The verdict in the closely watched trial of a Finnish Christian MP was announced on Wednesday. A court in Helsinki dismissed all charges against Päivi Räsänen, a physician and mother of five, and Juhana Pohjola, a bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland, after a free speech trial that drew international attention. The court said in…
Staff reporter Controversial actor Will Smith, who was the recipient of the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in the biographical sports drama film King Richard, celebrated his first Oscar by saying that he was “overwhelmed” by what God was calling on him to do and be in this world during his acceptance…
Cardinal Berhaneyesus Souraphiel of Addis Ababa welcomed a humanitarian truce to allow aid to reach millions of people in the war-affected region of Tigray. The government announced the indefinite and immediate truce March 24 and urged the Tigray defence forces to desist from all acts of further aggression. In response, Tigrayan military leaders said they…
The chairman of Germany’s Catholic bishops’ conference has responded to a strongly worded critique of the “Synodal Way” by his Polish counterpart. Bishop Georg Batzing said in a March 16 letter that he sought “a real theological exchange” with Archbishop Stanislaw Gadecki over the direction of the controversial multi-year process bringing together Germany’s bishops and…
Pope Francis, in a video message recorded on their bishop’s phone, encouraged Catholics in Hong Kong and in mainland China to be strong in the face of challenges, to be good citizens and to pray for him as he prays for them. Bishop Stephen Chow Sau-yan of Hong Kong, a Jesuit who was ordained a…
Bishop-elect of Rumbek receives heroic reception Father Christian Carlassare, the bishop-elect of Rumbek, returned to his see March 23 to jubilation, as he emphasised his intention to build unity in the diocese. The priest was shot in the legs shortly after his March 2021 nomination as Bishop of Rumbek. He was cared for at a…
The Vatican published on Saturday a long-awaited document implementing Pope Francis’ reform of the organisation and structure of the Roman Curia. The apostolic constitution, Praedicate evangelium (“Preach the Gospel”), was released initially only in Italian on March 19 after nine years in production by the Pope’s Council of Cardinal Advisers. The constitution underlines that “any member of…
A Ukrainian priest described escaping from his bombed-out parish in Mariupol and said he still hopes some Catholics will survive the relentless Russian onslaught. Pauline Father Pavlo Tomaszewski said the decision to leave was not easy, “but when they started shelling the whole city, we realised we’d have to go”. “They bombed and shelled us…
Church workers are concerned because increasingly desperate South Sudanese are looting humanitarian aid supplies and attacking aid workers in an effort to get food. Some leading causes of the food shortages are armed conflict and climate change. While the violence resulting from the conflict has hurt livelihoods and caused deaths, climate change-induced floods have displaced…
Priest threatened in Mexico in area of increasing violence A priest involved with social and environmental causes in southern Mexico was threatened by gangs, the latest in a wave of increasing violence gripping the communities served by the Diocese of San Cristobal de Las Casas. Fr Matías Rodríguez Jiménez was threatened by five individuals on…