The White House issued a proclamation honouring the 850th anniversary of the martyrdom of St Thomas Becket and inviting “the people of the United States to observe the day in schools and churches and customary places of meeting with appropriate ceremonies.” The proclamation, signed by President Donald Trump December 28, described Becket as “a statesman,…
Fr Reginald Foster, a friar of the Discalced Carmelite Order, passed away on Christmas day at the age of 81. Originally from Milwaukee in the US state of Wisconsin, Fr Reginald spent almost 40 years as one of the Vatican’s foremost experts in the Latin language. He worked in the Latin Letters section of the…
The Vatican’s coronavirus commission and the Pontifical Academy for Life issued a joint statement calling for a coordinated international effort to ensure the equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccines worldwide. The document highlights the “critical role of vaccines to defeat the pandemic, not just for individual personal health but to protect the health of all,” the…
In a wide-ranging interview, the head of the German bishops’ conference called for far-reaching changes to the Catholic Church and criticised the Vatican’s treatment of the Church in his country. “I would describe myself as conservative because I love this Church and enjoy devoting my life and my strength to it. But I want it…
Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton was knighted in a new year’s honours list. He was honoured alongside hundreds of people recognised for their work during the Covid-19 pandemic. Mr Hamilton’s knighthood comes on the back of personal success, as he equalled Michael Schumacher’s title record and was awarded a second BBC Sports Personality of the…
Less than two weeks after Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz of Minsk was allowed to return to Belarus after a four-month exile, the Vatican announced that Pope Francis had accepted the archbishop’s resignation on his 75th birthday. In a statement January 3, the Holy See Press Office said that the Pope had accepted the archbishop’s resignation in…
In times of doubt and suffering, Christians must not focus on their problems, but instead lift up their eyes to God in hope, Pope Francis said on the feast of the Epiphany
The gratitude that comes from encountering Christ’s love and mercy is enough to bring joy and hope to a troubled world, Pope Francis said. “If we are bearers of gratitude, the world itself will become better, even if only a little bit, but that is enough to transmit a bit of hope,” the Pope said…
The Vatican decreed that priests can celebrate as many as four Masses on several important feast days, including Christmas, to accommodate the participation of the Faithful. Worldwide In a decree published in Latin December 16, Cardinal Robert Sarah, prefect of the Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, said the decision was made “in…
Hungary’s Parliament passed a law December 15 defining the family as having a woman as the mother and a man as the father, effectively banning adoptions by same-sex couples and complicating adoptions by single people. The change is the latest of several to be made in recent years in what the government has said are…