NEWS & VIEWS
from a CATHOLIC perspective

      PHILADELPHIA (CWNews.com) - The Archdiocese of Philadelphia this week launched a new toll-free confidential advice hotline that has already received hundreds of calls seeking advice, prayer, and answers.

      The archdiocese launched the new line, 877-BLESS-ME, with a $225,000 television and radio ad campaign. "They can call us about anything," Father Charles Devlin said Wednesday. "And believe me, they do. They find security in anonymity over the phone." Diocesan priests have volunteered to man the three lines on their days off to answer the estimated 100 calls per day. The phones are staffed Monday through Friday from 8 am to 8 pm. On nights and weekends, an answering machines takes messages for people who would like a call back.

      The topics of the calls have reportedly ranged from requests for prayer to questions about divorce, suicide, and abortion. Father Devlin added that the callers are not exclusively Catholic with people of many faiths taking the opportunity to call and talk.