The Jesuit-run Central American University in Managua suspended operations August 16 after Nicaraguan authorities branded the school a “centre of terrorism” the previous day and froze its assets for confiscation – actions marking an escalation in the regime’s repression of the Catholic Church and its charitable and educational projects The Jesuit province in Central America…
Israeli President Isaac Herzog denounced the increasing violence against Christians in Israel during a visit August 9 to the Stella Maris Carmelite Monastery in Haifa. President Herzog was accompanied by Israel Police Inspector General Yaakov Shabtai and emphasised Israel’s commitment to the full protection of freedom of religion and worship. He met with patriarchs and…
World Youth Day is returning to Asia in 2027 and will be hosted in Seoul, South Korea. Pope Francis announced the location on August 6 to some 1.5 million pilgrims who attended the closing Mass of World Youth Day 2023 in Lisbon. “The next World Youth Day will take place in Asia. It will be…
Church attendance has dropped off since the pandemic for Generation X more sharply than for other age groups, according to a new survey. The survey of 2,000 adults conducted by the Cultural Research Centre at Arizona Christian University in the US found that the percentage of people ages 39 to 57 who attended a worship service during…
Priests of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church have called for breaking ties with the Russian Orthodox Church, following a Russian attack on Odesa that destroyed a historic cathedral while killing two and injuring at least 22, including four children (See In Brief). The Odesa diocese of the UOC condemned Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, saying “this act…
In a new attack against the Church in Nicaragua, the dictatorship of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, has frozen the Church’s retirement fund for priests, according to lawyer and researcher Martha Patricia Molina. The lawyer is the author of the report Nicaragua: A Persecuted Church?, which catalogues the more than…
The visit of Archbishop Charles Scicluna of Malta and Spanish Msgr Jordi Bertomeu to Peru to investigate the lay organisation Sodalitium Christianae Vitae is being received with confidence by many of the group’s victims, who hope it will be finally dissolved. Some, however, say, they lost hope that the case will be resolved. Once a…
Taizé community to get new leader in December After 18 years as head of the ecumenical monastic community Taizé, Bro. Alois Loeser has chosen a successor. According to the community, after consulting other brothers, the French Catholic has chosen Bro. Matthew (Andrew) Thorpe (58) to be the Christian fraternity’s third-ever prior. Bro. Thorpe, an Anglican…
The FBI handed over to US Congress July 25 internal documents relating to the bureau’s now-withdrawn leaked memo that recommended investigating devotees of the Traditional Latin Mass. The leaked memo, dated January 23, which originated from the bureau’s Richmond office, claims that racially or ethnically motivated violent extremists will likely become more interested in “radical-traditionalist…
Catholic bishops in Kenya appealed for end of violence and dialogue, as scores died in anti-government protests. The opposition has rallied around new taxes and a rising cost of living. The bishops are worried that escalating protests called by Raila Odinga, the main opposition leader against President William Ruto’s government, have been turning too violent…