From the President's Desk - March 31, 2023
Welcome back to Legatus'?From the President’s Desk!
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From the President’s Desk?is a chance for me to share with you what has held my attention this week. The weekly update will present a selection of observations and news stories focused on Catholic, business, and secular affairs, oriented to inform and empower Catholic professional leaders like you.
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Let’s get started:
???Prayers for Pope Francis
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Pope Francis has been admitted to the hospital for treatment of a respiratory infection,?Catholic News Agency ?reported. Let us all pray for the rapid recovery of the Holy Father. May Jesus, the Divine Physician, bring him immediate healing and a full return to his duties as the head of His Church!
???Palm Sunday
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Holy Week begins Sunday. We have been preparing for Easter since Ash Wednesday, and this week will be an intense time of prayer as we await the Risen Lord. The team at the Hallow app has a terrific resource to help us prepare for and participate in Holy Week,?Palm Sunday 2023: Scripture, Songs, Readings, and the Meaning of Palms . Hopefully, this guide to Palm Sunday will make your participation at Mass on Sunday even more meaningful!
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Be on the lookout next Wednesday for an announcement about a new and exclusive partnership with Hallow for Legatus members.
???On the Road
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I traveled to the Detroit Legatus chapter this past week for their 35th-anniversary event with Archbishop Vigneron at Sacred Heart Major Seminary. The presenters for the evening were three seminarians and their archbishop. Each of them shared their vocation stories and answered questions from the members. What struck me most about all their stories is how the faith was cultivated within their families, as altar servers as young boys, through the Rosary at home, or through their discernment group at the Newman Center at college. Community matters. We know this as Legates and that’s why we gather in community. Future vocations will come about through solid Catholic communities. As Legates, let us redouble our efforts to build authentically Catholic communities. We will be creating vocations in the process.??
???Bad News Means We Have Work to Do
领英推荐
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You may have read this news earlier in the week: a Wall Street Journal-NORC poll revealed some troubling data about how Americans view various issues that are important to us as a country. Here’s the article about the poll in the Wall Street Journal,?America Pulls Back From Values That Once Defined It, WSJ-NORC Poll Finds ;?you can find the poll?here . Fox News had?some reporting ?on the findings:
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Only 21% of Americans believe that the United States ‘stands above all countries in the world,’ while 50% said America is ‘one of the greatest countries in the world, along with some others’ and 27% indicated ‘there are other countries better than the United States…’
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More:
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Only 38% of Americans indicated that patriotism was a ‘very important’ value to them, down from 70% when the poll first asked the question in 1998. Another 35% said patriotism was ‘somewhat important’ to them, while 16% said it was ’"not that important’ and 11% indicated it was ‘not important all.’
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While this news is concerning, it should challenge us to talk to our children, grandchildren, and neighbors about how special our country is, the sacrifices that generations past have made for our freedoms, and why patriotism matters. Time for us to roll up our sleeves, pray, and spread the word about what makes the United States great!
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???Vacation and Workers: Surprising Findings
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Axios?has an?interesting piece ?about a Pew Research Center survey and paid time off.
What does vacation time consist of at your business? Are you seeing similar results from your employees regarding vacation time? I am curious to know if your experiences match up to this chart.
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Thank you for reading, and be on the lookout for our next?From the President’s Desk!
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