The Venezuelan bishops asked last Thursday that president Nicolas Maduro resign from the office which he “illegitimately” exercises and that a new president be elected in the shortest time possible. “In face of the reality of an illegitimate and failed government, Venezuela is crying out for a change of direction, a return to the Constitution.…
The Catholic bishops of Haiti have announced a year of prayer and adoration for the country, which continues to face heightened tensions and instability amid calls for President Jovenel Moise to resign. “The misery has become so sharp and the insecurity so destabilising that the tree of hope has been torn from the ground,” the…
As the Catholic Church in Chile continues to deal with the fallout of clerical sexual abuse and its cover-up, the Chilean government passed a law removing the statute of limitations on sex abuse crimes against children. The new law, which passed the Chilean Congress earlier this month, ensures that there will be no time limit…
More evidence showing the reality of Christian persecution across the world allows for “meaningful dialogue” to take place, the head of Aid to the Church in Need, Ireland, has said. The comments come after UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said that Christians are “the most persecuted group in modern times”. A new report examining Christian…
Cardinal Paolo Sardi, who served under five Popes, died over the weekend at Gemelli Hospital in Rome after a short illness. The 84-year-old Piem-ontese cardinal had been retired from his work in the Secretariat of State, where he coordinated the office which edits papal speeches and texts. He most recently had served as pro-patron and…
Extensive experience should give Ireland’s Capuchins grounds for ongoing hope, the new provincial of the Irish friars has said. Speaking in his closing address to the Irish Capuchins’ provincial chapter, Leitrim’s Fr Seán Kelly said while all those gathered at the Emmaus retreat centre in Swords, Co. Dublin, were fully aware of the order’s lack…
Bishop Liam McDaid, who has “blessed” people with his “wisdom, sense of humour and compassion”, marked 50 years of service in the priesthood over the weekend. Laity and clergy came from across the Diocese of Clogher to celebrate the Mass of Thanksgiving at St Macartan’s Cathedral on Sunday, July 14. Bishop McDaid, from Bundoran, Co.…
The UN Human Rights Council has approved a resolution to launch an investigation into the violent war on drugs taking place in the Philippines under President Rodrigo Duterte. Approved last Thursday by a narrow margin, the resolution does not go as far as to create a full commission to examine the matter, but instead authorises…
Cardinal Baltazar Enrique Porras Cardozo said last week that conditions in Venezuela continue to deteriorate under the country’s socialist government. “We are living in an exceptional and unheard-of situation, which is not the result of war, nor of any armed conflict, or any natural catastrophe, and yet which is having similar consequences. The political regime…
The goal of legendary comedian Brendan Grace was to “lift the gloom of the nation” and the people who came to see him, Fr Brian D’Arcy said at the funeral of the national treasure. The Irish star who died aged 68 following a short illness was best known for his role as Fr Fintan Stack…
Colm Fitzpatrick
Greg Daly