of us associate the month of March with Lent. Ash Wednesday has usually fallen in February, so by March we are well-practiced in our pledges of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. And, after all, apart from our religious life, March usually begins to show us some sustaining glimpses of winter’s end and spring’s beginning.
Surrendering to God through the prayer of Simeon
February 2nd is the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord.
A well-kept secret for Christian unity
We often speak of some very good things as “well-kept secrets,” meaning some things very positively notable are not well known or observed at all. Perhaps we might even say the Gospel of Jesus Christ in its fullness is too often a well-kept secret.
Praying, healing, and rebuilding a year after the tornadoes
On the night of Dec. 10, 2021, I was not watching television and was not aware of the reports of tornado warnings across western Kentucky. Storms were never severe in Owensboro where I was that night, so I slept well. When I awoke on the morning of the 11th I checked into my regular news apps, and I began to learn of the devastation across our diocese.
Who is your favorite saint?
In our Catholic tradition we observe the month of November as a time of special commemoration of all the faithful departed. November 2 is celebrated each year as the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls Day), but the entire month is a time of consciousness and prayer for all those “who have gone before us marked with the sign of faith.”
A Word From Bishop Medley: Please vote ‘Yes’ for life on November 8
On June 24, 2022 the prayers of those who support the dignity and worth of all human life were answered when the United States Supreme Court struck down the Roe v. Wade decision of 1973.