One of the most distressing aspects of the persecution of Christians in Pakistan is the frequent kidnapping of teenage Christian girls. After being kidnapped, these girls are coerced into converting to Islam and then placed in forced marriages with one of their kidnappers. There have also been cases of these girls also being forced into…
Ruadhán Jones and Jason Osborne Bishop of Meath Tom Deenihan has described the Government’s decision to criminalise people attending Mass as “foolish” and warned that it sets a “worrying precedent”. It comes as politicians from all sides have stepped up pressure on the Government in the Republic to permit people to return to Mass as…
Scotland’s supreme civil court ruled last Wednesday that the Scottish government’s blanket ban on public worship is unlawful. Judge Lord Braid overturned the ban on March 24 in response to a challenge by 27 faith leaders, alongside Glasgow Catholic priest Canon Tom White. Judge Braid had heard their challenge on March 11-12 at the Court…
Christoph Cardinal Schönborn has declared he was “not happy with the explanation of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith”, since the message reported by the dicastery was “only a no”, and declared he would, under certain circumstances, bless same-sex unions. The CDF said March 15 that the Church hasn’t the power to bless…
Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, 64, said he won’t resign following the publication of the report on the handling of clerical sex abuse in the Archdiocese of Cologne. “To simply take the moral responsibility with me and to go to protect the reputation of the office of bishop and of the Church – I think that’s…
Finding the Peacemakers: A journey of faith from the mines of Chile to the deserts of the Middle East by Dan Morrice (Hodder & Stoughton, £14.99) Anthony Redmond There is so much in this truly extraordinary book, and it covers so much ground and so many subjects, that I find it difficult to know where to…
The rhetoric from some members of the Oireachtas should seriously worry us, writes David Mullins During the course of a recent Dáil debate, Alan Kelly, the leader of the Labour party, suggested that the assets of those religious orders who were involved in the mother and baby homes should be seized in the event that…
The Vatican announced March 20 that Pope Francis has designated the Archdiocese of Quito in Ecuador the host of the 2024 International Eucharistic Congress. The conference, in its 53rd edition, will also take place during the 150th anniversary of the consecration of Ecuador to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. “This great ecclesial meeting will manifest…
Officer Eric Talley, an 11-year veteran of the Boulder Police Department, was the first to arrive at the scene of a mass shooting at a King Soopers grocery store the afternoon of March 22 and the first of 10 to be killed. A Catholic, Talley often stopped by St Martin de Porres Church just across…
Pope approves pay cuts for cardinals, top management at Vatican With the need to reduce costs and make sure employees are not laid off, Pope Francis has approved pay cuts for cardinals, clergy, religious and upper management officials who work in the Roman Curia and other Vatican entities. The pay cuts will go into effect…