The Mexican Bishops’ Conference has made a public request for help from the country’s authorities, as well as all people of good will, in addressing the migration crisis at the country’s southern border. In a May 7 statement entitled ‘Request for Help’, the bishops noted that “we Mexicans have always been known for our joy,…
Concrete hope never disappoints, Pope tells Gypsy communities Members of Italy’s Gypsy communities must look to God to hold on to the hope of a future where they are no longer discriminated against or segregated, Pope Francis has said. Speaking to 500 members of the Roma, Sinti and Gypsy communities during a May 9 prayer service in the Clementine Hall of the…
Bill to end Louisiana death penalty fails A proposal to allow voters to decide if capital punishment should remain legal in Louisiana has been defeated in the state senate. Senate Bill 112 would have added a question to the next state-wide ballot proposing a constitutional amendment to abolish the death penalty. It was defeated last…
Christians recognise life’s great paradox that so much evil and temptation exist in the world, but that God is always present, too, ready to help and give people the strength to persevere, Pope Francis said. Each person has been given life, “dreams of love and the good”, but is then “continuously exposed to evil” aimed…
Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron of Los Angeles said his new book addressing the church’s sexual abuse crisis and urging Catholics to “stay and fight for the body of Christ” comes from his “pastor’s heart”. “It is simply my statement coming out of my whole life as a Catholic – 33 years as a priest, almost…
Pope Francis has revised and clarified norms and procedures for holding bishops and religious superiors accountable in protecting minors as well as in protecting members of religious orders and seminarians from abuse. The new juridical instrument is meant to help bishops and religious leaders around the world clearly understand their duties and church law, underlining…
A ceasefire was called on this week after days of rocket fire from the Gaza Strip into southern Israel, marking an end to a particularly violent weekend that saw approximately 30 people killed. Over the weekend, around 700 rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip. While the majority of the rocket fire was intercepted by…
When Paris’ Cathedral of Notre-Dame caught fire, the world held its collective breath. The spire fell, and the wooden roof was reduced to ash, but the holy relics were saved, and the interior preserved from the worst ravages of fire. Now more than $1 billion (€960m) has been raised to restore Notre-Dame, and a video…
The Australian Catholic Church is continuing on its ground-breaking path toward a potential dramatic overhaul with the announcement that a panel of experts will thoroughly review the governance and management structures of Catholic dioceses and parishes. Such a review was a key recommendation of Australia’s landmark Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse,…
The apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Mogadishu, Somalia, has called on the world to “pay attention to the plight of Somali people” as they face critical food shortages because of a crippling drought. Bishop Giorgio Bertin of Djibouti, who also serves Mogadishu, said Somalis living outside the country’s central and southern agricultural regions are…