Pain and loss allow us to connect with others who are suffering and to love more deeply, a well-known US comedian and chat show host has said. Interviewed on CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360°, Stephen Colbert, the Catholic host of The Late Show talked about the deaths of his father and brothers Peter and Paul in…
In advance of a mandated national third-party reporting system for allegations or complaints regarding bishops, the Catholic dioceses of four New England states have launched a third-party, independent system to report abuse by Catholic bishops. The dioceses in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine make up the Boston Province, led by Boston Cardinal Sean O’Malley,…
Thousands of pro-lifers from all corners of Ireland are expected to take to the streets of Belfast next month to send a clear message to London that MPs should not interfere and force abortion on the North. Westminster has voted to force abortion up to at least seven months’ gestation on the North unless the…
Catholic leaders in Congo have gathered more than 1.5 million signatures on a petition that demands local elections to curb corruption and strengthen democracy. “Democracy must have roots right down to (the) local level, and people must be allowed to designate who governs them,” said Msgr Andre Massinganda, deputy secretary-general of the Congolese bishops’ conference.…
A Catholic grammar school has reached new heights after all of its A-Level students attained A*-C grades in three or more subjects. Last week, Ballymena’s St Louis Grammar learned that their 162 Upper Sixth pupils achieved the spectacular results, marking another significant year for the top school in the North. The top two achievers were…
The Archbishop of Melbourne has said he is prepared to defy a proposed new law that would force priests in the Australian state of Victoria to violate the seal of Confession. The proposed legislation would include priests in mandatory reporting laws in cases of child sexual abuse, without any priest-penitent exceptions. “Personally, I’ll keep the…
The Mexican bishops’ conference has expressed concerns over a Supreme Court decision that upheld a health norm allowing access to abortion in public clinics if a woman has been the victim of sexual violence. “We say clearly: Respect for the right to life cannot be infringed upon by the circumstances in which a human being…
Ahead of the annual national grandparents’ pilgrimage to Knock Shrine in Co. Mayo, the search is on for the country’s oldest Catholic grandparents. The Catholic Grandparents Association (CGA) has issued an invitation for the oldest grandparents and longest married couple to attend the 17th annual pilgrimage which is due to he held at the national…
God always stands by the suffering – Pope Francis In hopeless situations of pain and suffering, God never abandons his children but rather remains close to them, Pope Francis said. “God’s answer to our pain is a closeness, a presence that accompanies us, that doesn’t leave us alone. Jesus made himself the same as us…
Archbishop asks for ‘sensible solutions’ to violence After a standoff between police and a gunman in Philadelphia last week, in which six officers were shot, Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia has praised the work of the responding officers and called for solutions to root causes of violence. “The terror that filled yesterday serves as a…
Greg Daly
Colm Fitzpatrick