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Here is a review of major news items about the Albany Diocese that appeared in The Evangelist during the 12 months of 2016:

JANUARY: Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger asks Catholics to make good things happen in new year by living faith...Future of Auriesville shrine is debated...In section on vocations, Bishop urges no fear in answering the call and sister celebrates 25 years...The Evangelist marks Catholic Schools Week with a special issue...Some March for Life participants are halted by winter storm...Albany Diocese ends annulment fees...The Evangelist begins Year of Mercy series on personal experiences of mercy.

FEBRUARY: Catholic Charities kicks off "Feeding Our Neighbors" anti-hunger campaign...Assisi in Albany job counseling program marks 25th anniversary...Students from Catholic Central High School, Troy, do tax returns for people in need...Churches and Catholic Charities fight heroin epidemic in Diocese...Black Apostolate sponsors talks for Black History Month...St. Augustine's School, Troy, announces it will close...Catholic college students find faith while away from home.

MARCH: Year of Mercy series continues...Rev. Robert Longobucco holds 24-hour "confession marathon" at St. Kateri Tekakwitha parish, Schenectady...Giveaway room at Sister Maureen Joyce Center, Albany, offers clothing to needy...Hoosick Falls Catholics persevere while dealing with contaminated water...Bishop's Easter message says we are "made for love forever."

APRIL: St. Anthony's Church, Schenectady, reopens two years after a fire...St. Agnes Cemetery, Menands, to provide resting place for slaves' remains...Hundreds in Diocese consecrate themselves to Mary...Bishop reacts to release of Pope Francis' "The Joy of Love" document...Priests of Diocese marking major anniversaries share thoughts on vocations...Bishop urges support for Bishop's Appeal campaign...The Evangelist profiles a day in the life of St. Augustine's School, Troy, in its final semester.

MAY: Doctors from across New York converge on State Capitol to protest assisted suicide...Vocations Summit held at Auriesville shrine...Bishop says state mandate on covering abortion in health plans violates religious freedom...The Evangelist interviews local veterans for Memorial Day.

JUNE: Albany Catholic Charities sends help to Houston after flooding leaves many in need...The Evangelist's Graduation Issue includes a story on students at St. Pius X School, Loudonville, creating an app for school...The Evangelist wins six national journalism awards...Relics of St. Maximilian Kolbe make stop in Diocese on national tour...Four new priests of Diocese surprised by vocations...Bishop writes in defense of life after massacre at nightclub in Orlando, Fla...Adirondack churches plan "Vacation Reconciliation Week" of confession opportunities for tourists...Auriesville shrine plans St. Kateri pow-wow for Native Americans.

JULY: "Summer Fun" section highlights Watervliet priest's ice-cream-scooping fundraiser and bocce team at All Saints on the Hudson parish, Mechanicville/Stillwater...Police shootings around country lead Bishop to write, "We can do better than this"...Local police, chaplains react to shootings...Jogues Youth Conference held in Latham...Summer fun boosts pride in Diocese.

AUGUST: Bishop writes about attending World Youth Day in Poland...After a French priest is martyred, Rev. Thomas Konopka gives homily on the risk of being a priest or a Christian...Deacon pleads, "Don't let history repeat itself," as ban on Muslims entering U.S. is debated...As The Evangelist publishes its Back-to-School Issue, St. Mary's Academy in Hoosick Falls and Blessed Sacrament School in Albany celebrate major anniversaries...Local author profiles Olympian who made history in 1936...St. Joseph's Church, West Winfield, bids farewell to long-tenured parishioner.

SEPTEMBER: Diocese ends televised Mass after 50 years, streams Mass online instead...New Catholic Charities office in Sidney does booming business...St. John the Evangelist/St. Joseph's parish, Rensselaer, revs up for annual Padre Pio celebration...Local priest who knew Mother Teresa goes to Rome for her canonization...Blessed Sacrament parish, Mohawk, marks its centennial...Chatham Catholics help lay fallen World War II Marine to rest.

OCTOBER: Diocese notes that U.S. bishops' "Faithful Citizenship" is only Church-approved voter guide...Diocesan Summit on the Family held at Auriesville shrine...St. Luke's parish, Schenectady, breaks ground for new parish center while marking centennial year...Autumn Diocesan Gathering offers courses on faith, "ministries expo"...Diocese's program for compensating abuse survivors is similar to New York Archdiocese's new program...Catholics speak about donating bodies to science...Catholic Charities pushes back against domestic violence..."Thank God for our priests," Bishop writes in special Vocations Section.

NOVEMBER: Annual Teen Issue includes story on speaker inspiring students at Bishop Maginn High, Albany...As Election Day approaches, Bishop says even teens too young to vote can make a difference with life choices...Bishop promotes mercy after holy year ends...Year of Mercy concludes...Catholic honors murdered aunt by funding Tanzanian well.

DECEMBER: Parish ministry at Corpus Christi, Round Lake, helps people connect to recovery groups...Three parishes lay wreaths on graves of veterans...Oneonta parish sponsors Guatemalan students...Bishop celebrates a Mass in Latin at St. Joseph's, Troy...Bishop's Christmas message notes that the incarnation is "more than a story."[[In-content Ad]]

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