Malaria and cold weather are worsening the suffering of Mozambican refugees who have fled to Malawi to escape violence at home, according to the Malawi director for Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS). By mid-February there were more than 6,500 people in Mwanza district’s Kapise camp, 95km south of the national capital Lilongwe, with more arriving every…
Persecution is drawing Christians closer – Pope The persecution of Christians in the Middle East and Africa has allowed once-divided Christians to draw closer together, Pope Francis has said. “Just as in the early Church the shedding of the blood of martyrs became the seed of new Christians, so today the blood of the many martyrs of all the churches has…
A man carries a cross ahead of a procession that includes Los Angeles Archbishop Jose H. Gomez, retired Auxiliary Bishop Dominic Luong of Orange, California, retired Auxiliary Bishop Rutilio del Riego of San Bernardino, California, and other Southern California bishops. The procession was part of the second annual Immigration Summit, which took place at Christ…
The president of the National Minorities Alliance of Pakistan (NMAP), has called on the Government of Punjab to end almost 60 years of discrimination against religious minorities and uphold the country’s constitution, which declares the equality of all citizens. Lala Robin Daniel issued his appeal just days after entering a formal complaint to Faisalabad’s Education…
The head of Catholic media group Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) has accused an appeal court of refusing to protect religious freedoms. Speaking after a 2-1 decision by the 11th US Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta to uphold the federal health care law’s Health and Human Services mandate EWTN chairman and CEO Michael P.…
The head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church has expressed mixed feelings about the joint declaration by Pope Francis and Moscow’s Patriarch Kiril. “In general it is positive,” Kiev-Halych’s Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk said in an interview, highlighting how the declaration raised questions of mutual concern to Catholics and Orthodox, and opened new perspectives for cooperation. “However,“…
Arrangements are being made for Australian child sex abuse survivors to go to Rome after the chair of the country’s royal commission into child sex abuse has said it is not unreasonable that they should want to witness Cardinal George Pell give evidence in person. The cardinal, who has already given evidence to the Victorian…
Benedict deserves applause for his work on abuse – Francis Pope Francis has praised the work of his predecessor Pope Benedict in tackling abuse in the Church. Speaking on his February 18 return flight from Mexico to Rome, the Pope said he wanted “to honour the man who fought in moments when he had no strength to impose himself” and said “Cardinal Ratzinger deserves…
Dear Editor, As someone who takes an interest in American politics I was surprised at the cynical and dismissive tone adopted by Michael W Higgins towards any candidate who expresses faith in God in his latest article (IC 18/02/2016). The USA, like Ireland, has become a cold place for people of faith, in particular Catholics,…
T. J. Morrissey Big Jim Larkin: Hero or Wrecker? by Emmet O’Connor (UCD Press, €40.00) This is an important book by a historian who follows the evidence where it leads, ‘let the chips fall where they may’. The work is marked by extensive research. It benefits from fresh evidence: from the Russian State Archives, from police files on…