Nearly every US bishop responding to a survey said the coronavirus pandemic has seriously affected the celebration of the sacraments and rites and sacramental preparation programmes in their dioceses. Confirmations, first Communions, the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and other sacramental preparation were the ministries most often cited by the bishops as being affected,…
Staff at the Pope John XXIII hospital in Bergamo – once the epicentre of the Covid-19 pandemic in Italy – have announced that they have no more patients with coronavirus in their intensive care unit. After 137 days of trying to keep critically ill patients alive, staff gathered for a moment of silence to remember…
Venezuela’s bishops say they can’t stand by while the government of President Nicolas Maduro strengthens its “dictatorial line” and the country’s people suffer hunger and unemployment, feeling “more unprotected” every day. “We live immersed in general chaos at all levels of social and personal life,” the bishops wrote in a statement at the end of…
Five people have been killed after attackers stormed a South African church, reportedly amid an argument over its leadership. South African police said they had rescued men, women and children from a ‘hostage situation’ on the outskirts of Johannesburg on Saturday morning. They have also arrested at least 40 people, and seized dozens of weapons.…
Pope ‘pained’ as landmark church to become a mosque Pope Francis has said he is “pained” by Turkey’s decision to convert Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia back into a mosque. Speaking at the Vatican on Sunday, the Pontiff added that his “thoughts go to Istanbul”. Hagia Sophia was built as a Christian cathedral nearly 1,500 years ago and…
Man charged in arson attack on Catholic Church in Florida A man accused of setting a Florida church on fire is being held without bail on charges that include attempted second-degree murder and arson. The Marion County Sheriff’s Office charged Steven Shields, 23, on Saturday, hours after detectives say he rammed a minivan through the…
The president of the European bishops’ commission has promised persecuted Christians in Nigeria that he will advocate for increased support from the EU. Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, who leads the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE), wrote a letter to the Nigerian bishops stating that the commission will advocate for EU assistance…
Utilising personal stories from his interactions with the New York Police Department, Cardinal Timothy Dolan said in a newspaper column that the city’s police officers deserve better treatment and broad support on the job. Writing in the New York Post, Cardinal Dolan said police officers deserve to be recognised for the heroic work they carry…
A cardinal in northern Italy has said that the Covid-19 health crisis has created “immense” poverty in the area, and now is the time to rebuild, to take responsibility, and to share resources. Indications from local charities and soup kitchens show that poverty in Bologna right now is “immense,” Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, the city’s archbishop,…
Pope Francis has sent retired Pope Benedict XVI his prayers and condolences for the death of his brother, Msgr Georg Ratzinger. The monsignor, a musician and the retired Pope’s elder brother, died in Regensburg, Germany, July 1 at the age of 96. In a letter dated July 2, Pope Francis told his predecessor he was…