The Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch has appealed to international aid agencies to reach a community of nuns and orphans in their charge trapped in the Syrian village of Maalula. Most Rev Ignatius Zakka has called for help on behalf of some 40 nuns and children now trapped in worsening conditions in the monastery of…

D&C Congress ‘filled with faith’ Cathal Barry Over 1,700 people from the diocese of Down and Connor packed out the impressive Waterfront Hall in Belfast at the weekend for their inaugural diocesan congress. ‘Living Church’ was an appropriate title for the first congress of its kind in Down and Connor, which drew together the faithful…

A new book on the life of Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio before his elevation to the papacy reveals his efforts to shield Argentine citizens from the Argentine regime during the Dirty War Years. Prompted to investigate the cardinal’s past by allegations made against him as soon as he became Pope Francis, journalist Nello Scavo of the…

Milestone means 110 cardinals with conclave vote

A parliamentarian in Kabul has called for those who convert from Islam to Christianity to be killed. Nazir Ahmad Hanafi made his proposal, he stressed, to halt the growing number of Christians in the country, which is blamed on the presence of American troops. “The Afghan people continue to convert to Christianity. This is an…

“It is important to bring the solicitude and the presence of the Church into the world of communications so as to dialogue with the men and women of today and bring them to meet Christ…The God in whom we believe, who loves all men and women intensely, wants to reveal himself through the means at…

Fr Kevin Doran says he can’t in conscience stand over statement

Australia – Bishop Christopher Prowse has been named Archbishop of Canberra and Goulburn, Australia. The Canberra-Goulburn Archdiocese has been without a bishop since Archbishop Mark Coleridge was moved to Brisbane in April of 2012. The Canberra-Goulburn Archdiocese has a population of some 620,000, with a Catholic population of 176,500. They are served by around 120…

Hong Kong – Pope Francis’ response to a request for a symbolic ‘mooncake’ donation to prisoners in Hong Kong has generated excitement and a flood of cash donations since it was published in early September. The Asian Church news portal ucanews.com reported that Cardinal Joseph Zen, retired Archbishop of Hong Kong, issued the request to…

France – A spokesman for France’s bishops urged the government to ensure a new ‘charter of secularism’ does not impede religious freedom. Msgr Bernard Podvin, spokesman for the French bishops’ conference, told the French Catholic daily La Croix that although Church officials understood why the government sent the document to schools last week, “secularism must…