Set against the suffering already inflicted on ordinary Syrians through the ongoing conflict there, it remains a fruitless hope that the dead of Sadad will prompt the warring sides to finally sit down at the negotiating table in Geneva this month. Given prominent billing in these pages this week arising from the Christian faith of…

Pakistan – Two Christians are facing charges under the country’s blasphemy laws after a Muslim accused them of desecrating pages of the Koran. Brothers Tariq and Arif Masih were pursued by police in Wazirabad following a complaint to police that the pair had used pages of the Muslim holy book while preparing fireworks. While Arif…

The Vatican has shrugged off last week’s reports that America’s National Security Agency spied on cardinals during the most recent conclave. In a statement on the issue, revealed in the pages on the Italian magazine, Panorama, spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi of the Holy See press office said: "My response regarding the article on Panorama on…

More than 3,000 men and women leave religious life every year, according to new figures from the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. Revealing the figures in Rome on October 29, the congregation’s leader, Archbishop José Rodríguez Carballo pointed to the “young age” of the majority of those leaving, and…

Controversial Vatican accountant Msgr Nunzio Scarano has been transferred to house arrest from the prison where he has been held since his June arrest in connection with the smuggling of €20 million. The monsignor has denied the charges, but his arrest has resulted in a major investigation into his employer, the Administration of the Patrimony…

The Vatican will host a summit meeting of patriarchs and major archbishops of the Oriental Churches of Syria, Iraq and the Middle East this November 19 to 22. Announcing details of the meeting, Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches said it would operate under the theme ‘The Eastern Catholic Churches…

Pope Francis will elevate new cardinals during a consistory next February. The event, set for February 22, the feast of the Chair of St Peter, will allow the Pontiff to deal with the 14 vacancies in the College of Cardinals which will have opened up by then – and increased by two by the end…

The head of a leading charity dealing with victims of child abuse has said that public perceptions of a typical offender have gone too far in pointing to the ‘priest abuser’. Speaking on RTÉ radio last weekend, Maeve Lewis, executive director with the One in Four charity said that while most abuse occurs within family…

The Association of Catholic Priests (ACP) has described as “appalling” the naming in Irish newspapers last Monday of a priest who has stepped aside from ministry during a child safeguarding investigation. Speaking to The Irish Catholic this week, Fr Sean McDonagh of the ACP condemned the naming of the priest and his parish despite no…

The Vatican has warned Catholics not to participate in events where the alleged Medjugorje visionaries promise apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In a letter to the bishops of the United States, dated October, but only coming to light this week, Papal Nuncio Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano insists that “clerics and the faithful are not…