A feature story in the Santa Barbara Independent
The Church of the Beatitudes was featured on the cover of the April 5, 2012, issue of the Santa Barbara Independent. This well-researched article by a professional journalist is an important indicator of how our reform efforts in the Catholic Church are being viewed in the main-stream media in our own home town of Santa Barbara.
A Gathering to Support Dennis Apel’s Right to Protest at Vandenberg
The Catholic Church of the Beatitudes, with the cooperation of Grace Lutheran Church (at 3869 State St.), arranged a special service of prayer and support for Dennis Apel and his family, who manage the Catholic Worker House in Guadalupe, CA. On November 24, 2013, they were within days of flying to Washington DC to be present at the hearing before the Supreme Court: The United States vs. John Dennis Apel, scheduled for Dec. 4. The audio recordings below provide a first-hand account of the struggle by Dennis and other like-minded people to stop the insanity of ICBM launches from Vandenberg Air Force Base, by picketing and protesting at the gate of that military installation.
- Listen to the Introduction by Harriet Burke
- Hear a Taize’ chant for peace
- Join the Apel family in a short prayer
- Listen to Suzanne Dunn read a story about strength — misunderstood
- Dennis Apel tells his story; followed by our prayers of support
- A Community blessing of the Apels, and a song
- Hear Dennis respond to questions
- Responses by the Apel children (Thomas, Rosella) and their mother Tensie
An Evening with Fr. Roy Bourgeois
The Church of the Beatitudes, in cooperation with Trinity Episcopal Church, arranged to present Fr. Roy Bourgeois in Santa Barbara on Jan. 26, 2010. He spoke on the subject of women’s ordination in the Roman Catholic Church — a cause which he supports as a matter of justice long denied.
- Click below to listen to Fr. Bourgeois’ presentation – an MP3 file (3.37Mb).
- Click below to listen to Rev. Suzanne Dunn’s testimony about her experience being called by her friends and faith community to the Roman Catholic priesthood (1.72Mb).
- Click here to hear the questions and answers that followed (5.36Mb).
An Evening with Bishop Patricia Fresen
Members and friends of the Church of the Beatitudes turned out in large numbers to hear Bishop Fresen speak in Santa Barbara on March 30, 2010, on the topic “Long Walk to Freedom”: Ordination for Catholic Women. Using the title of Nelson Mandela’s autobiography as her theme, she considered developments, issues and challenges within the Catholic Church today which may be opening the way for the “long walk to freedom” of people within the Church, with a particular focus on priesthood for women. Her lecture was sponsored by the Walter H. Capps Center for the Study of Ethics, Religion, and Public Life at UCSB with a grant from the Ford Foundation.
- Listen to Bishop Fresen being introduced – an MP3 file (1Mb).
- Click below to listen to Bishop Fresen’s lecture (7.3Mb).
- Click below to hear the questions and answers that followed (4Mb).
Lecture by Bishop Patricia Fresen, “Missing: women in priestly service in the Catholic Church. Will the next ten years bring about change?” (May 12, 2014). Click here for a printer-friendly PDF of the flyer. Click the audio links below to listen to the talk:
- Listen to Bishop Fresen being introduced by Rev. Suzanne Dunn and Bishop Olivia Doko – an MP3 file (8 min).
- Click below to listen to Bishop Fresen’s lecture and questions (1 hr 17 min).
